Ridicule is a 1996 French period drama film directed by Patrice Leconte and starring Charles Berling, Jean Rochefort, Fanny Ardant and Judith Godrèche. Set in the 18th century at the decadent court of Versailles, where social status can rise and fall based on one's ability to mete out witty insults and avoid ridicule oneself, the film's plot examines the social injustices of late 18th-century France, in showing the corruption and callousness of the aristocrats.
Day for Night is a 1973 French comedy-drama romance film directed by François Truffaut, starring Jacqueline Bisset, Jean-Pierre Léaud, and Truffaut himself. The original French title is La Nuit américaine, the French name for the filmmaking process whereby sequences filmed outdoors in daylight are shot with a filter over the camera lens or also using film stock balanced for tungsten (indoor) light and underexposed to appear as if they are taking place at night. In English, the technique is called day for night.
Wild Reeds is a 1994 French drama film directed by André Téchiné about the sexual awakening of four teenagers and their subsequent sensitive passage into adulthood at the end of the Algerian War. The film was selected as the French entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 67th Academy Awards, but not nominated.
Dangerous Moves is a 1984 French-language film about chess, directed by Richard Dembo, produced by Arthur Cohn, starring Michel Piccoli, Alexandre Arbatt, as well as Liv Ullmann, Leslie Caron, and Bernhard Wicki in prominent supporting roles.
L'Enfant is a 2005 Belgian film directed by Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, starring Jérémie Renier and Déborah François. The film was released under its French title in the US, and as The Child in the UK.
Gervaise is a 1956 French film directed by René Clément based on the 1877 novel L'Assommoir by Émile Zola. It depicts a working-class woman in the mid-nineteenth century trying to cope with the descent of her husband into alcoholism. The film was nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 29th Academy Awards. Schell won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress at the 1956 Venice Film Festival for her performance. It won the 1957 BAFTA for Best Film and Best Actor.
Orders is a 1974 Quebec historical drama film about the incarceration of innocent civilians during the 1970 October Crisis and the War Measures Act enacted by the Canadian government of Pierre Trudeau. It is the second film by director Michel Brault. It features entertainer and Senator Jean Lapointe.
Days of Darkness, also known as The Age of Ignorance, is a 2007 black comedy-drama film written and directed by Denys Arcand and starring Marc Labrèche, Diane Kruger and Sylvie Léonard. Presented as the third part of Arcand's loose trilogy also consisting of The Decline of the American Empire (1986) and The Barbarian Invasions (2003), it was followed by a fourth film with similar themes, The Fall of the American Empire (2018). The film follows a depressed Quebec bureaucrat, who feeling insignificant, retreats into a fantasy world.
The Bamboo Incident or Hoa-Binh is a 1970 French film directed by Raoul Coutard and based on a novel La colonne de cendres by Françoise Lorrain.
The Revolving Doors is a 1988 Canadian-French French-language drama film directed by Francis Mankiewicz. The film was selected as the Canadian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 61st Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee.
Van Gogh is a 1991 French biographical drama film written and directed by Maurice Pialat. It stars Jacques Dutronc in the role of Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh, for which he won the 1992 César Award for Best Actor. Set in 1890, the film follows the last 67 days of Van Gogh's life and explores his relationships with his brother Theo, his physician Paul Gachet, and the women in his life, including Gachet's daughter, Marguerite.
J.A. Martin Photographer is a 1977 Canadian drama film directed by Jean Beaudin. It was entered into the 1977 Cannes Film Festival, where Monique Mercure won the award for Best Actress. The film won multiple Canadian Film Awards, including best feature film. It was selected as the Canadian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 50th Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee. In 1984, the Toronto International Film Festival ranked the film seventh in the Top 10 Canadian Films of All Time.
Les petites fugues is a 1979 Swiss comedy film directed by Yves Yersin. It competed in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1979 Cannes Film Festival. The film was produced by Filmkollektiv Zurich. The film was selected as the Swiss entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 52nd Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee.
A Scream from Silence is a 1979 Canadian drama film directed by Anne Claire Poirier and starring Julie Vincent. It competed in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1979 Cannes Film Festival. The film was selected as the Canadian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 52nd Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee.
Lounge Chair is a 1988 Swiss-French drama film directed by Jean-François Amiguet. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1988 Cannes Film Festival. The film was selected as the Swiss entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 61st Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee.
Le Havre is a 2011 comedy-drama film produced, written, and directed by Aki Kaurismäki and starring André Wilms, Kati Outinen, Jean-Pierre Darroussin and Blondin Miguel. It tells the story of a shoeshiner who tries to save an immigrant child in the French port city Le Havre. The film was produced by Kaurismäki's Finnish company Sputnik with international co-producers in France and Germany. It is Kaurismäki's second French-language film, after La Vie de Bohème from 1992.
Le Grand Paysage d'Alexis Droeven is a 1981 Belgian drama film directed by Jean-Jacques Andrien. It was entered into the 31st Berlin International Film Festival where it won an Honourable Mention. It also received the André Cavens Award for Best Film by the Belgian Film Critics Association (UCC). The film was selected as the Belgian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 54th Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee.
Renoir is a 2012 French drama film based on the last years of Pierre-Auguste Renoir at Cagnes-sur-Mer during World War I. The film was directed by Gilles Bourdos and competed in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival. The film is set in the south of France during World War I and stars Michel Bouquet, Christa Theret, Thomas Doret and Vincent Rottiers. Renoir achieved critical and commercial success both in France and abroad, most notably in the United States where it is on the Critic's Pick list of The New York Times. The film was selected as the French entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 86th Academy Awards, but was not nominated. In January 2014, the film received four nominations at the 39th César Awards, winning for Best Costume Design.
Saint Laurent is a 2014 French biographical drama film co-written and directed by Bertrand Bonello, and starring Gaspard Ulliel as Yves Saint Laurent, Jérémie Renier as Pierre Bergé, and Louis Garrel as Jacques de Bascher. The supporting cast features Léa Seydoux, Amira Casar, Aymeline Valade, and Helmut Berger. The film centers on Saint Laurent's life from 1967 to 1976, during which time the famed fashion designer was at the peak of his career. The film competed for the Palme d'Or in the main competition section at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival and was released on 24 September 2014.
Wild Flowers is a 1982 Canadian drama film written and directed by Jean Pierre Lefebvre. The film won the FIPRESCI Prize at the 1982 Cannes Film Festival and was selected as the Canadian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 55th Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee.
