Posts Tagged ‘French cinema’
Driving Madeleine Blu-ray Review: Driving Madame Daisy
In the hands of writer/director Christian Carion, the film is a joyous and heartwarming celebration of life guaranteed to play on your emotions.
Read MoreJeanne Moreau, Filmmaker Blu-ray Review: Girl Power
Although the three films seemingly have little in common, the throughline is Moreau’s focus on strong, supportive female relationships.
Read MoreThe Golden Coach Blu-ray Review: Jean Renoir’s Tribute to Theater
When a traveling theater company rolls into a rich Peruvian town, the star actress quickly attracts the attention of three local suitors.
Read MoreLa Syndicaliste Blu-ray Review: The Woman Who Maybe Cried Wolf
Salomé’s measured direction and Huppert’s fully engaged performance combine for a mesmerizing examination of victim blaming and its repercussions.
Read MoreMademoiselle (1966) Blu-ray Review: Lust and Terror In France
The film’s mystery isn’t who is doing these things but why.
Read MorePlease, Not Now! Blu-ray Review: Brigitte Bardot Will Have You Saying Please, Now!
Brigitte Bardot is here to heat up the New Year in this steamy comedy from provocative writer/director Roger Vadim
Read MoreLe Combat Dans L’ile Blu-ray Review: An Overlooked Surprise by an Underrated Filmmaker
A stylish gem of the French New Wave.
Read MoreBorsalino Blu-ray Review: A (Not Quite) Epic French Gangster Flick
Delon and Belmondo are always magnetic to watch; I just wish the rest of the film had more to say.
Read MoreStrangers in the House Blu-ray Review: French Masters of Mystery
Director Henri Decoin tells the story with classic Hollywood filmmaking techniques and drapes it with film noir touches.
Read MoreThe Rules of the Game Criterion Collection 4K UHD Review: The Shooting Party
In cinema, as in life, so much comes down to the details.
Read MoreTintin and the Mystery of the Golden Fleece / Tintin and the Blue Oranges Blu-ray Review
Two of the iconic Belgian comic book character’s earliest feature film adaptations have arrived on Blu-ray.
Read MoreBlind Willow, Sleeping Woman DVD Review: Murakami Gets Animated
Writer/director Pierre Földes stitches together unrelated Haruki Murakami short stories into a cohesive narrative in this animated feature film.
Read MoreSecret Defense Blu-ray Review: Twisty Secrets Hampered by Indefensible Direction
The twisty story unfolds into a tale of unresolved family trauma that has the potential to explain two deaths while possibly leading to more.
Read MoreThe Super 8 Years DVD Review: A Remembrance of the Past
This is a quietly devastating and vivid cinematic experiment.
Read MoreArsène Lupin Collection Blu-ray Review: Two Hits and a Miss
Kino Lorber’s new Blu-ray collection is a fantastic look at the famous gentleman thief’s classic mid-20th century French interpretations.
Read MoreMake Believe Seattle 2023 Review: Smoking Causes Coughing
Quentin Dupieux’s new film is both a delirious send-up of superhero movies and a delightful homage to cheesy schlockfests of the past.
Read MoreLove on the Ground Blu-ray Review: Much Ado About Nothing
Director Jacques Rivette delights in pulling the curtain back on a playwright’s odd creative process, but fails to develop a compelling plot.
Read MoreThe Bride Wore Black and Mississippi Mermaid Blu-rays Review: Truffaut Does Hitchcock
Both films are quite good, but there is something slightly off about them as well.
Read MoreIrreversible: Straight Cut Movie Review: Still Remains an Exhaustive, Challenging Experience
A dark and unflinching masterpiece of French extremity gets a new recut and reevaluation.
Read MoreLittle Nicholas: Happy as Can Be Movie Review: Adventures in Real and Imagined Past
This charming French animated feature combines the fictional adventures of Nicholas with the real-life story of his creators.
Read MoreThe Girl on a Motorcycle Blu-ray Review: Spins Its Stylish Wheels
If ultra-suave Alain Delon with young Marianne Faithfull in a black leather catsuit is enough to rev your engine, the film delivers in spades.
Read MoreEntre Nous Blu-ray Review: Sisters Are Doing It for Themselves
Writer/director Diane Kurys borrowed from her own family history to craft this story about two women finding their way in the aftermath of World War II.
