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 | Cinema of France | |
| Foreign Cinema Page |
![Francois Truffaut directing "La Nuit Americain" [1973]](images/Truffaut_directingDFNight.jpg)
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"The history of French cinema is the history of cinema."
— cinematographer Nestor Almendros
"Godard is about ideas, Melville is about style, and Truffaut is about people."
— G.E. Nordell
French Films on DVD at Amazon.com
French Films on VHS at Amazon.com
French Movies poster catalog at AllPosters [dot] com
French-Language Movie Posters catalog at AllPosters [dot] com
France's César Award listings at Internet Movie Database
official César Award website
Prix Méliès [est. 1946]
French New Wave {Nouvelle Vague} entry at Wikipedia
French New Wave Films on DVD at Amazon.com
French New Wave Films on VHS at Amazon.com
Noir Films of France at BlackHat Mystery Bookstore
François Truffaut [1932-84] Page
Jean-Pierre Melville [1917-73] Page
Jean-Luc Godard Page
Books on French Cinema
"The Golden Age of French Cinema, 1929-1939" [1983]
by John W. Martin
Virgin Books pb [10/87] out of print/used
Twayne Publrs hardcover [10/83] out of print/used
"The Great French Films" [1983] by James Reid Paris
Citadel Press 11¼x8¼ pb [9/86] out of print/used
Citadel Press 11¼x9 hardcover [8/83] out of print/used
 | "French Cinema Since 1946, Volume 1" [1970] by Roy Armes
A.S. Barnes pb [1/76] out of print/used "French Cinema Since 1946, Volume 2: The Personal Style" [1970] A. Zwemmer pb [1/1966] out of print/used Oak Tree Publns pb [6/70] out of print/used |
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"Panorama du Film Noir Américain, 1941-1953" [1955] by Raymond Borde & Etienne Chaumeton This is the book that coined the term 'film noir'. Flammarion French-language mass pb [1/93] imported/scarce Flammarion French-language mass pb [1/93] for €10,93 from Amazon France |
Books on Asian Cinema • Books on Canadian Cinema • Books on German Cinema
Books on Cinema of India • Books on Italian Cinema • Books on Japanese Cinema
Books on Mexican Cinema
Cinémathèque Française [est. 1936]
official Cinémathèque Française website
Cinémathèque Française entry at Wikipedia
co-founder Henri Langlois [1914-77]
won Honorary Oscar Award in 1974, won Honorary César Award in 1977
credits at IMDb •
entry at Wikipedia
co-founder Georges Franju [1912-87]
credits at IMDb •
entry at Wikipedia
co-founder Jean Mitry [1907-88]
credits at IMDb •
entry at Wikipedia
archivist [1945-75] (and critic) Lotte H. Eisner [1896-1983]
credits at IMDb •
entry at Wikipedia
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"Henri Langlois: Phantom of The Cinematheque" docufilm [France May 2004, USA Oct 2005] Produced, written & directed by Jacques Richard Kino Video widescreen color DVD [8/2006] for $21.99 full credits at IMDb |
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"Henri Langlois: First Citizen of Cinema" [1995] by Glenn Myrent & Georges P. Langlois Twayne Publrs 9¼x6 pb [2/95] for $23.00 Twayne Publrs hardcover [2/95] out of print/used |
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"A Passion For Films: Henri Langlois & The Cinémathèque Française" [1983] by Richard Roud; Foreword by François Truffaut Johns Hopkins Univ Press 8½x5½ pb [6/99] out of print/used Viking hardcover [7/83] out of print/many used |
French Filmmakers
NOTE: Oscar Awards for Best Foreign Language Film are not attributed
by A.M.P.A.S. or IMDb to the director or producer, but to the country of origin.
