IrishManDC's French Movie Picks on Netflix
by IrishManDC | created - 27 Dec 2012 | updated - 4 months ago | Public- Instant Watch Options
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1. The Apartment (1996)
R | 116 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance
A recently engaged man sees a former lover and becomes obsessed with meeting her again.
Director: Gilles Mimouni | Stars: Romane Bohringer, Vincent Cassel, Jean-Philippe Écoffey, Monica Bellucci
Votes: 15,870
2. Goodbye, Children (1987)
PG | 104 min | Drama, War
A French boarding school run by priests seems to be a haven from World War II until a new student arrives. Occupying the next bed in the dormitory to the top student in his class, the two young boys begin to form a bond.
Director: Louis Malle | Stars: Gaspard Manesse, Raphael Fejtö, Francine Racette, Stanislas Carré de Malberg
Votes: 36,032 | Gross: $4.54M
3. Irreversible (2002)
Not Rated | 97 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
Events over the course of one traumatic night in Paris unfold in reverse-chronological order as the beautiful Alex is brutally raped and beaten by a stranger in an underpass tunnel.
Director: Gaspar Noé | Stars: Monica Bellucci, Vincent Cassel, Albert Dupontel, Philippe Nahon
Votes: 147,127 | Gross: $0.75M
4. The Child (2005)
R | 95 min | Crime, Drama, Romance
Bruno and Sonia, a young couple living off her benefit and the thefts committed by his gang, have a new source of money: their newborn son.
Directors: Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne | Stars: Jérémie Renier, Déborah François, Jérémie Segard, Fabrizio Rongione
Votes: 19,372 | Gross: $0.65M
5. The Class (2008)
PG-13 | 128 min | Drama
Teacher and novelist François Bégaudeau plays a version of himself as he negotiates a year with his racially mixed students from a tough Parisian neighborhood.
Director: Laurent Cantet | Stars: François Bégaudeau, Agame Malembo-Emene, Angélica Sancio, Arthur Fogel
Votes: 36,359 | Gross: $3.77M
6. A Prophet (2009)
R | 155 min | Crime, Drama
A young Algerian man is sent to a French prison.
Director: Jacques Audiard | Stars: Tahar Rahim, Niels Arestrup, Adel Bencherif, Reda Kateb
Votes: 102,029 | Gross: $2.08M
7. Mesrine: Public Enemy No. 1 (2008)
R | 133 min | Action, Biography, Crime
The story of the notorious French gangster Jacques Mesrine, with the focus on his life and death as France's Public Enemy No. 1 in the 1970s.
Director: Jean-François Richet | Stars: Vincent Cassel, Ludivine Sagnier, Mathieu Amalric, Samuel Le Bihan
Votes: 31,170 | Gross: $0.28M
8. The Son (2002)
103 min | Drama, Mystery
A joinery instructor at a rehab center refuses to take a new teen as his apprentice, but then begins to follow the boy through the hallways and streets.
Directors: Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne | Stars: Olivier Gourmet, Morgan Marinne, Isabella Soupart, Nassim Hassaïni
Votes: 10,066 | Gross: $0.07M
9. The Red Circle (1970)
Not Rated | 140 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
After leaving prison, master thief Corey crosses paths with a notorious escapee and an alcoholic former policeman. The trio proceed to plot an elaborate heist.
Director: Jean-Pierre Melville | Stars: Alain Delon, Bourvil, Gian Maria Volontè, Yves Montand
Votes: 28,005 | Gross: $0.37M
10. Pickpocket (1959)
Not Rated | 76 min | Crime, Drama
Michel passes the time by picking pockets, careful to never be caught despite being watched by the police. His friend Jacques may suspect, while both men may have their eyes on Jeanne, the pretty neighbor of Michel's ailing mother.
Director: Robert Bresson | Stars: Martin LaSalle, Marika Green, Jean Pélégri, Dolly Scal
Votes: 25,239
11. The Informer (1962)
Not Rated | 108 min | Crime, Thriller
A burglar betraying other criminals prepares for a big heist with a trusted friend who might be as untrustworthy as he.
Director: Jean-Pierre Melville | Stars: Jean-Paul Belmondo, Serge Reggiani, Jean Desailly, René Lefèvre
Votes: 11,910 | Gross: $0.08M
12. La Vie En Rose (2007)
PG-13 | 140 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Biopic of the iconic French singer Édith Piaf. Raised by her grandmother in a brothel, she was discovered while singing on a street corner at the age of 19. Despite her success, Piaf's life was filled with tragedy.
