The Boat on the Grass

The Boat on the Grass (Le Bateau sur l'herbe) is a 1971 French drama film directed by Gérard Brach. It was entered into the 1971 Cannes Film Festival.

Cast

 * Claude Jade - Eleonore
 * Jean-Pierre Cassel - David
 * John McEnery - Oliver
 * Valentina Cortese - Christine
 * Paul Préboist - Leon
 * Micha Bayard - Germaine
 * Pierre Asso - Alexis
 * Jean de Coninck - Jean-Claude

Plot summary
In this gentle, tragic drama, Olivier (John McEnery) is a wealthy young man. He spends his time building a boat on the lawn with his friend David (Jean-Pierre Cassel), a poor fisherman whom he grew up with. Though hardly idyllic, the relative calm provided by their friendship is disrupted by Eleonore (Claude Jade), a cute and determined young woman who sets her sights on David. She wants to wean David from his friendship with Olivier and plays on David's long-dormant jealousy of Olivier's wealth and easy life. Eleonore also plays the flipside of the jealousy issue, claiming that Olivier has made passes at her.

Vincent Canby: "Adorable acting, especially by Claude Jade, who brings the right mixture of conventionalism and self-interest into her role."

The film was nominated for the Grand Prix and the Prix du Jury