Courtesy of Studios/Khadija Horton
I’ve always had a penchant for all things French. There’s the French language, which just sounds so romantic, beautiful, and overall irresistible. There’s magic in that accent and in the words. I mean, cheese is one of the greatest things to ever exist…but calling it fromage makes it sound even more amazing.
And there’s Paris, the city of lights and love. It’s probably the dreamiest city in the world IMO. And the scenic French countryside towns like Provence aren’t half bad either. There’s just a je ne sais quoi about France. And while I may never have been to the place, I travel there through movies.
French cinema doesn’t fail to capture the spirit of the country, thanks to gorgeous backdrops, fine details, and that unique French sensibility. But it isn’t all butterflies and rainbows. French filmmakers are also unafraid of venturing out and diving into the more absurd, dark, and nitty-gritty side of things.
Here are some of the best French-language films every Francophile — and generally just all movie lovers — should watch.
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Portrait of a Lady on Fire
Set in 18th century France, a young painter named Marianne (Noémie Merlant) travels to a remote island commissioned with the difficult task of painting the wedding portrait of reluctant bride-to-be Héloïse (Adèle Haenel). She does so under the guise of being her hired companion during the day, while secretly painting at night. But as the two women get closer, things get a little complicated between them as lines quickly blur.
The City of Lost Children
In this sci-fi fantasy, a scientist in a dystopian society kidnaps children to steal their dreams in order to slow his own aging. One of the kids he kidnaps is the brother of a carnival strongman who sets out to save his sibling from the madman’s master plan with the help of a young orphan girl he’s befriended.
Mon Oncle
Monsieur Hulot (Jacques Tati) is a city man who goes to visit his sister in the suburbs, only to see his young nephew. But while he’s there he’s bamboozled by their ultra-modern nightmare of a house. And despite his protests, his sister has plans to win him over, convince him to stay, and find him a wife and a job.
Les Intouchables
A Parisian aristocrat becomes a quadriplegic after a paragliding accident. And so he hires a young man to become his caregiver. And while they’re very different people, they form an unexpectedly close friendship that changes their lives forever.
Amélie
Amélie (Audrey Tautou) is a waitress who works at a café in Montmarte. And while she may seem shy and reserved, she — with her mischievous magic touch and charms — finds ways to orchestrate the lives of those around her for the better. She makes it her mission to give fate a helping hand, and along the way she finds love in modern-day Paris.
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Blue Is the Warmest Color
A teen girl meets an older art student one fateful night at a lesbian bar. This becomes the beginning of their deep emotional connection that blossoms into a passionate, but complicated love affair.
I Am Not an Easy Man
This movie answers the question, “What if men and women switched societal roles?” A male chauvinist gets a taste of his own medicine when he wakes up in a world dominated by women.
Persepolis
This film is based on director Marjane Satrapi’s own graphic novel about her life in pre and post-revolutionary Iran, and then later in Europe. It follows her coming-of-age story, with the growing tensions in the political climate back in the ’70s and ’80s and the Iran/Iraq war.
Amour
Georges (Jean-Louis Trintignant) and Anne (Emmanuelle Riva) are retired music teachers who’ve spent their lives loving their careers and each other. They’re still enjoying their lives together as 80-year-olds, but their relationship gets challenged in a major way after Anne suffers a debilitating stroke.
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A young man joins an advocacy group called ACT UP Paris, which demands that the government and the pharmaceutical industry take action and stop ignoring the AIDS crisis in the early 1990s. There, he finds his place in his community and love.
The Chorus
The students and faculty at a boarding school in France are always at odds with one another. That is until a new music teacher comes along and starts a choir. He builds a fresh, new dynamic with the kids and encourages them to follow their hearts as well as their minds. This makes a huge impact on them, and on the school.
La Vie en Rose
Marion Cotillard gives an Academy Award-winning performance as Édith Piaf in this touching biopic about the famous French singer. It follows her life from being born into poverty and growing up in a brothel, to capturing the world’s attention with her larger-than-life voice and iconic songs.
