Elisabeth Cook April 8, 2015

The 10 Best French Movies on Netflix for FrenchLearners

fluentu.com/blog/french/best-french-movies-on-netflix/

In the mood for a cinematic treat?

Many French learners already know that watching movies is one of the best and mostpleasurable ways to learn through immersion.

Some are even aware of techniques for using movies to accelerate their learning.

Finding the movies themselves, though?

That can be a hassle!

You have a limited amount of time and don’t want to waste it watching something boring.Even worse, imagine starting a movie only to find that it involves absolutely no Frenchconversation!

FluentU offers fun, authentic French videos specially selected for learners.

But when it comes to feature films, you’re sorta left to fend for yourself. Which can betough.

That’s why we’ve put together a list of the best films for French learners that are currentlyon Netflix.

We’ve considered not only the quality of the movies but also the features included—all inorder to give you the best possible learning experience.

All you have to do is sit back and enjoy!

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What Makes a French Movie Ideal for Learning

Before we get into the movies themselves, here’s a look at factors that went into theirselection.

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To state the obvious, if there’s not a whole of talking in a movie, it’s not going to help yourFrench comprehension. For improving your listening, more loquacious characters areideal. The films below all contain a lot of talking. That’s not to say they’re nothingbut talking, but they’ll give you a hefty earful of modern, real-world French.

And if you wind up wanting more where that came from, FluentU is your one stop shopfor awesome video material loaded up with authentic French speech.

FluentU lets you learn French from real-world content like music videos, commercials,news broadcasts, cartoons and inspiring talks. Since this video content is stuff that nativeFrench speakers actually watch on the regular, you’ll get the opportunity to learn realFrench—the way it’s spoken in modern life.

One quick look will give you an idea of the diverse content found on FluentU:

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Love the thought of learning French with native materials but afraid you won’t understandwhat’s being said? FluentU brings authentic French videos within reach of anylearner. Interactive captions will guide you along the way, so you’ll never miss a word.

Tap on any word to see a definition, in-context usage examples, audio pronunciation,helpful images and more. For example, if you tap on the word “suit,” then this is whatappears on your screen:

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Don’t stop there, though. Use FluentU’s learn mode to actively practice all the vocabularyin any video with vocabulary lists, flashcards, quizzes and fun activities like “fill in theblank.”

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As you continue advancing in your French studies, FluentU keeps track of all the grammarand vocabulary that you’ve been learning. It uses your viewed videos and masteredlanguage lessons to recommend more useful videos and give you a 100% personalizedexperience.

Start using FluentU on the website with your computer or tablet or, better yet, downloadthe FluentU app from the iTunes store or Google Play store.

Optional Subtitles

Being able to switch subtitles on and off is a huge advantage for French learners. It makescontent useful for a wider range of levels and increases learning possibilities. The followingfilms all have subtitles that can be turned on and off with the Netflix instant viewer.

Engaging Content

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A boring movie can be a real bummer and cause you to waste an entire evening. The goodnews is that France is a leading film producer, and truly has something for everyone!French film boasts a rich and interesting history. Somewhere along the way, though, itdeveloped a reputation for being overly arty and obtuse. Like a lot of stereotypes, this hassome truth to it, but has been blown way out of proportion and is no reason to avoid theartier side of French cinema altogether.

The following list exists in a happy middle ground of accessible film with a distinctly“French” touch. All the films should have wide appeal, but many contain artistic or culturalelements specific to France. They can be your gateway drug to the land of New Wave orclassic French film, if you’d like to travel that path.

Tips for Finding More French Movies on Netflix

This list should give you a wealth of material for enjoyment and practice. But you’ll soonwant to branch off on your own, if you haven’t already. Here are a couple things to considerwhile browsing for more French movies on Netflix.

Expand your search over multiple countries.

Netflix sorts movies by country or continent, not by language. So if you only search under“French,” you’re going to be missing out on some real Francophone gems. Be sure to checkout the Belgian, African and Canadian categories as well. None of these places has asprolific a film culture as France (yet), but they’re all worth keeping an eye on.

“Grigris,” a film by acclaimed Chadian director Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, follows ayoung man who dreams of being a dancer despite having a paralyzed leg. The film was anominee for the Cannes Palme d’Or, and you can watch it with instant viewing on Netflix.

Xavier Dolan is a hip, young French-Canadian director who employs influences fromboth French and international cinema. His movies are simply shot, playful and accessible.Check out “Heartbeats” and “I Killed My Mother” (not as sinister as its title wouldsuggest), both available on Netflix.

Find out who directs your favorite movies.