Read MoreGoing Places Blu-ray Review: Traveling Nowhere, Reaching Enlightenment
Blier’s film is a marvel, a story about small-time crooks that manages to steal our hearts.
Read MoreLe Corbeau Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: A Poison Pen French Noir
A once suppressed mystery about a writer of poison pen letters made in France during the German occupation.
Read MoreHiroshima mon amour Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: A Rich and Rewarding Film
The performances of the two leads are masterful.
Read MoreThe Burned Barns Blu-ray Review: Two Titans of French Cinema Spar
Simone Signoret is the true star here.
Read MoreTwisting the Knife: Four Films by Claude Chabrol Blu-ray Box Set Review
While all four films are independent projects with no recurring characters, they carry a unifying theme of deceitful women up to no good.
Read MoreParis, 13th District Movie Review: The City of Light Romance
Where Tomine’s original works were somewhat detached and unresolved, Audiard looks for and delivers emotional resonance in the wayward couplings of his characters.
Read MoreLies & Deceit: Five Films by Claude Chabrol Blu-ray Box Set Review
The five films presented here are completely straightforward, pedestrian affairs without any hint of experimentation.
Read MoreIcy Breasts Blu-ray Review: A Cool French Noir
Icy Breasts works because it isn’t overly flashy.
Read MoreThe Prince’s Voyage Blu-ray Review: A Film Only the French Could Make
While it won’t compare favorably to your favorite animated films from Pixar or Studio Ghibli, I’m glad films like this exist.
Read MoreMasculin Feminin Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Tres Chic
The film achieves Godard’s objective of showing what life was like for Parisians in their early twenties in the 1960s.
Read MoreCéline and Julie Go Boating Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: A Long, Strange, Riveting Film
A strange, bewildering, long film that invites a variety of interpretations.
Read MoreSundance 2021 Review: ‘Ma Belle, My Beauty’ Is a Simple and Exotic Polyamorous Romance
A breezy travelogue that creates refreshing polyamorous visibility.
Read MoreMouchette Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: So Beautiful, So Sad
A few days in the sad little life of a French girl.
Read MorePierrot le Fou Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Still Feels Modern and Fresh
Jean-Luc Godard’s violent and unpredictable 1965 road movie comes back to Criterion.
Read MoreBeau Travail Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Mysterious, Haunting, and Transformative
Claire Denis’s 1999 masterpiece of jealousy, erotic/repressed desire, and personal destruction makes its long-awaited debut to the Criterion Collection.
Read MoreToni Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: An Influential French Drama
Jean Renoir’s realistic portrayal of migrant workers in the South of France helped influence the French New Wave and Italian Neorealism.
Read MoreLife Is a Long Quiet River Blu-ray Review: It Could Use a Few Noisy Rapids
A lighthearted social satire about French life that could have used a few more laughs.
Read MoreAmerica as Seen by a Frenchman Blu-ray Review: A Fascinating Snapshot in Time
A glimpse into my country’s past a viewed from a foreigner.
Read MoreThe Truth (2019) Movie Review: Truthfully Middle-Ground
Both an adequately understated family drama and a missed opportunity.
Read MorePortrait of a Lady on Fire Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Burning Bright
This mesmerizing French film offers a fresh take on artist/muse romance and social class distinction
Read MoreManon Blu-ray Review: Doomed Love in Post-war France
Henri-Georges Clouzot tale of doomed love works like a film nor in a melodrama setting.
Read MoreZombi Child Movie Review: A Slow Exploration of Voodoo and Adolescence
A meditative zombie flick that revitalizes the genre while simultaneously exploring its origins.
Read MoreFunan Blu-ray Review: A Genocide Through the Eyes of One Family
A beautiful telling of a tragic story.
Read MoreLa Marseillaise Blu-ray Review: Viva La Revolution!
Jean Renoir’s telling of the French Revolution is more history lesson than dramatic film, but it is well worth watching.
Read MoreBy the Grace of God (2019) Movie Review: Shines a Spotlight on the Catholic Church Scandal
A strongly acted and skillfully directed examination of a recently-closed case.
Read MoreDilili in Paris Movie Review: Michel Ocelot’s Love Letter to the City of Light
Ocelot’s distinctive voice shines through in his latest animated feature film.
