La Femme Du Boulanger (aka The Baker's Wife) (1938)

Set in a small Provencal village, the town baker (Raimu) is besotted by his much younger wife (Ginette Leclerc). When she runs off with a handsome shepherd (Charles Moulin), he becomes depressed and stops his baking. The villagers want their bread so they concoct a plan to bring the wife back. Based on the novella BLUE BOY by Jean Giono and directed by Marcel Pagnol (FANNY). Anchored by a great performance by Raimu, Pagnol's rustic rumination on love is an absolute charmer. It's a little long (it runs past the two hour mark) and some of the scenes go on too long like the fisherman's (Edouard Delmont) slow retelling of how he discovered the wife's whereabouts. But Pagnol balances the peasant humor with the genuine pathos of Raimu's heartbroken baker. Be forwarned, the film will propel you to your nearest bakery for a fresh baked baguette! With Fernand Charpin, Robert Vattier and Charles Blavette.