The French tradition places emphasis on the unique work of each director. It’s nocoincidence that the term auteur, referring to a director who creates films according totheir own creative vision, is the French word for “author.”

Getting familiar with French directors is the key to getting familiar with French cinema asa whole. When you reach the point of anticipating a new film by one of your favorites,you’ll be in for a lifetime of French cinematic enjoyment.

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Becoming a French film lover is one of the best ways to expose yourself to the language.And the good news is that you can get started anytime. So pick one film that intrigues youand load it up right now!

1. “In the House” (Dans la maison)

Director François Ozon is often associated with “New French Extremism” and the cinémadu corps (cinema of the body), both of which commonly refer to films ofan edgy, transgressive nature. However, Ozon and many of the other directors placed inthis camp employ a wide range of artistic styles, and may be most notable for theirwillingness to experiment with new approaches that offer a vivid and quirky quality totheir work.

This film of Ozon’s, which features French cinema favorites Fabrice Luchini and British-born Kristen Scott Thomas, presents mainstream subject matter in a fresh and unexpectedmanner. It loosely employs two common formulas: the teacher-meets-gifted-studentdrama and the classic family drama.

Due to the nature of the plot, which involves Luchini’s character teaching students Frenchliterature and helping one particular student, Claude, with his writing, there are severalFrench lessons hidden within the film.

Keep your ears tuned to try to pinpoint when Claude’s narration switches fromthe past to the present.

2. “The French Minister” (Quai d’Orsay)

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“The French Minister”follows Arthur Vlaminck, a new employee at the Ministry of Foreignand European Affairs, as he tries to find his footing and comes into contact with a widerange of distinctive characters. A far-reaching political comedy, the story shoots off intoseveral subplots and sometimes seems to have been conceived more as a sitcom than amovie. But this is great for learning! It brings you into contact with many different stylesand modes of speech.

As there are plenty of quick vocal exchanges in “The French Minister,” it’s ideal foradvanced learners looking to up the stakes. Clocking in at almost two hours long withnear-constant dialogue, it’s a whole lot of content.

3. “2 Autumns, 3 Winters” (2 automnes 3 hivers)

This isn’t your mom’s rom-com. Actually, it’s not a rom-com at all, despite having beendescribed as such.

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It’s more of a comic but sober meditation on life and love. It employs some artier filmtechniques in a playful manner, such as introducing the main characters by means ofnarration and having them speak directly to the camera. The movie is divided intochapitres (chapters), and includes one that announces to you from the get-go thatit’s going to employ the passé simple.

The narrative follows not only Armand and Amélie (the featured couple, who get togetherat the middle rather than the end of the film), but also a close friend of Armand’s as they alldeal with the surprises life has to offer. A smart, hip film that doesn’t talk down to you butappeals to your intelligence and wit, “2 Autumns, 3 Winters”not only teaches French butcreates an ideal atmosphere for learning.

4. “With a Friend Like Harry” (Harry, un ami qui vous veut du bien)

Wanna learn French in your sleep?

A darkly comic take on a family vacation gone wrong, “With a Friend Like Harry” mayconveniently haunt your dreams.

While on vacation with his family, Michel runs into an old classmate from lycée, Harry.Michel doesn’t even remember Harry at first, but invites him to have dinner at his family’ssummer home. It turns out that Harry knows a lot about Michel, having even gone so far asto memorize a poem he wrote that appeared in a school publication years earlier. Hebecomes obsessed with Michel taking up writing again. Michel is both flattered andrepelled, but can’t seem to rid himself of Harry’s presence.

Despite being thoroughly creepy, “With a Friend Like Harry” is not what you’d call a“scary” movie. As we watch Michel struggle with his past and present desires, bothawakened by and obstructed by Harry, we find ourselves rooting for him up to a finale thatcould be considered weirdly inspirational.

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The film maintains an even, relaxed pace throughout. The dialogue is well-paced, too,giving you time to process what’s being said. Bonus points if you can keep up witheverything Michel’s kids yell in the background.

5. “Bicycling with Molière” (Alceste à bicyclette)

Back to Fabrice Luchini and natural dialogue interspersed with literature.

The plot of this film follows an actor trying to convince his retired former friend to take apart in a production of Molière’s “Le Misanthrope.“ His friend (Luchini) agrees to considerthe offer, but only if they can rehearse together first. Tensions rise and egos suffer as theyargue over who should play which part and revisit past resentments in the process.

This offering may come off a little precious at first, as it involves actors reciting dated verseat each other. But Luchini’s character’s comic disdain keeps the atmosphere of the filmdown-to-earth and thoroughly modern.

