French Cinema
The influence of France on the world screen is undeniable. From early inventors and pioneers such as the Lumiere Brothers, George Melies and Alice Guy Blache, the birth of cinema can virtually be traced back to French shores. Cinematic innovators such as Jean Renoir and Michael Carne followed. By the 1960s New Wave directors like Truffaut, Godard and Chabrol had an indelible impact on fledgling American film makers such as Scorsese, Coppola and Bogdanovich who revolutionised the way films were made in the US; studios fell, auteurs ruled. With the advent of television, French film budgets shrank but thanks to government intervention and a good deal of imagination, French cinema is still going strong with contemporary talents like Jean-Jaques Beineix, Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Luc Besson and the controversial Gaspar Noe.
At Alice we're very proud of our extensive French collection, covering all genres from French farce to period drama, magical realism to mystery and suspense. Viva la France!
Melo (1986)
8.1/10
Director: Alain Resnais
Starring: Andre Dussollier, Fanny Ardant, Pierre Arditi, Sabine Azema, Jacques Dacqmine, C...
Known for stylistically adventurous films like "Last Year at Marienbad", French director Alain Resnais transitions to a self-conciously subdued form i... Read more
Merci Pour Le Chocolat (2000)
6.7/10
Director: Claude Chabrol
Starring: Isabelle Huppert, Jacques Dutronc, Anna Mouglalis, Rodolphe Pauly
Co-writer/director Claude Chabrol's taut thriller stars Isabelle Huppert as Mika, the villanous spider at the centre of an intricate and murderous web... Read more
Mesrine: Public Enemy No. 1 (2008)
5.7/10
Director: Jean-Francois Richet
Starring: Gerard Depardieu, Mathieu Amalric, Roy Dupuis, Vincent Cassel, Samuel Le Bihan,...
The incredible and brutal true story of France's most wanted man, Jacques Mesrine (Vincent Cassel). Arch-fiend to some and folk hero to others, his cr... Read more
Micmacs (2009)
7.2/10
Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet
Starring: Andre Dussollier, Dany Boon
From Jean-Pierre Jeunet ('Amelie', 'Delicatessen'), one of cinema's most inspired and inventive talents, comes 'Micmacs', a dazzling and deeply human... Read more
Micmacs ( Blu-ray ) (2009)
7.2/10
Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet
Starring: Andre Dussollier, Dany Boon
From Jean-Pierre Jeunet ('Amelie', 'Delicatessen'), one of cinema's most inspired and inventive talents, comes 'Micmacs', a dazzling and deeply human... Read more
Millennium Mambo (2001)
7/10
Director: Hou Hsiao-Hsien
Starring: Shu Qi, Jack Kao, Chun-hao Tuan, Yi-Hsuan Chen, Jun Takeuchi, Doze Niu
The first part of a planned series about life in modern Taipei, this intellectually challenging film begins with bar hostess Vicky (Shu Qi) imagining... Read more
Milou en Mai ( May Fools ) (1989)
7.2/10
Director: Louis Malle
Starring: Michel Piccoli, Miou-Miou, Dominique Blanc
An entertaining comedy of manners set against the backdrop of the 1968 student uprising in Paris, the film follows the Vieu-sacs as they converge on t... Read more
Minuscule: Valley of the Lost Ants (2013)
7.1/10
Director: Thomas Szabo, Helene Giraud
In a peaceful little clearing, the remains of a picnic hastily abandoned spark warfare between two rival ant colonies, obsessed with gaining control o... Read more
Mississippi Mermaid (1969)
7.1/10
Director: Francois Truffaut
Starring: Jean-Paul Belmondo, Catherine Deneuve
Beauty is by no means rare on the lush, tropical Isle de Reunion. Yet when island resident and tobacco tycoon Louis Mahe (Jean-Paul Belmondo) first me... Read more
Moliere (2007)
7.3/10
Director: Laurent Tirard
Starring: Romain Duris, Fabrice Luchini, Laura Morante
After being called to the deathbed of a mysterious woman, 17th-century playwright Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, aka Moliere, recalls the events of his life... Read more