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French Filmmakers French Actors |
"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
Books on French 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
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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.
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Jacques Becker [1906-60]
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"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 [France]
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Robert Bresson
Claude Chabrol
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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] explore videos/DVDs • IMDb listing • Wikipedia |
Henri-Georges Clouzot [1907-77]
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Jean Cocteau
Philippe de Broca [1933-2004]
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Abel Gance
Jean-Pierre Jeunet
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| | Claude Lelouch explore videos/DVDs • IMDb listing • Wikipedia |
"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 |
Louis Malle [1932-95]
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Jean-Pierre Melville [1917-73]
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"Jean-Pierre Melville: An American in Paris" [2003] by Ginette Vincendeau British Film Institute 9¼x6 pb [9/2003] for $17.34 British Film Institute 9½x6 hardcover [9/2003] for $80.00 |
Marcel Pagnol [1895-1974]
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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]
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Jean Renoir [1894-1979] explore videos/DVDs • books • posters • IMDb listing • Wikipedia |
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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
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Eric Rohmer
"Six Moral Tales" DVD set
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Jacques Tati [1909-82] explore videos/DVDs • posters • credits at IMDb • Wikipedia |
'M. Hulot' series on video & DVD
Bertrand Tavernier
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president of Institut Lumière museum [est. 1982] in Lyon, France
André Téchiné
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| | François Truffaut [1932-84] Page |
Agnès Varda
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"4 by Agnès Varda" [2008] 
DVD [8/00] for $74.99 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]
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Prix Jean Vigo •
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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
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Isabelle Adjani
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Brigitte Bardot
Collection Box Set 6305839670
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Jean-Paul Belmondo
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Juliette Binoche
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Capucine
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Hélène de Fougerolles
browse videos/DVDs •
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Wikipedia
French-language Hélène de Fougerolles fansite
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Alain Delon
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Catherine Deneuve
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Charles Denner [1926-95]
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Fernandel [1903-71]
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Pierre Fresnay
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Jean Gabin [1904-76]
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Musée Jean Gabin in Mériel, France
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Yves Montand [1921-91]
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Jeanne Moreau
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Philippe Noiret [1930-2006]
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Micheline Presle
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Raimu
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Dominique Sanda
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Simone Signoret [1921-85]
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Audrey Tautou
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Jean-Louis Trintignant
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Lino Ventura [1919-87]
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Selected French Films
France's films have received 3 early Honorary Oscar Awards, 9 Best Foreign Language Oscar® wins,
and 34 Best Foreign Film nominations.
"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]
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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 |
"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 |
"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 |
"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
"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 |
French Cinema Links
French movie poster catalog at AllPosters [dot] com
Foreign Films [dot] com - Best French Films on DVD
Complete Index To World Film
European Film Academy [est. 1988]
European Film Festivals Coordination
Festival du Cinema de Paris [short films; January]
Noir Films of France at BlackHat Mystery Bookstore
Yahoo! France Cinéma
Online sales in association with 
and ![foreign movie poster catalog at AllPosters [dot] com](images/allposters.gif){kind=small}
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