Despite what some reviews on Netflix say, you don’t have to have read the play to be able tofollow this movie. It will, however, offer you a crash course in Molière, and leave it upto you where to take that knowledge next.

6. “The Painting” (Le tableau)

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An animated film taking inspiration from artists such as Chagall, Matisse and Picasso, “ThePainting” is meta eye-candy.

The main characters in the movie are figures in a painting, some of whom are consideredinferior due to their apparent half-finished status. The questions of why some figures havevisual attributes the others lack, who le peintre (the painter) is and why he chose to painteveryone the way he did sets up a space for social and philosophical commentary.

The ideas themselves are nothing new, but there’s an upside to that: You can focus moreclosely on the cool visuals and the dialogue, which tends to be clear but naturallyspoken.

7. “Le Chef” (Comme un chef)

Brush up on your French food vocabulary and get ready for a light and highly watchablemovie that will appeal to foodies and…oh, just about everyone else, too.

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Alexandre LeGarde, played by Jean Reno, is a famous chef who has run into someproblems. Money problems, boss problems, inspiration problems. Desperation leads himto accept help from Jacky, a self-taught chef and LeGarde admirer. Together, the two workto refashion old recipes for modern tastes.

“Le Chef” is primarily a comedy that works hard to entertain. It has great rewatch value,especially for a French learner. In addition to mouth-watering descriptions of dishes andthe back-and-forth of casual kitchen banter, you’ll get a good mix of social scenariosbetween a wide cast of characters. This makes it a good practice film for all levels ,and one that you’ll return to again and again.

8. “You Will Be My Son” (Tu seras mon fils)

By far the darkest movie on this list, “You Will Be My Son” is a captivating thriller.

Niles Arstrup gives a brilliant performance as a cruel, critical man obsessed with securinghis winemaking legacy. Dissatisfied with his own son as a candidate to replace him, hebecomes set on bequeathing his estate to the son of one of his employees, which sets off allthe tensions and resentments you might imagine it would.

With notes of “The Talented Mr. Ripley,” a hint of “The Cask of Amontillado” and a finishall its own, “You Will Be My Son”contains that telltale je ne sais quoi that appeals toconnoisseurs of creepy film. So pop open a bottle of Bordeaux and dive in (not literally, ofcourse).

With its expressive acting, “You Will Be My Son”is a good opportunity for a French learnerto observe the language being spoken with emotional emphasis and subtlety.The main difference between this film and some of the others on the list is that it deals with

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highly personal situations, opening up yet another angle of conversational possibilities. Tobe fair, most people will (hopefully) never experience the exact situations that take place inthis movie, but expanding your range is always a good thing.

9. “Amélie” (Le fabuleux destin d’Amélie Poulain)

I know, I know! This is, like, the most obvious example of an internationally known Frenchfilm. Plus, we’ve already included one movie that features a chick named Amélie.

Even if you’ve already seen this one, when was the last time you watched it? With its funand whimsical approach to colorful visuals and a narrative that builds on itself withconfidence and charm, it’s a great movie for beginning and intermediate Frenchlearners.Its optional subtitles on Netflix make it worth revisiting for anyone learningFrench. So don’t scoff until you’ve squeezed out every last drop of cinematic goodness!

10. “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly” (Le scaphandre et le papillon)

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True story: In 1995, Elle magazine editor Jean-Dominique Bauby was paralyzed by astroke, reduced to communicating by blinking his left eyelid. An assistant would read offthe alphabet to him, and he would blink to select a letter as it came up. He managed towrite an entire book using this system.

This is the movie based on that book. Starring Mathieu Amalric (a well-known figure inFrench cinema who you may recognize as the villain from the Bond film “Quantum ofSolace”), the film takes us through Bauby’s entire experience from the time he wakes up inthe hospital, unable to move or talk.

If you think this sounds depressing, it’s not.

While many movies about discouraging medical situations force us to watch theunfortunate victims suffer before our eyes, a large part of this film is shot from Bauby’spoint of view. Characters speak to him, but we can also hear his unspoken thoughts in thebackground. This perspective leads to many entertaining and humorous situations, and isinterspersed with colorful flashbacks and rich, creative depictions of Bauby’s inner world.

Seeing the world from a French first-person point of view (no matter how limited thatpoint of view may be) is always a great opportunity to put yourself in the place ofexperiencing a conversation with French speakers.

Elisabeth Cook is a freelance writer, translator and unabashed French film fanatic.You can follow her on Twitter (@CooksChicken) or read her blog at litallover.com.

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