A family and its community struggle against ecological ruin, colonial land control, and the power of wealthy claimants.
Story Structure — 5 Plot Phases
Flooded Fields
The sea walls collapse and salt water destroys the rice harvest. The family faces poverty, illness, exhaustion, and colonial pressure.
Key Events
Sea Walls Collapse — The protective sea walls collapse, allowing salt water to flood the rice fields. Characters: Joseph, SuzanneLocation: Ream rice fields
Harvest Destroyed — Salt water destroys the harvest and leaves the land smelling of sulphur. Characters: Joseph, SuzanneLocation: Flooded paddies
Family Poverty Deepens — Poverty, illness, exhaustion, and colonial pressure intensify the family's struggle. Characters: Joseph, SuzanneLocation: Family land
Joseph Turns Hostile — Joseph becomes increasingly desperate and hostile as the family's hardship continues. Characters: Joseph, SuzanneLocation: Family home
A Wall Against The Sea
The Land Registry threatens repossession, while financial assistance is refused. Logs arrive and villagers join an uncertain effort to rebuild the sea walls.
Key Events
Land Registry Threat — The Land Registry threatens repossession unless the disputed plots are fully cultivated. Characters: Joseph, SuzanneLocation: Land Registry
Bideau Refuses Aid — M. Bideau refuses financial help and demands the correct documents. Characters: Joseph, SuzanneLocation: M. Bideau's office
Joseph Falls Ill — Joseph falls ill with dengue fever while the land crisis remains unresolved. Characters: Joseph, SuzanneLocation: Family home
Logs Reach Ream — M. Khing supplies hundreds of logs for an attempted sea-wall reconstruction. Characters: Joseph, Le caporalLocation: Ream village
Villagers Rebuild Walls — Le caporal and local villagers help rebuild the sea walls despite their doubts. Characters: Joseph, Le caporalLocation: Sea-wall construction site
Sea Defeat Remembered — The villagers recall that the sea has defeated every wall built by their ancestors. Characters: Joseph, Le caporalLocation: Village construction site
Jo Enters The Family
At Le père Bart's gathering, Suzanne meets the wealthy Monsieur Jo. His gift and aggressive courtship expose the social and economic imbalance surrounding her.
Key Events
Bart Hosts Gathering — Le père Bart hosts a gathering where Suzanne encounters a wealthier social circle. Characters: Suzanne, Le père BartLocation: Le père Bart's gathering
Monsieur Jo Arrives — Monsieur Jo arrives in an expensive car and immediately takes interest in Suzanne. Characters: Suzanne, Monsieur Jo, Le père BartLocation: Le père Bart's gathering
Gramophone Gift — Monsieur Jo gives Suzanne a gramophone while pursuing her attention. Characters: Suzanne, Monsieur JoLocation: Monsieur Jo's visit
Suzanne Rejects Jo — Suzanne rejects Jo's aggressive advances and says she is attracted to men like Joseph. Characters: Joseph, Suzanne, Monsieur JoLocation: Monsieur Jo's gathering
A Brief Reprieve
The authorities grant one additional year to farm the disputed plots. This temporary permission offers hope without solving the family's underlying insecurity.
Key Events
One-Year Permission — The authorities grant permission to farm the disputed plots for one additional year. Characters: Joseph, SuzanneLocation: Colonial authorities' office
Certificates And Pepper
M. Khing claims the fields and huts through ownership certificates and demands pepper cultivation. The villagers refuse, attack him, and face Monsieur Jo's renewed land threat.
Key Events
Ownership Certificates — M. Khing obtains certificates declaring ownership of rice fields and villagers' huts. Characters: M. KhingLocation: Rice fields and village huts
Pepper Demand — M. Khing offers continued residence only if the villagers grow pepper for him. Characters: M. KhingLocation: Village land
Villagers Refuse — The villagers reject M. Khing's demand and insist that the land belongs to them. Characters: Joseph, Le caporal, M. KhingLocation: Village land
Attack On Khing — The villagers attack M. Khing, and Monsieur Jo intervenes to protect him. Characters: Le caporal, M. Khing, Monsieur JoLocation: Village land
Pepper Plantation Threat — Monsieur Jo declares that he will obtain the land for pepper plantations, prolonging the struggle. Characters: Joseph, Suzanne, M. Khing, Monsieur JoLocation: Disputed rice fields
Story Breakdown
Flooded Rice Fields — The collapse of the sea walls destroys the family's agricultural basis.
Saltwater Flooding — Salt water floods the paddies and destroys the harvest.
Growing Hardship — Poverty, illness, and exhaustion spread through the family.
Colonial Land Pressure — The Land Registry turns the damaged fields into a legal and financial crisis.
Repossession Threat — The disputed plots face repossession unless fully cultivated.
Documents Demanded — Financial help is refused because the correct documents are missing.
Rebuilding The Sea Wall — The family and villagers attempt to defend the land through collective labor.
Logs From Khing — M. Khing supplies hundreds of logs for reconstruction.
Village Labor — Le caporal and villagers join despite doubts about the sea.
Suzanne And Monsieur Jo — Suzanne's encounter with Monsieur Jo exposes unequal wealth and coercive courtship.
Gramophone Gift — Monsieur Jo gives Suzanne a gramophone after taking interest in her.
Rejected Advances — Suzanne rejects Jo and says she prefers men like Joseph.
Temporary Permission — A one-year cultivation permission briefly interrupts the worsening crisis.
Official Concession — Authorities permit farming of the disputed plots for one additional year.
Unstable Hope — The concession offers time but does not secure lasting ownership.
Land And Pepper Conflict — M. Khing's certificates and Monsieur Jo's support renew the struggle over the village land.
Ownership Certificates — M. Khing claims the rice fields and villagers' huts.
Plantation Threat — Monsieur Jo declares that he will obtain the land for pepper plantations.
The film centers on a young French widow and her two adolescent children as they attempt to carve out a meager life for themselves by farming rice fields alongside the ocean in French Indo-China in the 1930s. Their efforts are hampered each year by the presence of the sea, which invariably floods the fields with saltwater and wipes out the crops. In desperation, the mother realizes that their only hope lies in the construction of a sea wall to prevent continued flooding, but the mother must cut a swath through the local bureaucracy in an almost Sisyphean attempt to make this happen. Meanwhile, her obstinate daughter, Suzanne, draws the romantic obsessions of a well-to-do Chinese gentleman, Monsieur Jo. Though he could easily provide a way out, the possibility of a romantic relationship between Jo and Suzanne could just as easily fall prey to local racial prejudices that would damage or ruin the lives of both.
