French Cinema

Kaizer Sosa

I love world cinema and in particular French Cinema. I'm just hoping to get a few tips on some great french movies. I loved "The beat that my heart skipped", "Caché" and "La Haine". All very different movies but so enjoyable.

I'm not really looking for recommendations like Cyrano de Bergerac but more contemporary greats although if you think a film is good enough recommend it. Really looking forward to your tips!!

faceman

You have lots of choice!

I recommend "Subway" and "The Big Blue", both directed by Luc Besson.

"Amelie" in recent years, starred Audrey Tatou pre Da Vinci Code, is a beautiful little film.

"Betty Blue" is also a great film, oscar nominated and I think won a few.

finally, no French cinema recommendation is complete without recomending the "Three Colours" trilogy.

Kaizer Sosa

Cheers faceman, have had the Three Colours trilogy on my to-see list for quite some time. I love Juliette Binoche too and I think she's in one of them. I heard good things about a film called a Christmas Tale too and another called The Secret of the Grain.

Karl Hungus

Tell No One is a film I would highly recommend.

bullpost

Go and see "A prophet" - its on at the moment.

Jim

bullpost wrote: »

Go and see "A prophet" - its on at the moment.

Same director as The Beat That My Heart Skipped (possibly my favourite film of all time. Had the joy of seeing it on the big screen in IFI yesterday, didn't think I'd get the chance again).

A Prophet is quite long but v v good. You stop thinking about the length after awhile and just enjoy the film.

Kess73

Here are four with Vincent Cassel in them that I rate;


Mesrine: Public Enemy No. 1

Mesrine: Killer Instinct

Brotherhood Of The Wolf

L'appartement

tricky D

Luc Besson also did Diva, Subway, Nikita

Les Valseuses

Jean de Florette and Manon de Sources are fantastic

Delicatessen
Gazon Maudit
Le Retour de Martin Guerre
La Cage Aux Folles
Belle de Jour
La Belle et la Bête
Jules et Jim
Jésus de Montréal
La Reine Margot
Monsieur Hire
Les Visiteurs
Taxi (1998 film)
A Bout de Souffle
Le Dernier Metro

all top quality films

Valmont

I just watched La Haine last night for the first time and I was blown away. I haven't watched such a near perfect film in a good while! I felt like someone punched me in the stomach when it was over.

Morlar

I'd go along with the Messrine movies, Besson etc

One from the 70's
The Devil Probably

Here are some fairly recent one that should be on the list

Them

Sheitan

Karl Hungus

Morlar wrote: »

I'd go along with the Messrine movies, Besson etc

Here is another fairly recent one that should be on the list

Them

If you're into Horror, then Martyrs was a film that had me extremely impressed. Inside is also very good.

Morlar

Karl Hungus wrote: »

If you're into Horror, then Martyrs was a film that had me extremely impressed. Inside is also very good.

Caught the Martyrs on dvd and barely watched it through to the end, started off fantastic but lost it totally half way through imo. Havent seen Inside yet though - cheers.

One more worth a look (D.Cronenberg fans may appreciate) - In my skin

Jako8

I liked Les Choiristes a lot. You've probably seen it already though.

And as Jim said De battre mon cœur s'est arrêté is fantastic.

mike65

If you have SKY you can sub to Cinemoi and sate your appetite to at least some degree.

kraggy

A Very Long Engagement

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0344510/

Stars Audrey Tautou and directed by Jean Pierre Jeunet who directed Amelie.

gandalf

Here are a few I can think of off the top of my head. Some already have been mentioned.

The Chorus
Séraphine
Taxi
Jean de Florette
Manon de Sources
I've Loved You So Long
Faubourg 36
Brotherhood of the Wolf

Psychedelic

Delicatessen
The City of Lost Children
Amelie

quickbeam

Some of my favourite:

Amelie
La Cage Aux Folles
Le Dîner De Cons
Jean De Florette
Manon Des Sources
Ridicule
Three Colours trilogy
A Very Long Engagement
The Science of Sleep (half French, half English)

Pride Fighter

Seen a decent actioner called Scorpion a few weeks ago. Its not a cinematic great but solid nonetheless.

