The Returned (Les Revenants)
Revitalizing the Undead, French Style
The zombie – once the domain of cult-movie fans – has only recently become a mainstay of popular culture. In the past decade, much has changed thanks to TV shows that garner record ratings, offering everything from the apocalyptic scenario … Read More
Osmosis
Future Fairy Tale
Although they don’t get much credit for it, the French were pioneers in the literature of science fiction, and they are now excelling in the genre on cinema and television screens as well. In the past few years, several original … Read More
Call My Agent
The Cutthroat Chase for French Stars
We all have to admit, some of us a little reluctantly, that Netflix has changed our viewing habits immeasurably. Yet, for all the wonderful range of series and movies it offers, it can sometimes be difficult to discover good programs, … Read More
L’État Sauvage
Calamity Jeanne Rides Again
A feminist French Western? Well, why not? Just about every other imaginable kind of Western has already been made, so not much else is left. L’État Sauvage (Savage State), directed by David Perrault, takes place in 1861 during the American … Read More
Les Misérables
Hugo in the Projects
In the midst of the furor surrounding Roman Polanski’s award as best director for J’Accuse at last week’s Césars (the French Oscars), Les Misérables, the movie that won for best film, has undeservedly gone under the radar. Those hoping for another … Read More
Portrait of a Lady on Fire
On a Slow Burn
I am rather late in seeing Portrait de la Jeune Fille en Feu (Portrait of a Lady on Fire), directed by Céline Sciamma, but the movie, released in the United States on Valentine’s Day, is topical once again. It is … Read More
J’ai Perdu Mon Corps
Body Issues
Unlike Les Hirondelles de Kabul, reviewed here recently, the film J’ai Perdu Mon Corps (I Lost My Body), directed by Jérémy Clapin, has good reason to be animated. Full of fantasy elements. it would have been most difficult to make … Read More
Hors Normes
Do-Good, Feel-Good Film
Directors and screenwriters Éric Toledano and Olivier Nakache seem to be making a career out of feel-good movies about gnarly subjects. Their huge hit, Intouchables (2011), the second most successful film ever made in France, was an upbeat film about … Read More
Matthias et Maxime
Will They or Won't They?
Having just turned 30, the director and actor Xavier Dolan can no longer be called the wunderkind of Canadian cinema, but the fact that he has already directed eight full-length features shows how prolific he has been. He has also … Read More
La Belle Époque
High-Tech Time Machine
My heart sinks these days when I see the cast list of new French movies containing familiar names of great actors from the past. All too often they seem to have phoned in their roles and appear perfectly content to … Read More