# Suggest some very good French movies. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 30, 2013, 8:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250 "2013-06-30T08:57:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2013, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/41 "2013-07-05T15:44:03Z")
Louis Malle has been mentioned. My personal favourite of his is [Le souffle au coeur (Murmur of the Heart)](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0067778/combined). ---
**Author:** ![Svejk\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@Svejk\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Svejk_1)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2013, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/42 "2013-07-05T17:06:15Z")
Have a look at _[Ascenseur pour l’échafaud](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elevator_to_the_Gallows)_, (Elevator to the Gallows), also by Louis Malle. Great movie from the film noir era, with an awesome soundtrack done by Miles Davis. ---
**Author:** ![fubbleskag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fubbleskag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fubbleskag)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2013, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/43 "2013-07-05T19:17:50Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > I’m a fan of the more dark, fantastic, or absurdist stuff, so I’d suggest Man Bites Dog, City of Lost Children, and Delicatessen. “Man Bites Dog” is simply one of my favorite movies: to sum it up, it’s a mockumentary of a serial killer; think _Spinal Tap_ meets _American Psycho_. came here to suggest this; many years ago I was wandering the rows of the local blockbuster and the clerk asked if he could help me find anything. I jokingly responded with, “recommend something that will make me ashamed to be human” and he suggested this title without even skipping a beat. I have no idea why I responded the way I did, nor why he made the recommendation based on my response, but I’m glad it went down the way it did - very enjoyable movie. ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2013, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/44 "2013-07-05T19:51:44Z")
Oh, there’s also _ **District B13** _. I wouldn’t necessarily say it was “very good”, but it was a decent action flick with some great parkour sequences. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2013, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/45 "2013-07-05T21:38:27Z")
If you want some slapstick time travel comedy, [Les Visiteurs](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Les_Visiteurs) fits the bill. ---
**Author:** ![tellyworth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/977dab/32.png) [@tellyworth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tellyworth)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2013, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/46 "2013-07-05T23:10:43Z")
36 Quai des Orfèvres - an excellent crime story about two detectives competing for a promotion. Un héros très discret - a dark comedy about a young man who pretends to be a member of the French Resistance. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Jeffrey\_Lebowski](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_jeffrey_lebowski/32/215_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Jeffrey\_Lebowski](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Jeffrey_Lebowski)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/47 "2013-07-06T00:35:27Z")
Another vote for both Delicatessen and Rififi - both excellent films. Diva is a thriller that I’d definitely reco (it has a 96 rating on Rottn Tomatoes). Rules of the Game is a must see - directed by Jean Renoir, and often ranked in the top 10 of _all_ movies. My personal favorite, though, is Shoot the Piano Player. Directed by Francois Truffaut, starring Charles Aznvour; it contains elements of melodrama, noir, and slapstick. Highly recommend. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/48 "2013-07-06T04:06:11Z")
I should have mentioned [Army of Shadows (L’armée des ombres)](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0064040/combined) in my earlier post. It is a superlative, absolutely gripping film about the French Resistance in WWII. Outstanding in every way. And, oh, so tragic. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/49 "2013-07-06T04:39:08Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > I’ll add [Wasabi](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wasabi_(film)), a Jean Reno thriller directed by Luc Besson. I knew a lot of the movies suggested would be posted here, but I figured this one would have been overlooked; it’s a terrific fun cop-buddy-father-daughter movie but unless your a big Luc Besson fan (points to self), it likely was under your radar. Not much dialogue, but **Banliue 13** (known in the States as **District B13** ) is one of the best buddy cop/chase movies ever. It’s sequel was just okay, but B13 totally fucking rocks; it features [one of the best opening sequences ever](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTyWfbvX0xQ). ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/50 "2013-07-06T05:30:22Z")
I already mentioned District B13, but yeah. It makes you want to do parkour, until you step back and realize: If I tried to do parkour, I’d break multiple bones before I even knew what the crap I was doing. 😜 ---
**Author:** ![ZebraShaSha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/eada6e/32.png) [@ZebraShaSha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZebraShaSha)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 7:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/51 "2013-07-06T07:17:49Z")
[La Haine](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=js2_hBDi2LI) is one of the best movies of the last 20 years nobody ever talks about. It actually was only available as a bootleg until 2007. Follows 24 hours in the lives of three 20 somethings in a housing project outside Paris during the riots over police brutality and is vaguely based on real events. Although it’s set up as a cinema verite style documentary, it actually has breathtaking cinematography, even by French black and white film standards. Another [scene](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFsZH8tmSKI) [Opening scene](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxqBAeatCIQ) ---
**Author:** ![ombre12](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/d26b3c/32.png) [@ombre12](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ombre12)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/52 "2013-07-06T13:27:31Z")
I’m still here, lurking. Great suggestions and so many. Thanks. I’ve got this whole thread on “save” ---
