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!
The Big Picture (2010)
6.7/10
Director: Eric Lartigau
Starring: Niels Arestrup, Romain Duris, Branka Katic, Marina Fois
The tale of a hotshot city lawyer who ups sticks, fakes his own death and assumes the identity of the man he's accidentally murdered (his wife's lover... Read more
The Brats (Les gamins) (2013)
6.1/10
Starring: Alain Chabat, Sandrine Kiberlain, Melanie Bernier, Arie Elmaleh
On getting engaged, Thomas meets his future father-in-law Gilbert, married for 30 years to Suzanne. Gilbert is disillusioned and feels like he missed... Read more
The Bride Wore Black (1968)
7.3/10
Director: Francois Truffaut
Starring: Daniel Boulanger, Jeanne Moreau, Michael Lonsdale, Michel Bouquet, Charles Denne...
Jeanne Moreau stars as the inscrutable femme fatale with a murderous mission in Truffaut's haunting, suspense-filled homage to Hitchcock. Widowed on h... Read more
The Champagne Murders (1967)
6/10
Director: Claude Chabrol
Starring: Anthony Perkins, Henry Jones, Maurice Ronet, Stephane Audran, Yvonne Furneaux
This stylish psychological thriller from Claude Chabrol has such labyrinthine plotting that some critics called it too confusing. Christine Balling (Y... Read more
The Chorus ( aka Les Choristes ) (2004)
7.9/10
Director: Christophe Barratier
Starring: Gerard Jugnot, Francois Berleand, Kad Merad, Jacques Perrin
When he takes a job teaching music at a school for troubled boys, Clement Mathieu (Gerard Jugnot) is unprepared for its harsh discipline and depressin... Read more
The City of Lost Children (1995)
7.6/10
Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Marc Caro
Starring: Ron Perlman, Judith Vittet, Daniel Emilfork
A dazzling nightmare fantasy about a mad scientist (Daniel Emilfork) who is unable to dream and goes about kidnapping children (with the help of his c... Read more
The Class ( Entre Les Murs ) (2008)
7.5/10
Director: Laurent Cantet
Starring: Francois Begaudeau, Franck Keita, Nassim Amrabt, Esmerelda Ouertani
French director Laurent Cantet does something miraculous with the well-worn conceit of a teacher and his underprivileged students in this fresh and op... Read more
The Closet (2000)
7.4/10
Director: Francis Veber
Starring: Daniel Auteuil, Gerard Depardieu, Michel Aumont, Thierry Lhermitte
Hilarious farce from Francis Veber ('The Dinner Game') in which Daniel Auteuil, a boring accountant, is told that he's been fired from his job. As he'... Read more
The Code (2002)
5.6/10
Director: Manuel Boursinhac
Starring: Samy Naceri, Samuel Le Bihan, Clotilde Courau, Marie Guillard
Aka "La Mentale". For years, Dris (Samuel Le Bihan, "Brotherhood of the Wolf") and Yanis (Samy Naceri, "Taxi") survived the mean streets of the city b... Read more
The Concert (2009)
7.6/10
Director: Radu Mihaileanu
Starring: Miou-Miou, Melanie Laurent, Alexsey Guskov, Lionel Abelanski, Laurent Bateau, D...
25 years ago, Andrei Filipov was a prodigy - once the celebrated conductor of the Bolshoi Orchestra, the greatest orchestra in Russia. Today he works... Read more