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A rapacious bond trader veers out of the fast lane and collides with love in this glossy dramatic comedy directed by Ridley Scott. Thematically and stylistically, A Good Year represents a departure for the acclaimed filmmaker, and even more so for leading man Russell Crowe. The Gladiator star plays the self-satisfied Max, a wealthy but not terribly well-liked Englishman who inherits a château in southern France when his uncle Henry (Albert Finney) dies. Intending to sell the property for a quick profit -- despite the objections of the uncle's longtime winemaker, Francis (Didier Bourdon), and the latter's wife, Ludivine (Isabelle Candelier) -- Max remains in Provence just long enough for the area to cast its spell upon him. Somewhat less bewitching is Maggie (Abbie Cornish), Henry's illegitimate daughter, whose arrival throws Max's inheritance into question under French law. The seriocomic complications pile up rapidly, and before long the self-satisfied Max gets rattled. Crowe plays him in a manner somewhat reminiscent of Cary Grant; with his smoothed, straightened hair and dorky glasses, he seems to be emulating the Grant of Bringing Up Baby. Comedy doesn't come easily to this famously intense actor, but for this film he's softened his persona considerably, and his romance with the enchanting Fanny (Marion Cotillard) perfectly befits the movie's beautiful location and generally lighthearted tone. While unmistakably airy and inconsequential for a Ridley Scott picture, A Good Year provides breezy entertainment and offers Crowe a welcome change of pace. Ed Hulse

All Movie Guide

Gladiator duo Ridley Scott and Russell Crowe re-team for this adaptation of author Peter Mayle's best-selling novel about a London-based investment banker who relocates to Provence in hopes of selling a small vineyard he has inherited from his recently deceased uncle. As a child, Max Skinner (Freddie Highmore) was taught to appreciate the finer things in life while wandering the vineyard estate of his sophisticated uncle Henry (Albert Finney). Life has a strange way or turning out how you least expect it to though, and 25 years later, Max (Russell Crowe) is now a prosperous moneyman wheeling and dealing in the cutthroat world of London business. When Max learns that Henry has recently passed away and that he has been named the sole beneficiary of his late uncle's modest estate, the keen businessman hastily arranges a flight to France in order to assess the value of the old property and get it prepped for sale. After Max arrives to find the vineyard in a crumbling state of disrepair, his troubles are further compounded by the stubbornness of gruff estate winemaker M. Duflot (Didier Bourdon) and the unexpected arrival of a determined California beauty named Christie (Abbie Cornish), who presents herself as a long-lost cousin while making a dubious claim to Henry's estate. Meanwhile, the overstressed Max reluctantly finds himself falling for local café owner and town siren Fanny (Marion Cotillard), whose formidable guard is quickly worn down by the smitten beneficiary. Jason Buchanan

Product Details

• UPC: 024543407133
• Source: 20TH CENTURY FOX
• Region Code: 1
• Presentation: Pan & Scan
• Sound: Dolby AC-3 Surround Sound
• Editions: Subtitled, Dubbed
• Time: 1:58:00
• Sales Rank: 9,392

This DVD is also available as part of a box set:

• Good Year / a Walk in the Clouds

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