Across the channel now. I'd planned to do a top ten but so many belters would miss out if that were the format. So here are my favourite twenty French films. Again, ordering was extremely tough.
20. Buffet froid (Bertrand Blier - 1979)
Proper bonkers this is. Depardieu when he was a powerhouse, compared to just a house. I remember watching this with my face all screwed up, thinking "Can they even make films like this?" but loving it all the same.
19. Baxter (Jerome Boivin - 1989)
Another odd'un. Narrated by Baxter himself, a malevolent or maybe just dog-like bull terrier, this film follows his efforts to find a suitable home. Co-written by Jacques Audiard, who will appear later in this list.
18. Entre les murs [The Class] (Laurent Cantet - 2008)
A great slice of Parisian life, almost a documentary as it's based on the experiences of Francois Begaudeau, who wrote the novel, co-wrote the film AND bloody well starred in it and all! Won the Palme d'Or at Cannes. Agreed.
17. Coup de torchon (Betrand Tavernier - 1981)
A nihilistic, black comedy, melodrama from the sublime Betrand Tavernier. This plays a little like a farcical version of Graham Greene's, The Heart of the Matter. And that can only be good. I haven't seen it for a while but reckon I will again soon.
16. A bout portant [Point Blank] (Fred Cavaye - 2010)
I've talked about this on the blog before but I'll say it again. After a short set-up, this mutha does not stop. It's not a classic like some on this list, but it goes like the clappers. Great fun.
15. La regle du jeu [The Rules of the Game] (Jean Renoir - 1939)
One of Renoir's class critiques and a certified gem it is. A bit like an old, French Upstairs, Downstairs (though I don't remember that show, honestly). Pretty ground-breaking at its time as well from a master director.
14. De rouille et d'os [Rust and Bone] (Jacques Audiard - 2012)
SPOILER AHEAD!!!!
Cotillard directed by Audiard. They need to work together again. This is probably the sexiest film about bare-knuckle boxing and amputation that I've ever seen. A slightly soapy ending doesn't subtract much either. That face. Blimey.
13. Delicatessen (Marc Caro & Jean-Pierre Jeunet - 1991)
Modern classic. Pure surreal brilliance (but still not Caro & Jeunet's best - see down the list). The chain reaction scene where Louison fixes a bed (left) is top drawer.
Life regret: not buying one of those cow or sheep noise tins at the Lumiere cinema when this was screened.
12. Cache [Hidden] (Michael Haneke - 2005)
I wasn't sure what to expect with this but it blew me away when I saw it at the cinema. A slowly-paced build up with a short, sharp smack, followed by more creep. It's like a visual Pixies song in French. Juliette Binoche and Daniel Auteuil have rarely, if ever, been better.
11. De battre mon couer s'est arrete [The Beat That My Heart Skipped] (Jacques Audiard - 2005)
Another Audiard. You might be thinking he's my favourite director. You'd be right. This film gets it all spot on. An odd central character played by the coolest bastard in film today, Romain Duris. A seemingly simple story of frustration and revenge, with added piano music. And Melanie Laurent pops up, too briefly. Excellent.
10. Le salaire de la peur [The Wages of Fear] (Henri-Georges Clouzot - 1959)
A fantastically tense drama/thriller set in Central America where a few desperate blokes have to transport explosives across the country. In one sequence, they have to maintain a quick speed over a stretch of corrugated road. If they slow down, they blow up. I almost stopped breathing. And then I shat myself. Literally or metaphorically - you decide.
9. La haine (Mathieu Kassovitz- 1995)
Watching this at the cinema in 1995, I remember thinking everything was going to be OK with film; as an art form, as a social commentator, as something to be respected, for many years to come.
WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED!?!?!
8. La grande illusion [The Grand Illusion] (Jean Renoir - 1937)
Another of Renoir's classics. An even-handed and dignified story about class barriers during WW1. Sounds a bit earnest and dry but this is a stone cold corker. Jean Gabin needs some serious re-discovering,
7. The Vertical Ray of the Sun (Tran Ahn Hung - 2000)
I'll say it again. This is a beautiful film. I could watch the scenes of the brother and sister waking up (left) all day long. Among many others. Great soundtrack too.
6. Olivier, Olivier (Agnieszka Holland - 1992)
Sad, wonderful film about loss and hope. 9 year old Olivier disappears one day only to turn up six years later. But is it him? Cracking story teeming with great performances, including one from Francois Cluzet, who also appears next on this list....
5. Ne le dis a personne [Tell No One] (Guillaume Canet - 2006)
As gripping as any film I've seen, with some inspired editing and intense acting. The set-up alone must have green-lit the film in a hot second. Excellent thriller.
4. Un prophete [A Prophet] (Jacques Audiard - 2009)
The best Audiard (so far) sees the rise of a young prisoner to power and influence. A Prophet works as so many different films - prison drama, action, mystery, gritty realism, even Christ allegory. Take it how you will but certainly take it. You won't be disappointed.
3. Trois couleurs: Blanc [Three Colours: White] (Krzysztof Kieslowski - 1993)
2. La cite des enfants perdus [The City of Lost Children] (Marc Caro & Jean-Pierre Jeunet - 1995)
Just magic. One of the real tragedies of cinema is that Judith Vittet (left) basically retired from acting after this. In my mind, the best performance by a kid in a film. Hands down. And the rest of the film takes her lead. A fantastically rendered, sweet, bizarre dream of a film. Nearly number one for my money.....
1. A bout de souffle [Breathless] (Jean-Luc Godard - 1960)
....but it's very hard to top this super-cool debut from Godard. I've kept this as my favourite French film because it was probably one of the reasons I got so nerdily into film. Looking at it now, I can see it flirts heavily with pretentious toffle but I still get a little tingle thinking about it's style and originality.