Read MoreUn Coeur En Hiver Blu-ray Review: A Man Without Feelings
In a cinematic landscape filled with emotionless psychopaths, it is thrilling to find one who is a nice guy.
Read MoreThe Milky Way (1969) Blu-ray Review: Surrealistic Satire
A Pilgrim’s Progress through Catholic history as seen through the satiric lens of Luis Bunuel.
Read MoreA Faithful Man Movie Review: Rom-Com Written with Impressive Finesse
At just 75 minutes, A Faithful Man packs plenty of mystery, romance, and profundity.
Read MoreLa Prisonnière Blu-ray Review: Cluzot Gets Modern
Henri-Georges Clouzot’s final film is a visually sumptuous, but flawed masterpiece.
Read MoreFantômas Three Film Collection Blu-ray Review: Tres Silly
Trilogy of very silly spy films from France features one of the country’s most famous characters.
Read MoreEmmanuelle Blu-ray Review: A Young Girl’s Strange Erotic Journey From Paris to Bangkok
The movie that started a softcore franchise.
Read MoreSorry Angel Movie Review: A Sensible Depiction of a Doomed Romance
A profound, well-acted love story that is a whirlwind of emotion.
Read MoreLet the Corpses Tan Blu-ray Review: An Assault on the Senses
A modern, psychedelic take on the Spaghetti Western is visually stylish and exhausting.
Read MoreBlack Venus Blu-ray Review: A Horrible Mark in Our History
A devastating portrait of abuse.
Read MoreA Trip to the Moon Blu-ray Review: Simply Magnificent
A newly restored print makes this classic silent film even better.
Read MoreSacha Guitry: Four Films (1936-1938) Blu-ray Review: A Historical Bore
A nice boxed set from Arrow Academy presents four films from the popular French director.
Read MoreHenri-Georges Clouzot’s Inferno Blu-ray Review: Lost Masterpiece or Dodged Bullet?
Documentary details Clouzot’s experimental Inferno, using recently discovered footage from the failed production, to mixed results.
Read MoreElevator to the Gallows Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Ruthless People
French director Louis Malle launched his award-winning career with this spellbinding crime thriller.
Read MoreMaigret Sets a Trap / Maigret and the St. Fiacre Case Blu-ray Reviews: America’s Introduction to the Great French Detective
Jean Gabin plays the French detective in two of the earliest adaptations of Georges Simenon’s stories to reach the States.
Read MoreThe Love of a Woman Blu-ray Review: Old Movie, Modern Themes
A simple story told really well.
Read MoreRonin (1998) Blu-ray Review: Welcome Back to Cinematic Reality, Kids
Arrow Video revives John Frankenheimer’s criminally neglected late ’90s gritty crime thriller via a beautiful, all-new 4K scan.
Read MoreSpotlight on a Murderer (1961) Blu-ray Review: Illuminating French Proto-Slasher
A most unique mystery/black comedy from Georges Franju receives a long-overdue opportunity to shine in the US thanks to Arrow Academy.
Read MoreThe Jacques Rivette Collection Blu-ray Review: New Wave, Old Hat
Arrow Academy releases a trio of lengthy, esoteric, and surreal offerings which quickly turn into a case of ‘mise-en-seen it.’
Read MoreThe Jacques Rivette Collection Blu-ray Review: Not For Me
Experimental French films are interesting conceptually, but hard sailing to watch.
Read MoreLudwig (1973) Blu-ray Review: The Historical Epic Wherein Nothing Really Happens
Love it or hate it, Arrow Academy has unveiled an undeniably beautiful box set for one of Luchino Visconti’s final films.
Read MoreValley of Love DVD Review: Isabelle and Gerard and the Goddamn Heat
Nicloux writes and directs this strange and lovely odyssey through Death Valley.
Read MoreLa Chienne Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Early Renoir is a Delight
Criterion does a masterful job of bringing an early sound picture to life.
Read MoreImmoral Tales and The Beast Blu-rays Review: 1970’s French Erotica
In which our hero has to ask himself, how much fake semen can one person handle?
Read MoreLa Grande Bouffe Blu-ray Review: A Feast for the Senses That Leaves One Overstuffed
Marco Ferreri’s controversial film gets a grand treatment from Arrow Video, but leaves one filling a bit sick to the stomach.
Read MoreThe Tall Blond Man with One Black Shoe Blu-ray Review: Forgettable but Fun French Farce
A spy comedy that’s silly but never ridiculous.
