French Films

For those unaware, France is actually the birthplace of cinema and is in actuality responsible for many of its early significant contributions. Considering France is one of the more dominant nations in Europe, one can only expect significant contributions to the field of cinema. In fact, France is noted by many for having a particularly strong film industry – mostly due to the contributions by the government.

Additionally, since France has been a popular gathering spot for international artists, French cinema is sometimes entwined with foreign nation cinemas. Interesting fact: Paris has the highest density of cinemas (movie theatres) in the entire world. With a total of 206.5 million movie tickets sold in 2010, France has established itself as the third largest film market in the world – right after the United States and India. In fact, the French film industry is so dominant that it is the closest to being self-sufficient compared to other countries in Europe; recovering about 80 – 90% of their budget in revenues. Let’s take a closer look at some of the most famous French films:

8 Women

8 Women (or 8 Femmes in French) is a 2002 musical, comedy and murder-mystery film directed by none other than François Ozon. Based on the play by Robert Thomas, 8 Femmes follows 8 women going through a murder investigation. The film was released on the 6th of September In 2002 and opened at number 46 in three theaters – grossing an international total of $42,426,583. The film also received many positive reviews from critics, with a 79% approval rating. The film also won many international film awards.

A Heart in Winter

Another famous French classic, “A Heart in Winter” was directed by Claude Sautet and originally released in 1992. The film stars the beautiful Emmanuelle Béart, Daniel Auteuil and André Dussollier and follows the story of three characters in contemporary Paris caught in a love triangle. The film was nominated for 9 awards and won 14 others.

Beauty and the Beast

Not the regular Beauty and the Beast you are used to seeing from Disney; this original adaptation written by Jeanne-Marie was directed by French poet and filmmaker Jean Cocteau and takes a much darker route than what Disney portrays. La Belle et la Bête (The Beauty and the Beast) is widely considered to be one of the finest fantasy films of all time even though it was released back in 1946.

These three are only a few of the many hit films directed by French directors and part of French cinema. Although French cinema cannot compare to Hollywood in terms of special effects and budget – most French movies offer a vivid tale in an extremely effective manner, much different than what most people are used to with Hollywood. Some other famous French films include: Belle de Jour, Betty Blue, Birds of a Feather, Bitter Moon, Breathless, Children of Paradise, Delicatessen, Diva, French Twist, Hidden, Jean de Florette, Jesus of Montreal, Jules et Jim, La Femme Nikita, and many, many more.