12 French Films To Watch Over The Holidays

French films are fantastic, so cosy up this holiday season and enjoy some of the best French films ever made.

Are you looking forward to spending some time watching some excellent movies over the holidays? We are too. 

We highly recommend diving head first into the world of French film this holiday season. After all, the French film industry is one of the most successful in the world, and releases over 300 new films a year. 

The best thing about the French film industry is that they are bold, honest, unique and memorable, and their films are some of the most inclusive and true to life.

Our team have put together a list of the 12 best French films to enjoy over your holiday break. There’s something for every kind of film lover on our list. Drama, comedy, retro, modern, horror, fantasy, thriller, romance – it’s all there! 

Check out the trailer for each film below, grab some popcorn and enjoy these iconic French films. A couple of them you can even stream right on this page! 

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1. Amélie (2001)

Paris Teachers Club team member recommendation***

Genre: Romantic / Comedy. 

Starring: Audrey Tautou, Mathieu Kassovitz. 

Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet. 

Arguably the most globally beloved French film, Amélie is a cinematic gem with a cult following. The film follows the story of a young Parisian woman who lives and works in the village of Montmartre, and her quest to find people around her to find love and happiness. Will Amelie find love herself in the process? You’ll have to watch it to find out.

Amélie kickstarted the enduring career of French actress Audrey Tautou, and the acclaimed film is a critic and audience favourite. This is also our founder Kathryn’s recommendation for you!

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2. Weekend (1967)

Genre: Drama / Comedy. 

Starring: Mireille Darc, Jean-Pierre Léaud. 

Director: Jean-Luc Godard. 

The brainchild of iconic French director Jean-Luc Godard, the comedy-drama Weekend is a cult classic that audiences still enjoy over 50 years on. The movie follows the weekend break of a couple with a troubled relationship, where all kinds of funny situations follow.  

Weekend has a distinctly 60’s feel, which only adds to its vintage charm. And viewers continue to love it, as it boasts a 93% fresh Rotten Tomatoes score.

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3. Girlhood (2014)

Genre: Drama.  

Starring: Karidja Touré, Marietou Touré. 

Director: Céline Sciamma. 

Girlhood is an important film for so many reasons. It broaches many cultural topics, including race, identity, poverty, gangs and class. The 2014 film follows a black teenage protagonist who is finding her way growing up in one of Paris’ roughest neighbourhoods. 

The cast were scouted from the very Paris neighbourhoods the film is set in, and the film was nominated for esteemed awards across the globe. Much like La Haine, the film is so unique and important as it shines a light on the parts of Paris that are the reality for many, but areas visitors to the city will never experience. 

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4. Mon Roi (2015)

Paris Teachers Club team member recommendation***

Genre: Romance / Drama. 

Starring: Vincent Cassel, Emmanuelle Bercot. 

Director: Maïwenn. 

Our social media manager and blog writer Felicity personally recommends this French film for you. Mon Roi is a memorable love story that follows the turbulent relationship of two 40-something career-driven people in Paris.

Mon Roi (which translates to “My King”) is a special little movie from the female director Maïwenn. It was also nominated for the esteemed Palme d’Or at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival. 

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5. A Christmas Tale (2008)

Genre: Drama / Comedy.  

Starring: Catherine Deneuve, Mathieu Amalric. 

Director: Arnaud Desplechin. 

A Christmas Tale is a 2008 Christmas movie (the only Christmas-themed film on our list for the holidays, ironically), starring French film legend Catherine Deneuve and a host of other great actors. The film centres on an acrimonious family that gets together at Christmas.

This dramatic movie has its sad moments, but it is also uplifting and heartwarming. It looks at often-complex familial relationships under the shadow of the holidays. It is well worth a watch this Christmas. 

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6. Beauty and the Beast (1946)

Genre: Fantasy / Romance.

Starring: Jean Marais, Josette Day. 

Director: Jean Cocteau. 

If you love French films, you should have already seen legendary French director Jean Cocteau’s rendition of Beauty and the Beast, made way back in 1946. It still remains a fan favourite even after over 70 years. 

