Adapting Mayle’s novel provided Klein with some formidable challenges. “Peter writes books that are like travelogues,” says the screenwriter. “They're more about atmosphere – the kind of book one likes to read on vacation, where you want to be swept away to a certain place. We needed to provide additional narrative structure on it. At the same time, we wanted to give moviegoers the same experience they would have reading the book.”
“Peter’s book is a jolly romp,” Scott adds. “It’s very much embedded in the lifestyle of Provence. For the movie, I found that the mechanism for the story needed to be adjusted a little bit, to turn up the volume on the character of Max, who needed to learn an important life lesson. The philosophy that Uncle Henry was trying to instill into this young Max really didn’t take.”
A key change from the novel was the screenplay’s depiction of Uncle Henry, who is only referred to in the novel. After toying with the idea of making Henry a ghostly figure, Scott and Klein decided to depict the character in flashbacks, which, says Scott, “allows us to see the grooming of Max as a child, which pays off as the story unfolds.”
According to Russell Crowe, these flashback scenes accent one of the film’s principal themes: “That as long as people are in your heart, they never die.
“I thought that was a wonderful metaphor,” Crowe continues. “When Ridley and I worked on ‘Gladiator,’ the metaphor was death. But on A GOOD YEAR, we discussed the themes in terms of reincarnation – not necessarily from the dead to the living, but having the ‘living dead’, like Max, become revitalized from his experiences in Provence. Every character in this story has a situation that changes his or her life for the better.”
Says legendary actor Albert Finney, who portrays Henry: “Max has these memories of his uncle when he had his summer holidays here as a child. He remembers them favorably, which suggests he had a good time with Henry. Young Max enjoyed his company. The philosophy Henry imparts on the boy has mostly to do with wine in particular, but around that is a philosophy of enjoying life. I think he's a good influence on the boy.”
Max isn’t the only character that undergoes transformation. Says Crowe: “For every character, something happens within the story that elevates, changes or revitalizes his or her life. I've had the same thing happen in my own life, when I married and we had a baby. So it is possible to get yourself out of a rut and change things. That's what the title refers to – Max’s life. He comes to Provence, reconnects with the memory of his uncle and the things that his uncle taught him, which opens his heart. And his life changes.”
“I think audiences will come out with memories of their childhood after seeing this film,” says 14-year-old Freddie Highmore, who portrays the young Max. “The film will make you look back on the things that have happened in your own life. Young Max didn't know at the time how important the lessons were that Uncle Henry was giving him. But, as he got older and comes back to visit this place, he realizes how important they have been in making him grow up.”
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