There's a paradox about films like The Grocer's Son: at a time when most other movies are boorishly brash, a film like this stands out precisely by being low key and modest. The premise is that thirty-year-old Antoine (Nicolas Cazale), after having lived away from his family for ten years, has to return to their home and business when his father is taken ill. Home is the (very photogenic) countryside in Provence, and the business involves delivering supplies in a grocery cart. Antoine is not thrilled - he's sullen and brooding by nature - and his relationships with his mother and brother are decidedly strained. Antoine's infrequent smiles tend to be directed at his platonic Parisian friend Claire (Clotilde Hesme), who accompanies him to Provence.

In the course of his work, Antoine gets to know the local villagers, many of them elderly, and some as gruff and seemingly curmudgeonly as himself. This provides the excuse for some memorable one-liners. A customer says, "Your avocados are hard - are they for playing boules?" And a mechanic laments that, "I can repair an engine in the dark, but even in bright sunshine I'll never understand women". Needless to say, most of these people thaw with time and become more benign, but not in a trite way, and in any case, there's enough ongoing familial tension to keep the dramatic spark ignited.

The Grocer's Son grows on you inexorably, and its languidness becomes more and more of a plus. There are certainly small holes in it to be picked at, but not without giving away big plot details. The characters become exponentially more intriguing too. Basically it's superbly and delicately pitched, relaxing without being bland, and highly recommended.