The Rose Maker is about relationships. People are like roses. To blossom, they have to weather the hardships of their environment in order to grow.
What happens when three prison rehabilitation outcasts are thrust into the world of roses. The three are hired to help out a boutique cultivator. With a little care from Eve Vernet, the owner of Vera Roses, the three misfits in turn blossom into new individuals within a year just like her roses. Along the way she too grows as an individual. Eve grows fond of Fred one of the young outcasts who was abandoned by his parents. He seeks the affection of his parents, but they shun him. Eve nurtures his sense of smell to study to be a professional perfumer instead of a petty criminal.
What is life without beauty?
This quaint little film caught me off-guard. Its message does not hit you over the head. This movie slowly grows with you and leaves a thing of beauty at the end. Relationships need to be tended to in order for us to survive. Eve Vernet held on to her father’s dream of keeping her father’s business afloat for 15 years on life-support by not letting go of a lost ideal. This cinematic bagatelle is a human hybrid of purloined relationships that need to be resolved in order to blossom into new individuals. The human cross-pollination of the three outcasts created a brand new rose that symbolizes their new growth back into society.
Artisanal horticulturalists Eve Vernet (Catherine Frot) honors her father’s legacy by continuing the family business, breeding and growing unique roses that compete in showcases all over France. But Eve’s approach struggles to compete with the mass market production of her corporate rivals. With the business facing imminent bankruptcy or liquidation, Eve’s trusted secretary, Vera, makes a last-ditch effort to turn things around by hiring three new employees from a prison rehabilitation program behind Eve’s back. Fred, Samir, and Nadège are misunderstood outcasts with fresh ideas, strong work ethics, and absolutely no gardening skills. In a desperate attempt to save the business, the new team comes up with a perilous plan, and Eve unexpectedly discovers new parts of life that are worth nurturing in this colorful and touching comedy about growing new creations in mature soil.
- Eve : Catherine Frot
- Fred : Melan Omerta
- Samir : Fatsah Bouyahmed
- Vera : Olivia Côte
- Nadège : Marie Petiot
- Lamarzelle : Vincent Dedienne
- Directed By : Pierre Pinaud
- Screenplay By : Pierre Pinaud & Fadette Drouard
- Original Music By : Mathieu Lamboley
- Director of Photography : Guillaume Deddontaines
- Production Design By : Philippe Chiffre
- Editing : Valérie Deseine & Loïc Lallemand
- Costumes By : Elise Bouquet & Reem Kuzayli
- Sound By : Lucien Balibar, Olivier Walczak & Jean-Paul Hurier
BONUS FEATURES include:
– Audio Commentary by Catherine Frot and director Pierre Pinaud
-Interview with Catherine Frot
-Interview with director Pierre Pinaud
-Deleted Scenes
–Being a Rose Breeder: Featurette
-Theatrical Trailer
Of interest: Strawberry Mansion is where you let your mind go