French

A Soviet roofer is drawn to play a deadly French game. “This diabolical thriller, filmed in inky black and white, is as cold and sharp as razor blades stored in a subzero freezer.” — NY Times

Terse, character driven drama set in the quiet mountains of Ardèche, in France, where a staunchly independent woman tries to connect with her wary, mistrustful teenage son.

Classic insider’s account of the French Resistance and one of the all-time great suspense movies (1969). “Tough, adrenaline-charged, utterly uncompromising.” — The Nation

French documentary offers a cerebral, reasoned, humanistic reflection on retribution centred on the family of a young man who was murdered in 2002 by three skinheads.

Larger than life and ten times as funny, this richly nostalgic story of a Montreal family spans the 60s to the 80s. "A zippy, colourful coming-of-age tale… buoyed along by engaging central turns, iconic pop tunes and a pleasingly meandering narrative." — Time Out

The always watchable Emmanuele Devos stars in this quietly crazy love story about a woman in her 30s, panicked by her boyfriend’s persistent proposals of marriage.

Avoiding the clichés of the teen film, Maurice Pialat directs a minutely observed, uncommonly honest profile of disaffected French youth in a northern provincial city.

Laurent Cantet (Time Out, Human Resources) sets his third film in a beach resort in late 70s Haiti, where middle-aged North American women go to be sexually pampered by young black men.

A downtrodden office worker scopes out the most formidably gorgeous prostitute (Monica Bellucci, no less), tells her he's won the lottery and invites her home to spend his money. French sex comedy at its most outrageous.

German documentary about Roman Catholic monks who barely utter a word runs to 162 engrossing, entrancing, enlivening minutes. “A masterful object of contemplation.” — Slant Magazine

Perfect for children and challenging to adults, the great Miyazaki has cited this 1980 French animation and its warped world of fairytale characters as a major influence.

He's tiny, he's black, he's naked and he's back! Kirikou, the razor-sharp little boy who moves as fast as the Road Runner, is the problem-solving lynchpin to four new stories. Animation.

Bosnian Danis Tanovic (No Man’s Land) directs a formidable array of French talent in this tale of three Parisian sisters whose lives have been determined by the devastating antagonism between their parents.

Maurice Pialat’s last film (1995) is a family drama featuring a dazzling performance from his own four-year-old son, with Gérard Depardieu unforgettable as the jealous, philandering father.

Maurice Pialat’s unsettling tale of erotic obsession led US critic Andrew Sarris to proclaim leads Isabelle Huppert and Gérard Depardieu "the sexiest couple in the history of cinema.” (1980)

Maurice Pialat’s truthful, oddly funny and moving take on what could have been an uninviting theme: a middle-age woman dying of cancer and how this affects her husband and son. (1974)

Maurice Pialat's first feature is a delicate study of a ten-year-old boy and his decline into delinquency when boarded out with foster parents. (1968)

Restored version of Antonioni’s brilliant hybrid of Hollywood thriller and existential mystery. The hippest film of 1975 was inexplicably withheld from circulation until now by its owner and star Jack Nicholson.

Maurice Pialat retrospective continues with violent, metaphysical, unconventional policier featuring Gérard Depardieu, named Best Actor at Venice in 1985 for his performance.

Popular French animated feature with Noah’s Ark theme comes across like a much loved children’s book sprung to life. Primary audience is children 8-12. Subtitles.

In luminous black & white, Philippe Garrel’s affectionate, dreamlike elegy to youthful idealism laid waste in the aftermath of the 1968 Parisian student riots is an effective rebuttal to Bertolucci’s sex-besotted The Dreamers.

Michel Gondry’s follow up to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is super-kinetic lark starting Gael Garcia Bernal as a shy guy whose dream world overlaps with reality.

Sandrine Bonnaire is transfixing in Maurice Pialat’s 1983 classic as 17-year-old Suzanne, who seeks refuge from a disintegrating family in a series of impulsive promiscuous affairs.

Winner of the Palme d'Or at Cannes in 1987 (the first French film so honoured in 21 years), Maurice Pialat's Under Satan's Sun is a dark and demanding study of priesthood, faith and evil.

The living master of French farce, Francis Veber (The Dinner Game), pulls it off again in this tale of a ruthless tycoon (Daniel Auteuil) who pays a valet to cohabit with his mistress to confuse his wife.

Maurice Pialat’s 1991 portrait of Van Gogh’s last months eschews sensationalism for the director’s trademark realism. “Arguably the greatest biographical film about an artist ever made." — Sight & Sound

Maurice Pialat's remarkable second feature is an uncompromising study of the break-up of a relationship, based on his own autobiographical novel. (1972)

Spectacular documentary traces the creatures and seasons of the Arctic, reminding of nature’s magnificence and providing powerful anti global-warming message: Enjoy the show while it lasts.