There is a great film with Gerard Depardieu for the 70's called L'Matrisse, or something along those lines. Thats a pretty good film.

Doctor Zaius

La fille sur la pont - Vanessa Paradis and Daniel Auitiel make knife throwing sexy

La hors d'Prix - Audrey Tautou looks incredibly doing her best Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffanys impression.

Taxi - guy drives a taxi very quickly around Marseille as he's forced by a cop to help him, they get themselves into all sorts of high jinks with comedic consequences.

13 (Tzameti) - when your mother said, never play with guns, she wasnt far wrong. Roulette, Russian style.

The Class - teacher and kids keep it real in the classroom,full of interracial tension and homework.

greendom

Jean de Florette and its sequel Manon des Sources are wonderful films.

Beautifully filmed and acted and with that wonderful provencal accent

bonerm

tricky D wrote: »

Luc Besson also did Diva, Subway, Nikita

No he didn't. Unless he was making mainstream feature-films when he was about 21?

purple_hatstand

As you liked ‘The Beat That My Heart Skipped’, you should definitely check out its director Jacques Audiard‘s previous film ‘Read My Lips’ for an excellent, taut, tense thriller with proper characters.

Karl mentioned ‘Tell No One’ (adapted from Harlan Coben’s novel) and it reminded me of another (better, IMO) film with Kristin Scott-Thomas speaking French, ‘I’ve Loved You So Long’. Here she’s in the lead role and gives a career-defining, emotionally complex and utterly convincing performance.

And just because lots of my favourite French films have strong central female performances and great music, here are two more which feature both: ‘The Page Turner’ is a great revenge story from just a few years ago and ‘The Piano Teacher’ starring Isabelle Huppert is my favourite Michael Haneke film.

Enjoy…

purple_hatstand

bonerm wrote: »

No he didn't. Unless he was making mainstream feature-films when he was about 21?

'Diva' is the second film by 'Betty Blue' director Jean-Jacques Beineix

mackthefinger

Don't think there's anything I can add, some cracking
suggestions there that I'll be putting on my list.

Just watched 'cache' again to see if it would be as good
second time or it would reveal anything more. It was, and
it didn't. Watched 'The time of the wolf' recently by Haneke -
emotionally intense and difficult viewing, but it's hard to look
away. Has anyone seen 'The white ribbon'', his recent one?

Doctor Zaius

Yeah I watched White Ribbon last night. a strange strange film but very good, a fantastic insight into the dark side of family/village life. You can certainly tell it's a Haneke film anyway.

I must watch Cache again, saw it in the cinema in 2006 and it really stuck with me.

Kaizer Sosa

I didn't see the White Ribbon, but I heard that its his masterpiece. It was in nearly all the best of 2009 lists that I saw.

Some really great suggestions there guys. Some I've been aware of and some I've not. Going to watch A Prophet now so hopefully I like it as much as Audiards last film.

missmatty

This one.....Couscous.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0487419/

Opinions and reviews were divided and I could see why, but I still think it had a lot of merit.

thanks

My contribution (some of them might be difficult to find with english subtitles):
L'adversaire: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0273069/
Les apprentis: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112386/
L'enfer: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0109731/
Le convoyeur: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0347330/
Un héros très discret: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118020/
L'appât: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112387/
Le péril jeune: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110922/
Un air de famille: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118015/
Les rivières pourpres: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0228786/
L'emploi du temps: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0279065/
Le couperet: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0422015/
Les randonneurs: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119981/

Enjoy!

bullpost

Also see "Glor De Mon Pere" which is based on childhood of guy who wrote these two. L'Homme Du Train is another good movie and generally anything with Daniel Autiel will be worth watching.

greendom wrote: »

Jean de Florette and its sequel Manon des Sources are wonderful films.

Beautifully filmed and acted and with that wonderful provencal accent