Filmmakers of Asia
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Filmmakers of Canada
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Filmmakers of Germany
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Filmmakers of India
Filmmakers of Italy
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Filmmakers of Japan
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Filmmakers of Mexico
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Jacques Becker [1906-60]
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
"Casque d'Or" [France April 1952; USA Aug 1952]
"Le Trou" [France March 1960; USA May 1964
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"Touchez Pas au Grisbi" [France March 1954, USA July 1959]
A gangster and his partner steal 50-million francs in gold bars and plan to retire. But the partner's ex-girlfriend tells her new crook boyfriend about the loot {'grisbi'), so he captures the partner, offering to exchange him for the gold. Co-written & directed by Jacques Becker; co-written by Albert Simonin from his novel; starring Jean Gabin, Jeanne Moreau, Dora Doll, René Dary & Lino Ventura Criterion subtitled b&w DVD [1/2005] for $26.99 Fox/Lorber b&w VHS [4/99] for $19.98 full credits from IMDb Rialto Pictures re-release movie page |
Claude Berri
actor-director Bertrand Blier
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
Robert Bresson
Robert Bresson at Masters of Cinema fansite
Marcel Carne
Claude Chabrol
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
"A Girl Cut In Two" [2008]
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Claude Chabrol Collection Box Set [2003]
Pathfinder color DVD [5/2003] 8 disks for $71.99 includes "Les Biches" (aka 'Bad Girls') [1968]; "This Man Must Die" (aka 'Que la Bête Meure') [1969]; "The Unfaithful Wife" (aka 'La Femme Infidele') [1969]; "La Rupture" (aka "The Breach") [1970]; "The Butcher" (aka "Le Boucher") [1970]; "Ten Days' Wonder" [1971] (aka "La Décade Prodigieuse") starring Orson Welles; "Nada" [1974]; & "Innocents With Dirty Hands" [1975] (aka "Les Innocents aux Mains Sales") |
René Clair
![won Honorary Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film for "The Walls of Malapaga" [1949]](images/oscar_sm.gif) | René Clément [1913-96] IMDb listing • Wikipedia |
Henri-Georges Clouzot [1907-77]
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
Jean Cocteau
Philippe de Broca [1933-2004]
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
Arnaud Desplechin
Abel Gance
Abel Gance's "Napoléon"
[France April 1927 silent; M.G.M. USA release Feb 1929]
see full details below
http://www.amazon.com/End-Of-The-World/dp/B001AD6UK0/
"Abel Gance: The Charm of Dynamite" documentary [1968] by Kevin Brownlow
video/DVD not available;
full credits from IMDb
Jean-Luc Godard Page
Jean-Pierre Jeunet
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
| | Claude Lelouch IMDb listing • Wikipedia |
“I do have an awkward relationship with the elite, ever since A Man and A Woman."
— Claude Lelouch
"And Now My Love" aka 'Toute une vie'
[France May 1974, AVCO-Embassy/U.S.A. March 1975]
This film was how I discovered Simultaneous Bilingual Film Production
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A love story that spans a century, with the two young lovers meeting in the very last frame. {But now the DVD includes the restored 20-minute scifi-fantasy sequence after that supremely-romantic moment; one option is to halt the movie when the fantasy portion begins.}
Co-written & directed by Claude Lelouch; starring Marthe Keller (in 3 roles), André Dussollier, Charles Denner (in 3 roles), Carla Gravina, Charles Gérard, Gilbert Bécaud, Sam Letrone, Daniel Boulanger, André Falcon, Nathalie Courval, Judith Magre, Annie Kerani & Maria Pia Conte; Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay
Image Ent. widescreen subtitled color DVD [12/2003] for $22.99 Columbia-Tristar subtitled color VHS [2/93] out of prodn/used full credits from IMDb |
"Roman de Gare" [France May 2007, USA April 2008]
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An examination of what is real and what is not, thru the interconnections among a famous crime writer who secretly uses a ghost writer, a serial killer on the loose, and a hairdresser on her way to the country with her fiancée.