Read MoreThe Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Miss Osbourne / Island of Death Blu-rays Review
Much like The Damned before them, the folks at Arrow Video USA have fallen in love with some genuine video nasties.
Read MoreHe Loves Me, He Loves Me Not DVD Review: A Movie So Nice You’ll Watch It Twice
A fun take on both the romantic comedy and femme fatale genres and so cleverly constructed that I never minded its flaws.
Read MoreThe Bride Wore Black (1968) Blu-ray Review: The Roots of ’70s Grindhouse Cinema
François Truffaut’s homage to Hitchcock makes a stunning Blu-ray debut from Twilight Time.
Read MoreThe Strange Color of Your Body’s Tears Blu-ray Review: Bizarre, Incomprehensible, and Mesmerizing
A hallucinatory fever dream of a film that is surprising, strange and wonderful.
Read MoreErnest & Celestine Blu-ray Review: A Tail of Two Cities
Oscar-nominated film is short on substance but long on style.
Read MoreThe Right Stuff: 30th Anniversary Edition Is the Pick of the Week
A classic American film about classic Americans gets the nod.
Read MoreBlue Is the Warmest Color Movie Review: A Compelling Story About Love and Life
Three hours/ten years wasn’t enough time to spend with Adele.
Read MoreEyes Without a Face Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: A Mesmerizing, Poetic Film
While it embraces the horror genre, it manages to rise above it as well and present itself as a masterful work of art.
Read MoreLa Cage aux Folles Criterion Collection DVD Review: Classic French Farce Bliss
It’s OK to be in Saint-Tropez.
Read MoreLa Cage aux Folles Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: “Utter Hell” to Make, Pure Heaven to Watch
It is a film as funny and necessary today as it was when it came out in 1978.
Read MoreThe Earrings of Madame de … Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: The Direction of Max Ophuls Dazzles Like a Diamond
The entire experience of film, presentation, and extras makes it worth having.
Read MoreShoah Criterion Collection DVD Review: Superb Release of Haunting, Tragic Film
Criterion Collection’s release of Shoah is a superb packaging of the powerful, haunting Holocaust documentary.
Read MorePierre Etaix: Criterion Collection DVD Review: Affordable Pricelessness
The Criterion Collection brings us a wonderful set from a fine French comic you probably never heard of.
Read MoreBand of Outsiders Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: An Odd, Wonderfully Fun Film from the French New Wave
The entire film is just amazing to watch.
Read MorePierre Etaix Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Bringing Etaix’s World to Life
Pierre Etaix’s charming films are finally released properly.
Read MoreWith a Friend Like Harry…Movie Review: Dark French Thriller Keeps You on Edge
The atmosphere is kept dark and tension filled.
Read MoreChronicle of a Summer Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: A Fascinating Glimpse into Paris in 1960
A unique portrait of a very specific time and and a very specific place.
Read MoreSpecial Forces (2011) DVD Review: Worth a Look if You Listen in French
Not the best of the recent crop of Desert Storm-related flicks, but not the worst either.
Read MoreMy Worst Nightmare (2011) Movie Review: American Rom-Com Goes French
Anne Fontaine gleefully dives into genre clichés and comes out winning.
Read MorePurple Noon Criterion Collection DVD Review: A Treat for the Eyes and a Test for the Nerves
Adapted from Patricia Highsmith’s novel The Talented Mr. Ripley, this tale of deception and murder made Alain Delon a star.
Read MorePurple Noon Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: The Talented Mr. Delon
Alain Delon is a dashing, magnetic force in this early adaptation of novelist Patricia Highsmith’s “The Talented Mr. Ripley”.
Read MoreUnforgivable Movie Review: More Turns Than a French Soap Opera
Téchiné provides unpardonable melodrama.
Read MoreLa Jetee / Sans Soleil Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Stay for the Stills, Run from the Motion
Chris Marker’s black and white still film runs rings around his pretentious color full-motion travelogue.
Read MoreWeekend (1967) Criterion Collection DVD Review: For the True Cinephile
It’s French, it’s subversive, it’s not for the average film buff.
Read MoreLes Visiteurs du Soir Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: A Medieval Tale of Love and Fate
As God said to Cain: “If you want to cast people into the deepest depths of despair, send in a couple of French folks.”