The classic tale follows Belle, who becomes the prisoner of the elusive Beast. The New York Times called this black and white classic “astonishingly beautiful”, and it is. Even in newly post-war France, over 4 million people saw it at the cinema. Check it out. 

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7. Caché (2005)

Genre: Thriller.

Starring: Juliette Binoche, Daniel Auteuil. 

Director: Michael Haneke. 

Caché, released in some foreign countries under its English name Hidden, is one of the most acclaimed French films of the last two decades, and for good reason. It stars French film icons, Juliette Binoche and Daniel Auteuil as a married couple living in Paris, who realise they are being surveilled. 

What ensues is a psychologically thrilling plot. The film was highly acclaimed by critics and audiences, and won many awards across France and Europe. It spans a range of topics and themes, many of them ambiguous, which is a mark of French cinema. Caché is a French film that really makes you think and that you have to see. 

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8. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007) 

Genre: Drama. 

Starring: Mathieu Amalric, Marie-Josée Croze. 

Director: Julian Schnabel.

When it was released in 2007, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly created waves across the globe, with audiences lauding it as one of the most important French films ever made. It is a biographical journey, telling the true story of a man who becomes paralysed with locked-in syndrome. It is tragic, heartbreaking and powerful, and you must see it. 

The film swept major awards at Cannes, The Golden Globes and more, and put French film firmly back in the spotlight. 

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9. La Belle Époque (2019)

Genre: Romance / Drama. 

Starring: Doria Tillier, Daniel Auteuil, Fanny Ardant. 

Director: Nicolas Bedos. 

Elements of La Belle Époque can easily be compared to the American film Midnight in Paris. After all, it does centre on a location where people can travel back in time in France. But comparisons should end there. La Belle Époque, for one, is set in Lyon, and follows an unhappy older man who finds a time travelling portal to go back to an important week in his life.  

This is a multi-layered film that is as aesthetically beautifully as it is meaningful. It won many major French film awards, and retains a high critic and audience online score. 

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10.  La Vie En Rose (2007)

Genre: Drama / Musical. 

Starring: Marion Cotillard. 

Director: Olivier Dahan. 

La Vie En Rose is arguably the most globally acclaimed French film of all time, for which Marion Cotillard famously won the ‘Best Actress’ Oscar. And boy, did she earn it. The film tells the story of France’s most famous singer, Édith Piaf, from her childhood spent in poverty to her rise to the highest peaks of fame. 

The film doesn’t hold back on telling Piaf’s story, warts and all, and focuses on the personal issues that plagued “the little sparrow”. A powerful film that will stay with you for a long time.

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11.  Possession (1981)

Genre: Horror. 

Starring: Isabelle Adjani, Sam Neill 

Director: Andrzej Żuławski. 

We have included a range of film genres on this list, and of course, we have to include a fantastic French horror film on the list. Possession is just that. It stars French film beauty Isabelle Adjani and a young Sam Neill, long before Jurassic Park fame. And yes, this is a French film that is partly set in West Germany but that is spoken uniquely in English, so no subtitles required for English speakers here. 

Without giving too much away, Possession tells the story of a married couple who are on the verge of divorcing, and the strange behavioural changes the male protagonist notices in his estranged wife. It sent audiences over the edge when it was released 40 years ago. Enjoy! 

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12. La Haine (1995)

Genre: Crime / Drama. 

Starring: Mathieu Kassovitz, Vincent Cassel. 

Director: Mathieu Kassovitz. 

Directed by Mathieu Kassovitz, who also played one of the protagonists, La Haine is a powerful film that is regularly included on lists of the best French films ever made. It goes deep into the roughest parts of Paris, exposing conflicts regarding race, class, policing attitudes, religion and immigration. 

La Haine is as powerful as it was when it was released in 1995, when Kassovitz scooped the Cannes Film Festival ‘Best Director’ accolade. The film also launched Vincent Cassel’s super-successful film career. Oh, and it’s got a 100% online approval rating. 

https://youtu.be/I6Pf34_pkdQ

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What are your favourite French films?

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