Co-produced, co-written & directed by Claude Lelouch; starring Fanny Ardant, Dominique Pinon, Audrey Dana, Zinedine Soualem, Myriam Boyer, Michèle Bernier & Cyrille Eldin
video/DVD not yet available • full credits from IMDb official movie sites: France {requires Flash} • USA {requires Flash} |
Louis Malle [1932-95]
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
Jean-Pierre Melville [1917-73] Page
Marcel Pagnol [1895-1974]
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
The Fanny or Marseilles Trilogy
starring Raimu, Pierre Fresnay & Orane Demazis
on DVD [new 6/2004] • credits:
"Marius [1931] • "Fanny" [1933] • "César" [1936]
"Port of Seven Seas" [M.G.M. July 1938]
| | Jean Renoir [1894-1979] books • posters • IMDb listing • Wikipedia |
"Jean Renoir: The Boss" docufilm [1966]
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"The River" aka "Le Fleuve" [United Artists; U.S.A. Sept 1951, France Dec 1951] Three teenage girls – a daughter of English settlers, a daughter of an American industrialist, and a Bengali-American – vie for the innocent affections of a dashing Captain. Renoir, as usual, brings his poetic sensibilities to another view of the human condition. Co-produced, co-written & directed by Jean Renoir [1894-1979]; co-written by Rumer Godden, from her novel; starring Patricia Walters, Radha, Adrienne Corri, Thomas E. Breen, Nora Swinburne, Esmond Knight, Arthur Shields & Suprova Mukerjee Criterion Special Edition color DVD [3/2005] for $24.99 HomeVision color VHS [6/2000] out of prodn/used full credits from IMDb; movie entry at Wikipedia based on the 1946 novel by Rumer Godden, OBE [1907-98] Pan 7½x5 pb [4/2004] for $11.67 Viking 8¾x5¾ hardcover [9/88] for $22.95 |
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"Boudu Saved From Drowning" aka "Boudu sauvé des eaux" [France Nov 1932] A good-hearted bookseller rescues a bum who has jumped into the Seine, and takes him home, upsetting the bourgeois household in many ways. Co-written & directed by Jean Renoir, based on the play by René Fauchois; starring Michel Simon, Charles Granval, Marcelle Hainia, Sévérine Lerczinska, Jean Gehret, Max Dalban, Jean Dasté & Jacques Becker Criterion b&w DVD [8/2005] for $26.99 Criterion b&w VHS [11/2002] for $24.95 full credits from IMDb critical text [1994] by Richard Boston British Film Institute 7½x5½ pb [12/94] for $14.95 |
Alain Resnais
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
Eric Rohmer
"Six Moral Tales" DVD set
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Jacques Tati [1907-82] posters • credits at IMDb • Wikipedia |
Tativille website {Flash-fancy; English or French}
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"The Films of Jacques Tati" [1997] by Michel Chion Guernica Editions mass pb [6/2003] for $10.00 Guernica Editions mass pb [3/97] for $13.00 |
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"Jacques Tati: His Life and Art" [2000] by David Bellos Random House UK 7¾x5 pb [9/2001] for $17.16 Harvill Press 9½x6½ hardcover [6/2000] out of print/used |
"Les Vacances de Monsieur Hulot"
aka "Mr. Hulot's Holiday" [France Feb 1953, USA June 1954]
Co-produced, co-written & directed by and starring Jacques Tati;
full credits from IMDb
Criterion b&w DVD [1/2004] for $24.99
Homevision b&w VHS [6/2000] out of prodn/used
"Mon Oncle" [France May 1958, USA Nov 1958]
Co-produced, co-written & directed by and starring Jacques Tati; won a Jury Special Prize
at the Cannes Film Festival and the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film;
full credits from IMDb
Criterion color DVD [6/2004] for $21.99
Homevision color VHS [6/2000] out of prodn/used
"Play Time" [France Dec 1967, USA June 1973]
Co-written & directed by and starring Jacques Tati;
full credits from IMDb
Criterion widescreen color DVD [9/2006] 2 disks for $35.99
Homevision color VHS [6/20] out of prodn/used
 | "Trafic / Traffic" [France April 1971, USA Dec 1972] While the president of his company waits impatiently at an auto show in Amsterdam, M. Hulot follows the truck transporting the prototype of their new car. Co-written & directed by and starring Jacques Tati; also starring Marcel Fraval, Honoré Bostel & François Maisongrosse Criterion widescreen color DVD [7/2008] 2 disks for $35.99 Columbia Pictures widescreen color VHS [6/2000] out of prodn/used Emarcy import soundtrack CD [3/2008] for $15.98 full credits from IMDb |
Bertrand Tavernier
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
president of Institut Lumière museum [est. 1982] in Lyon, France
André Téchiné
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
| | François Truffaut [1932-84] Page |
Agnès Varda
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