Chicken With Plums
In this fantasy drama film, Nasser Ali Khan (Mathieu Amalric) is discovered for his musical talents and becomes a famous violinist. But he loses the will to live after his wife breaks his precious instrument. He then decides to confine himself and await death which plunges him into a strange world of his dreams and nightmares, taking him back through his childhood, and even leading to a conversation with the Angel of Death.
I Lost My Body
In this strange, yet enchanting, animated film a severed hand escapes a dissection lab to find the body it once belonged to. As it wanders through the streets of Paris, it recalls the life of the young man to whom it was attached and how he met and fell in love with Gabrielle (Alia Shawkat).
Raw
Vegetarian Justine (Garance Marillier) goes to veterinary school and finds the need to fit in with the rest of the students. During a hazing ritual, she’s forced to eat raw meat and then develops a hunger for flesh. This brings out her true self that no one would have suspected was there.
Bad Seeds
A scam artist and his partner-in-crime adoptive mom swindle the wrong guy. He suddenly finds himself in charge of six teens who have been expelled because of their troublemaking.
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
This biographical film follows the story of former Elle editor-in-chief Jean-Dominique Bauby (Mathieu Amalric) after he suffers a devastating stroke at 43. This made him almost completely paralyzed, and only able to blink one eye, making him feel locked in his body. But he was determined and decided to write his entire memoir over the course of 10 months just using the one mode of communication he had left.
>Le Jeu
Le Jeu or Nothing to Hide happens over the course of a night. A group of friends decides to play a game that seems like innocent fun. It involves sharing private messages that pop up on their phones. But soon they learn that this little game yields disastrous results, and it doesn’t seem like anyone really wins.
Entre Les Murs
French language and literature teacher Francois Marin (François Bégaudeau) teaches at an inner-city Paris high school. He encounters problems with the students as they deal with tensions among themselves and the barriers that prevent them from getting a proper education. This tests Marin and his dedication to his role as an educator.
He Even Has Your Eyes
A French-African couple has long been waiting to adopt a child. But once they get the green light for adoption, they learn that the baby they’re getting is white. This doesn’t exactly sit well with their families.
Faces Places
This healing documentary film is filled with good vibes as it shows the unlikely friendship between famed director and photographer Agnès Varda and photographer/street artist JR. They travel through rural France and share their experiences.
My Life as a Courgette
A young boy who calls himself Courgette loses his mother and is now an orphan. He befriends a police officer and gets sent to a foster home with other orphans his age. While everything goes off with a rough start, he eventually makes new friends and learns how to trust and love people again.
Delicatessen
This sci-fi/comedy is set in post-apocalyptic France. A butcher named Clapet (Jean-Claude Dreyfus) owns a run-down apartment building with eccentric tenants and is in constant need of a handyman. That’s because he keeps butchering every handyman thus far and selling them as food. But he has trouble putting the new supposedly disposable employee on the literal chopping block as his daughter falls in love with him.
La Haine
Take off those rose-colored glasses, because this film shows the realities of French society. A riot erupts in the violent suburbs outside Paris after a young Arab man is arrested and beaten unconscious by police. Three of his friends wander off in the aftermath of the violence, trying to cope with the incident. One finds a policeman’s weapon and things soon take a dark turn.
Jean de Florette
Set in rural Provence, this period drama, based on a novel by Marcel Pagnol, tells the story of an uncle-nephew farmer duo plotting to trick a newcomer who owns the adjoining property. They try to block the only water source available to him to drive him to bankruptcy and force him to sell.
Les Enfants du Paradis
Considered one of the greatest French films of all time, Children of Paradise is set in 19th century Paris and follows the story of a lovely yet mysterious actress who is loved by four different men: an actor, a criminal, a count, and a mime. It shows how life’s ups and downs have brought her to different places and how that has affected her relationships and intimate connections.
Jasmine is a journalist struggling to adult by day…
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