Read MoreChildren of Paradise Criterion Collection DVD Review: The Film is Paradise
Love is simple.
Read MoreChildren of Paradise Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Cinematic Paradise
Exceptional new restoration of classic French film enhances an already monumental work.
Read MoreThe Hedgehog [Le Hérisson] (2009) DVD Review: Eccentric Esoteric French Fare. Golly Gee.
No, it’s not another documentary on Ron Jeremy. Thank God.
Read MoreCarlos (2010) Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: The Tale of the Jackal
Terrorist, freedom fighter, or both?
Read MoreDesire DVD Review: A Realistic Look at Twenty-Something Sexual Mores
Laurent Bouhnik’s erotic drama explores the lives of twentysomethings in a small French town.
Read MoreNobody Else but You Movie Review: A Marvelous Piece of Cinema
A classic in its own right.
Read MoreThe Complete Jean Vigo Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: A Career in Four Films
What’s essential for some isn’t always for others.
Read MoreLa haine Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: A Seething Portrait of a Vicious Cycle
Mathieu Kassovitz offers up no easy answers in his compelling, unsettling 1995 film.
Read MoreBeauty and the Beast (1946) Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Jean Cocteau Creates Magic
Allow yourself to fall under its spell.
Read MoreSpecial Treatment DVD Review: Prostitution and Psychotherapy Overlap in Underwhelming Film
Strong performances, including a turn by the great Isabelle Huppert, make the film worthwhile, but its script lets the actors down.
Read MoreBelle de Jour Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: How Severine Got Her Groove Back
A luminous young Catherine Deneuve crafts a memorable portrait of a bored, rich housewife exploring her dangerous proclivities.
Read MoreI’m Glad My Mother Is Alive DVD Review: Study of Post-Adoption Scars Falls Flat
Father-and-son team Claude and Nathan Miller hamstring their promising film with structural issues and a cop-out ending.
Read MoreThe Rules of the Game (1939) Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Jean Renoir, Je T’aime
The Criterion Collection brings us a constructive release of this reconstructed classic.
Read MoreLe Beau Serge and Les Cousins Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: The True Origins of the French New Wave
Often unsung, Claude Chabrol’s debut films reveal his early mastery of the craft.
Read MoreOrpheus Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Cinematic Magic from a Familiar Tale
Jean Cocteau’s version of the Orpheus myth is a stunningly beautiful film.
Read MoreOrpheus Criterion Collection DVD Review: Jean Cocteau Constructed a Masterpiece
One would be hard pressed to come up with a better example of presenting a classic film than this.
Read MoreThe Hedgehog (2011) Movie Review: An Emotionally Moving Film
A beautiful film about the fact that we are larger than the roles we have been assigned.
Read MoreLeon Morin, Priest Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Sex and Religion on the Mind
Jean-Pierre Melville directs and Jean-Paul Belmondo stars in a film that’s somewhat atypical for both.
Read MoreAu revoir les enfants Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Louis Malle’s Remembrance of Things Past
Another valuable WWII-inspired entry in the Criterion Collection.
Read MoreBlack Moon (1975) Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Gloria Steinem Meets Lewis Carroll
Louis Malle’s 1975 surreal take on “Alice In Wonderland” almost defies description.
Read MoreDiabolique (1955) Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Crime and Punishment
An unforgettable revenge thriller.
Read MoreDiabolique (1955) Criterion Collection DVD Review: Influential Horror that Stands the Test of Time
French New Wavers trashed it, but Hitchcock was inspired.
Read MoreArmy of Shadows Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: A Different Kind of Spy Thriller
An impressive film that honors those whose story it tells.
Read MoreBetty Blue Blu-ray Review: This Dark, Passionate Film is a Colorful Outing
Twenty-five years later, the reviewer sees a completely different story though finds it no less enjoyable.
Read MoreWhite Material Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Presages Current Events
The despair of a dying country is portrayed in this powerful film.
Read MoreLe Cercle Rouge Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Short on Plot, Long on Mise en Scene
A rewarding experience in the hands of this master director.
Read MoreJoyeux Noel Movie Review: Demonstrating People Are More Alike Than Different
It walks a fine line between comedy and drama and excels at both without compromising either.
Read MoreBreathless (1960) Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: A Crime Story, a Romance, and a Movie About Movies
A wondrous film that may make you reevaluate what you know about movies.
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