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"4 by Agnès Varda" [2008]
Criterion Collection color/b&w DVD set [1/2008] 4 disks for $89.99 includes restored versions of "La Pointe Courte" [1956] starring Silvia Monfort & Philippe Noiret; "Cléo From 5 To 7" [1961] starring Corinne Marchand; "Le Bonheur" [1965] starring Jean-Claude Drouot, Claire Drouot & Marie-France Boyer; and "Vagabond" [1985] starring Sandrine Bonnaire |
Jean Vigo [1905-34]
Prix Jean Vigo •
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
 | "Zéro de Conduite: Jeunes Diables au Collège" aka "Zero For Conduct" [France April 1933, U.S.A. June 1947] Banned until 1946: Bored & oppressed at their boarding school, the students revolt. Written & directed by Jean Vigo; starring Louis Lefebvre, Gilbert Pruchon, Coco Golstein, Gérard de Bédarieux, Jean Dasté, Robert le Flon, Du Verron, Delphin, Léon Larive, Madame Émile, Louis de Gonzague & Raphaël Diligent Timeless Multimedia b&w VHS [12/94] for $14.99 full credits at IMDb |
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"L'Atalante" [Gaumont Intl./France Sept 1934, U.S.A. June 1947]
"Lyrically expressive ... a pioneer of poetic realism ... a portrait of a nation." A handsome barge captain marries a girl from a small village, who soon becomes bored with canal-bound life. When they reach Paris, she jumps ship. Co-written & directed by Jean Vigo; starring Michel Simon, Dita Parlo, Jean Dasté, Gilles Margaritis, Louis Lefebvre, Maurice Gilles & Raphaël Diligent New Yorker Films b&w DVD [4/2003] for $24.99 Timeless Multimedia b&w VHS [7/94] for $14.24 New Yorker Films b&w VHS [11/98] for $18.95 full credits at IMDb |
Actors of France
Actors of Asia
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Actors of Canada
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Actors of Germany
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Actors of India
Actors of Italy
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Actors of Japan
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Actors of Mexico
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Isabelle Adjani
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
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Brigitte Bardot
Collection Box Set 6305839670
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Jean-Paul Belmondo
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
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Juliette Binoche
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Capucine
® ®
Hélène de Fougerolles
browse videos/DVDs •
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
French-language Hélène de Fougerolles fansite
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Alain Delon
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
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Catherine Deneuve
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Charles Denner [1926-95]
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
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Fernandel [1903-71]
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
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Pierre Fresnay
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Jean Gabin [1904-76]
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
Musée Jean Gabin in Mériel, France
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comedian Max Linder [1883-1925]
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
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Yves Montand [1921-91]
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
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Jeanne Moreau
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
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Philippe Noiret [1930-2006]
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
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Micheline Presle
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Raimu
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Dominique Sanda
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
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Simone Signoret [1921-85]
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
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Audrey Tautou
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
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Jean-Louis Trintignant
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
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Lino Ventura [1919-87]
IMDb listing •
Wikipedia
Selected French Films
France's films have received 3 early Honorary Oscar Awards and 9 Best Foreign Language Oscar® wins,
among 34 Best Foreign Film nominations.
