Manon of the Spring

Manon now lives in the Provençal countryside near Les Romarins with an elderly Piedmontese couple who teach her to live off the land. She tends goats, hunts for birds and rabbits, and learns to survive in a sparse, self-reliant way. The memory of her father and the village's machinations still shape her days.

Ugolin grows carnations at Les Romarins, feeding his business with the water from the spring. Papet, his uncle, shares in the fortune and the influence that comes with the Soubeyran name. The spring’s flow now underpins the villagers and the local economy.

Jean de Florette dies from a head injury while using explosives to find a water source. Unbeknownst to him, Ugolin and Papet had previously plugged the spring to ruin his efforts. Manon witnessed this as a child, understanding the crime that shaped her family's fate.

After Jean's death, César and Ugolin purchase the farm cheaply and unblocked the spring. Their new access to water makes their carnations business flourish even more. The village remains largely unaware of the deeper treachery that unblocked it.

Ugolin develops an unsettling fixation on Manon after she is seen bathing in the mountains. He approaches her with illy-concealed desire, which she rejects, yet his obsession continues to simmer. In a chilling gesture, he sews a ribbon from her hair onto his chest as a twisted token.

Manon becomes attracted to Bernard, a handsome and educated schoolteacher who recently arrived in the village. Their budding romance provides a human connection amid the town’s secrets. Bernard's arrival introduces a potential path to a new life for Manon.

Manon learns that many in the village knew of the crime but stayed silent to protect the Soubeyran family’s influence. The realization deepens her sense of injustice and fuels her resolve for truth. The memory of this silence becomes a catalyst for the coming actions.

While searching for a goat above the village, Manon discovers the spring's underground source. She uses iron-oxide clay and rocks to block the flow, taking revenge on those who harmed her father. The act shows her strategic mind and readiness to fight back.

With the water flow halted, villagers panic as crops fail and daily life is disrupted. They begin to see the stoppage as a possibly providential punishment for the long-hidden injustice. The crisis amplifies the community's fear and dependence on the spring.

Manon confronts Papet and Ugolin in a public accusation, naming their silent complicity in her father's death. An eyewitness poacher steps forward to confirm the crime, shaming the Soubeyrans and breaking their shield of influence. Papet struggles to evade accountability as the truth surfaces.

Ugolin makes a final, desperate plea to win Manon's affection, but she rejects him. Overcome by shame and despair, he hangs himself from a tree outside his family home, ending the Soubeyran line in tragedy. His suicide marks a devastating blow to Papet and the village alike.

The villagers urge Manon to join a religious procession to the fountain to symbolize restoration and justice. With Bernard's help, she unblocks the spring in advance, and the water arrives precisely as the procession reaches the fountain. The moment cements her role in the community's healing.

Following the restoration of water and the communal catharsis, Manon and Bernard marry. Their union represents a new beginning for the village and a personal victory over the past abuses. The ceremony marks a quiet but hopeful closure to a painful chapter.

Papet, broken by Ugolin's suicide, confronts the memory of Florette and the child he might have fathered. He dies in his sleep, and in a final testament he leaves all his property to Manon, recognizing her as his natural granddaughter and the last of the Soubeyrans. The act seals her status in the family lineage and the village's history.