There is something of Bertold Brecht in this movie ;in his short story,"Die Unwürdige Greisin" (masterfully transferred to the screen by René Allio as "La Vieille Dame Indigne " -the shameless old lady-),the German writer told us the story of a woman who spent her whole life cooking ,washing ,house-cleaning for her family ;after her husband's death ,she decided she would at last live her life :she bought a car ,she went to the pictures : her first life lasted sixty years ;her second only eighteen months ;but she had eaten the bread of life till its last crumbs.
Pipe (it's a nickname ;we will never know his real one) works on a farm;he is not mistreated ,he sits at the table with the farmer and his wife ,but nobody would have thought that after 30 years ,he would like to know more than the barn ,the farm yard and the manure heap .The day he buys a moped changes his life ;much to the farmer's surprise (and displeasure) ,he sometimes runs away (check the title) and discovers the world ;his first ride is superbly filmed : when he reaches the end of the forest ,an impressive panoramic shot shows a landscape who does not seem to end ;he visits a chocolate factory (De Rigueur in Switzerland ) ,attends a motocross race ,wins a camera ;after an accident,he's deprived of his vehicle but he does not confess himself beaten : the noise of his camera almost sounds like a protest.
The director depicts ,in great detail ,the life of a family of farmers
circa 1970-80: the father is becoming a man of the past ,and the son's attitude is a trifle contemptuous "it's only figures,you would not understand ";they are not "villains " ,they are not cardboard characters,mother makes a cake for the Italian boy who works on the farm with Pipe ,the modern son plays football with his farmhands .
The farmer cannot understand why his farm hand who has been working for him for thirty years ,and has had a day off (Sundays) every week ,can feel like going away during the week ;but he does not realize that agriculture is undergoing massive changes even though this evolution is very slow .The photographs Pipe takes may actually be the last account of the "old age" ,just before the master calls it a day .
Hence the running time of the movie (135 min) which might put off some viewers .But if you are looking for something different ,this may be your cup of tea;Michel Robin reminds me of Michel Simon,a more restrained Michel Simon :that means a lot!
Pipe (it's a nickname ;we will never know his real one) works on a farm;he is not mistreated ,he sits at the table with the farmer and his wife ,but nobody would have thought that after 30 years ,he would like to know more than the barn ,the farm yard and the manure heap .The day he buys a moped changes his life ;much to the farmer's surprise (and displeasure) ,he sometimes runs away (check the title) and discovers the world ;his first ride is superbly filmed : when he reaches the end of the forest ,an impressive panoramic shot shows a landscape who does not seem to end ;he visits a chocolate factory (De Rigueur in Switzerland ) ,attends a motocross race ,wins a camera ;after an accident,he's deprived of his vehicle but he does not confess himself beaten : the noise of his camera almost sounds like a protest.
The director depicts ,in great detail ,the life of a family of farmers
circa 1970-80: the father is becoming a man of the past ,and the son's attitude is a trifle contemptuous "it's only figures,you would not understand ";they are not "villains " ,they are not cardboard characters,mother makes a cake for the Italian boy who works on the farm with Pipe ,the modern son plays football with his farmhands .
The farmer cannot understand why his farm hand who has been working for him for thirty years ,and has had a day off (Sundays) every week ,can feel like going away during the week ;but he does not realize that agriculture is undergoing massive changes even though this evolution is very slow .The photographs Pipe takes may actually be the last account of the "old age" ,just before the master calls it a day .
Hence the running time of the movie (135 min) which might put off some viewers .But if you are looking for something different ,this may be your cup of tea;Michel Robin reminds me of Michel Simon,a more restrained Michel Simon :that means a lot!