list of France's submissions for Oscar consideration
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"Chacun Son Cinéma (To Each His Own Cinema)" [France May 2007]
Subtitle: ".. ou Ce petit coup au coeur quand la lumière s'eteint et que le film commence" {.. or That Small Skip of The Heart When The Lights Go Out and The Film Begins} Produced by & for the Cannes Film Festival; 117-minute collection of short films by 36 directors from 25 countries; French-language (DVDs have English and Chinese subtitles) Deltamac Limited Edition all-region widescreen color DVD [2/2008] out of prodn/used Universal/Studio Canal Region 2 color DVD [5/2007] for €9,99 from Amazon France Universal/Studio Canal Region 2 color DVD [5/2008] 2 disks for €24,99 from Amazon France full credits at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia France |
Selected films of: Asia • Canada • Germany • India • Italy • Japan • Mexico
Abel Gance's "Napoléon"
[France April 1927 silent; M.G.M. USA release Feb 1929]
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This six-hour masterpiece was Part 1 of Gance's planned six-film life work about Napoleon, but Gance could never get funding for the rest. The film covers Napoleon Bonapart's early years up thru the French Army's triumphant invasion of Italy in 1797, and the final twenty-minute triptych sequence (on three screens) alternates widescreen panoramas of war with complex multiple-image montages projected simultaneously, ending in blue-white-red tinting symbolizing the tricolor flag of France.
There was a stereo sound reissue in 1934; the Brownlow-Coppola 235-minute version was exhibited with live orchestras in 1981; the 5-hour re-restoration was completed in 2000. Written, directed & edited by Abel Gance [1889-1981]; starring Albert Dieudonné & Gina Manès Region 1 DVD not available in USA Universal 1981 release b&w/color VHS [3/92] 2 tapes - out of prodn/used full credits from IMDb color Coppola 1981 re-release 27"x41" poster from Amazon for $39.99 "Napoleon" script? [1990] by Abel Gance
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"Napoleon" [1983] by Kevin Brownlow
Abel Gance's masterpeice would have been lost had then-teenager Brownlow not discovered 9.5mm snippets in a London shop. The book is a record of the 30-plus years of extraordinary work that resulted in the 4-hour 1981 version and the over-five-hour restoration of 2000. British Film Institute 9x6 pb [1/2008] not available? Knopf pb [10/83] out of print/used Jonathan Cape hardcover [5/83] out of prodn/used |
"À Nous la Liberté" [France Dec 1931]
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A famous left-wing satirical comedy, considered the inspiration for Chaplin's 'Modern Times'. A tale of two loveable convict pals after release from prison; one works his way up to factory owner, but is blackmailed over his past, so the two reunite and take to the road as tramps.
Directed by René Clair; starring Raymond Cordy & Henri Marchand
Home Vision subtitled b&w DVD [8/2002] for $26.99 Timeless Multimedia subtitled b&w VHS [12/94] for $12.99 full credits from IMDb |
"The Grand Illusion"
[France June 1937; USA Sept 1938]
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Complex, profound and heartbreakingly human look at the illusions inherent in war & heroism, social class & individual character, romantic love, religion – all are trapped in illusion.
Co-written & directed by Jean Renoir; starring Jean Gabin, Pierre Fresnay, Erich von Stroheim & Marcel Dalio; Oscar nominated for Best Picture
Criterion b&w DVD w/English subtitles [11/99] for $34.76 TimelessVideo b&w VHS w/English subtitles [8/97] for $14.99 Criterion b&w VHS w/English subtitles [11/99] for $29.95 full credits from IMDb |
"Rules of The Game"
aka 'La Règle du Jeu' [France 1939]
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Banned in France until 1956, Renoir's second masterpiece views life as both a comedy and a tragedy, showing a frenzied hunting weekend in the country against a background of Europe's pending devastation during World War II. Indescribable: What you are left with is the sense that Life makes no sense whatsoever, which conclusion makes perfect sense.
Co-written & directed by & co-starring Jean Renoir; also starring Marcel Dalio, Roland Toutain & Nora Gregor
Criterion b&w DVD w/subtitles [1/2004] 2 disks for $29.96 Home Vision b&w VHS w/English subtitles [7/93] for $29.95 full credits from IMDb |
| | "Monsieur Vincent" [France 1948]
Directed by Maurice Cloche |
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"Forbidden Games" aka 'Jeux interdits' [France 1952]
Directed by René Clément |
"Les Diaboliques"
[France Jan 1955; USA Nov 1955]
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Two schoolteachers, the wife & mistress of a sadistic boarding school headmaster, plot to kill him. But after they drown him and dump the body in a swimming pool, the corpse goes missing ...