**Author:** ![Steophan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steophan/32/9595_2.png) [@Steophan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steophan)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/53 "2013-07-06T14:00:59Z")
> [@ombre12](#): > > I’m still here, lurking. Great suggestions and so many. Thanks. > > I’ve got this whole thread on “save” Glad to hear it 🙂 If you get round to watching any, it’d be interesting to hear what you think. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/54 "2013-07-06T20:14:22Z")
> [@ombre12](#): > > I’m still here, lurking. Great suggestions and so many. Thanks. > > I’ve got this whole thread on “save” I can’t believe your name didn’t register with me when I pointed out [Army of Shadows (L’armée des _ **OMBRE** _s)](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0064040/combined) in my earlier post. So, I’ll use my cluelessness to say again: it is a superlative, absolutely gripping film about the French Resistance in WWII. Outstanding in every way. And, oh, so tragic. ---
**Author:** ![Svejk\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@Svejk\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Svejk_1)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2013, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/55 "2013-07-07T05:56:11Z")
> [@ZebraShaSha](#): > > [La Haine](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=js2_hBDi2LI) is one of the best movies of the last 20 years nobody ever talks about. It actually was only available as a bootleg until 2007. Follows 24 hours in the lives of three 20 somethings in a housing project outside Paris during the riots over police brutality and is vaguely based on real events. Although it’s set up as a cinema verite style documentary, it actually has breathtaking cinematography, even by French black and white film standards. I don’t think it’s a movie ‘nobody’ ever talks about. [Wiki](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Haine)says it ranked #32 in an Empire’s magazine list of 100 best Movies of World Cinema, and that it did well in the box office. I remember it being widely available in Europe. You may have had this in mind, but it’s worth pointing it out that the movie came out a full decade before the 2005 riots in Paris (not sure if that’s what you meant by ‘the riots over police brutality’, but those are surely the riots that went the furthest and gained the most attention). Of course, many of the themes touched upon in the movie (housing projects, police brutality, multicultural society, etc.) intersect with key factors in the 2005 riots. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2013, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/56 "2013-07-07T06:23:44Z")
I’m hoping soon to get my paws on a copy of Martin Villeneuve’s SF work, _Mars et Avril_. It’s available on DVD and the iTunes Store here in Canada; I just need to get paid. When I was in Quebec, I walked into an Archambeault store and had a copy in my hand and didn’t have the money to buy it. Don’t miss Martin’s TED talk: [http://www.ted.com/talks/martin\_villeneuve\_how\_i\_made\_an\_impossible\_film.html](http://www.ted.com/talks/martin_villeneuve_how_i_made_an_impossible_film.html) Another vote for _Amélie_. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2013, 8:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/57 "2013-07-07T08:05:01Z")
> [@ZebraShaSha](#): > > [La Haine](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=js2_hBDi2LI) is one of the best movies of the last 20 years nobody ever talks about. It actually was only available as a bootleg until 2007. Follows 24 hours in the lives of three 20 somethings in a housing project outside Paris during the riots over police brutality and is vaguely based on real events. Although it’s set up as a cinema verite style documentary, it actually has breathtaking cinematography, even by French black and white film standards. > > Another [scene](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFsZH8tmSKI) > [Opening scene](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxqBAeatCIQ) _C’était un rendez-vous_ finally got a proper transfer and DVD release after being only on bootlegs for years, but it probably wouldn’t be all that helpful for someone wanting to practice his French language skills. ---
**Author:** ![jovan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/0ea827/32.png) [@jovan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jovan)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2013, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/58 "2013-07-07T13:05:04Z")
> [@Svejk\_1](#): > > I don’t think it’s a movie ‘nobody’ ever talks about. [Wiki](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Haine)says it ranked #32 in an Empire’s magazine list of 100 best Movies of World Cinema, and that it did well in the box office. I remember it being widely available in Europe. You may have had this in mind, but it’s worth pointing it out that the movie came out a full decade before the 2005 riots in Paris (not sure if that’s what you meant by ‘the riots over police brutality’, but those are surely the riots that went the furthest and gained the most attention). Of course, many of the themes touched upon in the movie (housing projects, police brutality, multicultural society, etc.) intersect with key factors in the 2005 riots. _La haine_ was inspired by earlier riots. It certainly isn’t an obscure movie, at least not in the francophone world. I saw it three or four times, and not necessarily because I liked it that much, it just happened to get played everywhere. It was certified cult movie before it even came out – there was quite a lot of hype around it. That being said, it’s really not a good movie if you want to learn French! I know otherwise perfectly fluent speakers who could barely understand a word that was said. The dialogue is mostly improvised and entirely in street slang. ---
**Author:** ![awldune](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c77e96/32.png) [@awldune](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/awldune)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2013, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/59 "2013-07-08T16:00:29Z")
No love for My Father’s Glory ( **La Gloire de Mon Pere** ) and its sequel My Mother’s Castle ( **Le Chateau de Ma Mere** )? Wonderful films about a boy vacationing in Provence around 1910 and exploring the countryside. Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s films are great if you like his style. Amelie, Delicatessen, and Cite des Enfants Perdus are his classics, although his later films are not bad. ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2013, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250/60 "2013-07-08T16:43:11Z")
> [@awldune](#): > > Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s films are great if you like his style. Amelie, Delicatessen, and Cite des Enfants Perdus are his classics, although his later films are not bad. (Except for _ **Alien Resurrection** _. That one’s pretty bad.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggest-some-very-good-french-movies/662250.md?page=4)