20. Buffet froid (Bertrand Blier - 1979)
Proper bonkers this is. Depardieu when he was a powerhouse, compared to just a house. I remember watching this with my face all screwed up, thinking "Can they even make films like this?" but loving it all the same.
19. Baxter (Jerome Boivin - 1989)
Another odd'un. Narrated by Baxter himself, a malevolent or maybe just dog-like bull terrier, this film follows his efforts to find a suitable home. Co-written by Jacques Audiard, who will appear later in this list.
18. Entre les murs [The Class] (Laurent Cantet - 2008)
A great slice of Parisian life, almost a documentary as it's based on the experiences of Francois Begaudeau, who wrote the novel, co-wrote the film AND bloody well starred in it and all! Won the Palme d'Or at Cannes. Agreed.
17. Coup de torchon (Betrand Tavernier - 1981)
A nihilistic, black comedy, melodrama from the sublime Betrand Tavernier. This plays a little like a farcical version of Graham Greene's, The Heart of the Matter. And that can only be good. I haven't seen it for a while but reckon I will again soon.
16. A bout portant [Point Blank] (Fred Cavaye - 2010)
I've talked about this on the blog before but I'll say it again. After a short set-up, this mutha does not stop. It's not a classic like some on this list, but it goes like the clappers. Great fun.
15. La regle du jeu [The Rules of the Game] (Jean Renoir - 1939)
One of Renoir's class critiques and a certified gem it is. A bit like an old, French Upstairs, Downstairs (though I don't remember that show, honestly). Pretty ground-breaking at its time as well from a master director.
14. De rouille et d'os [Rust and Bone] (Jacques Audiard - 2012)
SPOILER AHEAD!!!!
Cotillard directed by Audiard. They need to work together again. This is probably the sexiest film about bare-knuckle boxing and amputation that I've ever seen. A slightly soapy ending doesn't subtract much either. That face. Blimey.
13. Delicatessen (Marc Caro & Jean-Pierre Jeunet - 1991)
Modern classic. Pure surreal brilliance (but still not Caro & Jeunet's best - see down the list). The chain reaction scene where Louison fixes a bed (left) is top drawer.
Life regret: not buying one of those cow or sheep noise tins at the Lumiere cinema when this was screened.
12. Cache [Hidden] (Michael Haneke - 2005)
I wasn't sure what to expect with this but it blew me away when I saw it at the cinema. A slowly-paced build up with a short, sharp smack, followed by more creep. It's like a visual Pixies song in French. Juliette Binoche and Daniel Auteuil have rarely, if ever, been better.
11. De battre mon couer s'est arrete [The Beat That My Heart Skipped] (Jacques Audiard - 2005)
Another Audiard. You might be thinking he's my favourite director. You'd be right. This film gets it all spot on. An odd central character played by the coolest bastard in film today, Romain Duris. A seemingly simple story of frustration and revenge, with added piano music. And Melanie Laurent pops up, too briefly. Excellent.
10. Le salaire de la peur [The Wages of Fear] (Henri-Georges Clouzot - 1959)
A fantastically tense drama/thriller set in Central America where a few desperate blokes have to transport explosives across the country. In one sequence, they have to maintain a quick speed over a stretch of corrugated road. If they slow down, they blow up. I almost stopped breathing. And then I shat myself. Literally or metaphorically - you decide.
9. La haine (Mathieu Kassovitz- 1995)
Watching this at the cinema in 1995, I remember thinking everything was going to be OK with film; as an art form, as a social commentator, as something to be respected, for many years to come.
WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED!?!?!
8. La grande illusion [The Grand Illusion] (Jean Renoir - 1937)
Another of Renoir's classics. An even-handed and dignified story about class barriers during WW1. Sounds a bit earnest and dry but this is a stone cold corker. Jean Gabin needs some serious re-discovering,
7. The Vertical Ray of the Sun (Tran Ahn Hung - 2000)
I'll say it again. This is a beautiful film. I could watch the scenes of the brother and sister waking up (left) all day long. Among many others. Great soundtrack too.
6. Olivier, Olivier (Agnieszka Holland - 1992)
Sad, wonderful film about loss and hope. 9 year old Olivier disappears one day only to turn up six years later. But is it him? Cracking story teeming with great performances, including one from Francois Cluzet, who also appears next on this list....
5. Ne le dis a personne [Tell No One] (Guillaume Canet - 2006)
As gripping as any film I've seen, with some inspired editing and intense acting. The set-up alone must have green-lit the film in a hot second. Excellent thriller.
4. Un prophete [A Prophet] (Jacques Audiard - 2009)
The best Audiard (so far) sees the rise of a young prisoner to power and influence. A Prophet works as so many different films - prison drama, action, mystery, gritty realism, even Christ allegory. Take it how you will but certainly take it. You won't be disappointed.
3. Trois couleurs: Blanc [Three Colours: White] (Krzysztof Kieslowski - 1993)
The Three Colours Trilogy is brilliant and, for me, this middle third is the best. Bone dry, black comedy with a strangely easy to identify with loser (Zamachowski, left) at it's core. Julie Delpy ices it too.
Just magic. One of the real tragedies of cinema is that Judith Vittet (left) basically retired from acting after this. In my mind, the best performance by a kid in a film. Hands down. And the rest of the film takes her lead. A fantastically rendered, sweet, bizarre dream of a film. Nearly number one for my money.....
1. A bout de souffle [Breathless] (Jean-Luc Godard - 1960)
....but it's very hard to top this super-cool debut from Godard. I've kept this as my favourite French film because it was probably one of the reasons I got so nerdily into film. Looking at it now, I can see it flirts heavily with pretentious toffle but I still get a little tingle thinking about it's style and originality.
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