Produced, co-written & directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot; based on a novel by Boileau-Narcejac; starring Simone Signoret, Véra Clouzot, Paul Meurisse, Charles Vanel & Michel Serrault
Criterion subtitled b&w DVD [1/99] for $18.97 Homevision subtitled restored b&w VHS [9/2001] for $28.45 Madacy b&w VHS [9/97] out of prodn/used full credits from IMDb |
"The Red Balloon"
aka "Le Ballon Rouge" [France 1956]
 | Written & directed by Albert Lamorisse; starring Pascal Lamorisse; won the Oscar for Best Screenplay even though there is not one word of dialogue in the film; won BAFTA Special Award
Home Vision color VHS [3/96] for $12.71 full credits from IMDb children's book by Albert Lamorisse Doubleday YA 12x8¼ pb [8/78] for $9.71 Doubleday YA 12x8¾ hardcover [8/67] for $11.53 1989 stage musical: book & lyrics by Anthony Clark (music by Mark Vibrans) TCG/Oberon 8¼x5 pb [4/2000] for $16.95 Nick Hern Books hardcover [5/97] out of print/used |
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"Black Orpheus" aka 'Orfeu Negro' [France 1959]
Directed by Marcel Camus; won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film |
"Hiroshima mon Amour"
[Pathé France June 1959; U.S.A. May 1960]
Directed by Alain Resnais; written by Marguerite Duras; starring Emmanuelle Riva, Eiji Okada
& Bernard Fresson; Oscar nomination for Best Original Script;
full credits from IMDb
"Breathless" aka 'A Bout de Souffle'
[France March 1960; US release Feb 1961]
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One of the films that began the French 'Nouvelle Vague' [New Wave] movement, the story of a small-time crook who finds love (maybe) when his life is at its most dangerous point. This triumph of cinema noir reveals the truth behind our truths, thru the lives in the movie that are contaminated by American movies and avant garde posing. The viewer is left uncertain where truth may indeed exist.
Directed by Jean-Luc Godard, written by Jean-Luc Godard & François Truffaut [1932-84]; starring Jean-Paul Belmondo, Jean Seberg & Jean-Pierre Melville
Timeless Video b&w VHS w/Engl. subtitles [7/94] for $14.99 Fox/Lorber b&w DVD w/Engl. subtitles [11/2001] for $21.49 full credits from IMDb |
"Shoot The Piano Player"
aka "Tirez sur Le Pianiste" [France Nov 1960, USA July 1962]
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After his wife's suicide, a virtuoso pianist gives up on life and takes a job playing piano in a bar. When his criminal brother takes refuge in the bar, chased by two gangsters, the piano player and the waitress who loves him are also placed in jeopardy.
Co-written & directed by François Truffaut [1932-84]; adapted from a novel by David Goodis; starring Charles Aznavour, Marie Dubois, Richard Kanayan, Claude Mansard, Daniel Boulanger, Nicole Berger, Michèle Mercier & Serge Davri
Fox/Lorber b&w DVD [5/99] out of prodn/used Home Vision widescreen b&w VHS [4/98] out of prodn/used Fox/Lorber widescreen b&w VHS [4/99] out of prodn/used full credits from IMDb |
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"Down There" {aka "Shoot The Piano Player"} [1936] by David Goodis Vintage 8x5¼ pb [10/90] for $9.80 script, with critical text by Peter Brunette [1993] Rutgers Univ Press 9x6 pb [6/93] for $17.00 |
"The Battle of Algiers" [1966]
full credits from IMDb
"Five Directors on The Battle of Algiers docufilm [2004]
http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0768113/
"La Guerre et Fini" [1966]
Directed by Alain Resnais; starring Yves Montand, Ingrid Thulin,
Geneviève Bujold, Jean-François Rémi & Michel Piccoli
"King of Hearts"
aka "Le Roi de Coeur" [France 1966]
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The inmates of an insane asylum get loose, but they may be more sane than the outside world. A delightful, surreal, farcical anti-war fairytale.
