French cinema has its own unique charm, subtle humor, light flirting and fireworks of emotions. Comedies, melodramas and even action films are all good and recognizable. Here's a selection of the 20 best French movies you should watch! For a change, we decided to do without Amelie, Leon and Taxi.
1. Untouchables (2011)
Edmond Momon Vidal (Gerard Lanvin) grew up in a refugee camp but retained a pride in his origins. Together with their friend Serge (Cheki Kario), they create a Lyon band of robbers, known throughout the area. And now 40 years later Momon dreams of a normal life, but Serge has other plans.
2. Swap places (2019)
The famous writer Raphael (François Civil) finds his muse Olivia (Josephine Japy), plans a wedding, but not everything is so smooth. And one day Raphael wakes up at all in another world, where no one knows him, and he is a complete failure.
3. Toy (1976)
Francis Weber's comedy became his debut work as a director. Unemployed journalist François Perrin (Pierre Richard) gets a job at a local newspaper, where he is sent to write about a toy store. And the store owner himself is a real tyrant and despot.
4. Cold appetizers (1979)
Alphonse (Gerard Depardieu) meets an accountant (Michel Cerro) at the station. He shares his murder fantasies and even offers a knife, only now a new acquaintance refuses the gift and escapes on the nearest train. And so a series of fatal events began.
5. Fatal beauty (2006)
Jean (Gad Elmaleh) works in a luxury hotel and watches the life of the rich every day. One day he meets the beautiful Irene (Audrey Tautou), a hunter for wealthy men, who takes him for a guest.
6. Dr. Knock's scam (2017)
Swindler and gambler Nok (Omar Si) dreams of changing his fate and receives a medical education. And even further - he uses his new knowledge and his charisma with might and main to achieve success in the profession.
7. Unlucky (2003)
Very strong and very kind Quentin (Gerard Depardieu) is a repeat offender with oddities. Ruby (Jean Reno) is a professional hitman who was not lucky enough to fall in love with the boss's daughter. One day, life pushes them together in a common cell ...
8. Samurai (1967)
Jeff Costello (Alain Delon) is a professional hitman who became famous for his toughness, pedantry and always an impeccable alibi. But one day he makes an annoying blunder, and intuition already tells the commissioner (Francois Perrier) that something is unclean here.
9. Cherbourg Umbrellas (1964)
The cult melodrama is filled with music by Michel Legrand and Catherine Deneuve. Auto mechanic Guy Fouche (Nino Castelnuovo) falls in love with young Genevieve Emery (Catherine Deneuve) who sells umbrellas. The couple is doing very well, but Guy is sent to serve in Algeria during the war.
10. Love is out of size (2016)
Diana (Virginie Efira) works in the same law office with her ex-husband, and they are not doing very well. She loses her phone, and it is returned by Alexander (Jean Dujardin) - a cheerful, charming and successful architect, although he is only 140 cm tall.
11. Artist (2011)
Black and white romantic comedy shot in the spirit of silent films with Jean Dujardin and Berenice Bejo in the lead roles. The movie star George Valentine at the premiere of his film collides with a young charming girl Peppy Miller ... The film received dozens of rave reviews and its well-deserved Oscar.
12. Professional (1981)
Secret agent Josselin Beaumont (Jean-Paul Belmondo) is sent on a mission to an African country. He must eliminate the local president, but literally at the last moment the situation changes ...
13. Vidocq (2001)
The famous detective Vidocq (Gerard Depardieu) hunts the killer, nicknamed the Alchemist, but loses to that and dies.Biographer Etienne Boisset (Guillaume Canet) is eager to find out everything that Vidoku knew and to uncover the culprit.
14. Burglars (1971)
A group of robbers are planning to break into the villa of a Greek rich man who has an expensive collection of emeralds. Commissioner Abel Zachariah (Omar Sharif) tries to stop them, but one of the criminals Azad (Jean-Paul Belmondo) is confident that he has put him to sleep.
15. Last Summer in Marienbad (1961)
In the midst of an event in an ancient castle, a man (Giorgio Albertazzi) claims to a woman (Dolphin Seirig) that they had a relationship, even though she believes that she is seeing him for the first time. The film has a very bizarre structure and plot interweaving that made critics and audiences admire and bewildered at the same time.
16. Ceremony (1995)
The wealthy Lelievre family lives in their mansion and knows no troubles. Catherine (Jacqueline Bisset) runs the gallery and Gerard (Jean-Pierre Cassel) is a successful entrepreneur. They don't have enough time for household chores, and they invite their assistant Sophie (Sandrine Bonner), who turns out to have a lot of oddities ...
17. Corsican (2004)
A Paris notary hires detective Jack Palmer (Christian Clavier) to find his missing client Anj Leoni (Jean Reno) in Corsica. And searches turn into continuous problems! Not everyone knows, but in fact this film is based on a popular comic book series in France.
18. Contempt (1963)
Writer Paul Javal (Michel Piccoli) spends time with his wife Camilla (Brigitte Bardot). To make money, he undertakes to rework a second-rate script for an American film based on the Odyssey. Only now the producer is more interested in Camille than in Javal.
19. Losers (2009)
Basil (Dani Boone) lives a quiet life and works in video rental, until one day he is hit by a bullet. The doctor is faced with a difficult choice - to leave a bullet in the head or to try to get it with great risks.
20. Love with obstacles (2012)
Sasha (Gad Elmaleh) is carefree and surrounded by beautiful girls, favorite music and friends. Charlotte (Sophie Marceau) has already been married and does not seek a serious relationship. Meanwhile, fate has its own plans for both.