Co-produced & directed by Philippe de Broca; starring Alan Bates, Geneviève Bujold, Jean-Claude Brialy, Adolfo Celi &
Micheline Presle
MGM/UA letterbox DVD [4/2001] with Eng/Span/Fr subtitles for $16.99 MGM/UA widescreen VHS [11/2001] with English subtitles for $16.99 full credits from IMDb |
"The Sorrow and The Pity" documentary feature
aka "Le Chagrin et Pa Pitié" [France 1971, USA 1972]
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This documentary altered the way that France views the historical Vichy government and its collaboration with the Germans during WWII. Part 1 "The Collapse" centers on an interview with Pierre Mendès-France, jailed for anti-Vichy action and later France's Prime Minister; Part 2 "The Choice" centers on interviews with French youths who fought on the eastern front wearing German uniforms.
Co-written & directed by Marcel Ophüls; nominated for Best Documentary Oscar in 1972
Image Ent. b&w subtitled DVD [4/2001] for $44.99 Milestone b&w subtitled VHS [8/00] 2 tapes - out of prodn/used full credits from IMDb |
"La Décade Prodigieuse"
aka "Ten Days' Wonder" [France Dec 1971, USA April 1972]
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A young sculptor wakes up in a hotel room, hands bloodied and not knowing how he got there. He recruits a college professor to go with him to his father's country chateau, where they find family intrigue, adultery, and blackmail.
Directed by Claude Chabrol; based on the Ellery Queen novel "Ten Days' Wonder" [1948]; starring Orson Welles [1915-85], Michel Piccoli, Anthony Perkins & Marlène Jobert
Pathfinder dubbed color DVD [5/2003] for $17.99 Pathfinder dubbed color VHS [5/2003] for $19.98 Vivendi subtitled color VHS [5/93] for $18.99 full credits from IMDb |
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"Day For Night" aka "La Nuit américaine" [France May 1973, U.S.A. Sept 1973] Co-written & directed by François Truffaut; starring Jacqueline Bisset, Valentina Cortese, Dani, Alexandra Stewart, Jean-Pierre Aumont, Jean Champion, Jean-Pierre Léaud, François Truffaut, Nike Arrighi & Nathalie Baye; won Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, Oscar nominated for Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Supporting Actress (VC) full credits at IMDb |
"Amélie" aka "Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amélie Poulain"
[France April 2001, U.S.A. Sept 2001]
Co-written & directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet; starring Audrey Tautou, Mathieu Kassovitz & a concrete garden gnome;
Oscar noms for Best Foreign Language Film, Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Sound, Best Set
Decoration; won 2 of 9 BAFTA noms; won 4 of 13 César Award nominations; won Prix Méliès
full credits from IMDb
"A Very Long Engagement"
{aka 'Un long dimanche de fiançailles'} [Warner France 2004]
Co-written & directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet; based on the novel by Sebastien Japrisot;
starring Audrey Tautou, Gaspard Ulliel & Jodie Foster
DVD •
full credits at IMDb
"Fauteuils d'Orchestre" aka "Avenue Montaigne"
[Studio Canal Feb 2006, USA Feb 2007]
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A very, very French film; more importantly, this is a superb French film. A young girl leaves the provinces for Paris, and finds a job as waitress at the bistro across Avenue Montaigne from an art gallery, a concert house, and a legitimate theater on the day before an art auction, a classical piano performance, and the opening night of a Feydeau farce acted by the insecure star of a television soap opera.
Co-written & directed by Danièle Thompson; co-written by & starring Christopher Thompson; also starring Cécile De France, Valérie Lemercier, Albert Dupontel, Laura Morante, Claude Brasseur, Dani, Annelise Hesme, François Rollin & Sydney Pollack
Velocity/ThinkFilm widescreen subtitled color DVD [7/2007] for $20.99 full credits from IMDb |
"La Môme" aka "La Vie en Rose" [France 2007]
full credits from IMDb
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