Director: Olivier Dahan | Stars: Marion Cotillard, Sylvie Testud, Pascal Greggory, Emmanuelle Seigner
Votes: 90,593 | Gross: $10.30M
13. Heartbreaker (2010)
Not Rated | 105 min | Comedy, Romance
Alex and his sister run a business designed to break up relationships. They are hired by a rich man to break up the wedding of his daughter. The only problem is that they only have one week to do so.
Director: Pascal Chaumeil | Stars: Romain Duris, Vanessa Paradis, Julie Ferrier, François Damiens
Votes: 27,599 | Gross: $0.50M
14. To Be and to Have (2002)
Not Rated | 104 min | Documentary, Family
A documentary portrait of a one-room school in rural France, where the students (ranging in age from 4 to 11) are educated by a single dedicated teacher.
Director: Nicolas Philibert | Stars: Georges Lopez, Alizé, Axel Thouvenin, Guillaume
Votes: 8,400 | Gross: $0.78M
15. The Crimson Rivers (2000)
R | 106 min | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
A murder detective must follow the footsteps of a brutal killer within the secrets of a classist college.
Director: Mathieu Kassovitz | Stars: Jean Reno, Vincent Cassel, Nadia Farès, Dominique Sanda
Votes: 65,475 | Gross: $0.63M
16. Monsieur Hire (1989)
PG-13 | 81 min | Crime, Drama, Romance
A recluse is accused of murdering a young woman simply because his neighbors think he is strange.
Director: Patrice Leconte | Stars: Michel Blanc, Sandrine Bonnaire, Luc Thuillier, André Wilms
Votes: 7,111 | Gross: $1.42M
17. Comedy of Power (2006)
Not Rated | 110 min | Drama
A magistrate investigates a corporate executive.
Director: Claude Chabrol | Stars: Isabelle Huppert, François Berléand, Patrick Bruel, Marilyne Canto
Votes: 3,061 | Gross: $0.08M
18. White Material (2009)
Not Rated | 106 min | Drama, War
Amidst turmoil and racial conflict in a Francophone African state, a white French woman fights for her coffee crop, her family and ultimately for her life.
Director: Claire Denis | Stars: Isabelle Huppert, Christopher Lambert, Isaach De Bankolé, Nicolas Duvauchelle
Votes: 8,403 | Gross: $0.30M
19. Point Blank (2010)
R | 84 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Samuel, a male nurse, saves the life of a thief whose henchmen take Samuel's wife hostage and force him to spring their boss.
Director: Fred Cavayé | Stars: Gilles Lellouche, Roschdy Zem, Gérard Lanvin, Elena Anaya
Votes: 14,618 | Gross: $0.71M
20. 36th Precinct (2004)
Not Rated | 111 min | Action, Crime, Drama
2 cops are promised by the retiring chief of the Paris police that the one, getting the violent gang robbing armored trucks, will get his job. The 2 will do whatever it takes to get the promotion, even if it means breaking the law.
Director: Olivier Marchal | Stars: Daniel Auteuil, Gérard Depardieu, André Dussollier, Valeria Golino
Votes: 18,219
21. Army of Crime (2009)
Not Rated | 139 min | Drama, History, War
The poet Missak Manouchian leads a mixed bag of youngsters and immigrants in a clandestine battle against the Nazi occupation. Twenty-two men and one woman fighting for an ideal and for ... See full summary »
Director: Robert Guédiguian | Stars: Simon Abkarian, Virginie Ledoyen, Robinson Stévenin, Lola Naymark
Votes: 3,546 | Gross: $0.04M
22. Seraphine (2008)
Unrated | 125 min | Biography, Drama
In 1912 German collector Wilhelm Uhde rents a flat in Senlis to write and take a break from Parisian life. He hires a 48-year old cleaning lady, Séraphine. Some time later, he notices a small painting on wood at a local notable home.
Director: Martin Provost | Stars: Yolande Moreau, Ulrich Tukur, Anne Bennent, Geneviève Mnich
Votes: 6,536 | Gross: $0.88M
23. Rapt (2009)
Not Rated | 125 min | Drama, Thriller
A rich industrialist is brutally kidnapped. While he physically and mentally degenerates in imprisonment, the kidnappers, police and the board of the company of which he is director negotiate about the ransom of 50 million euro.
Director: Lucas Belvaux | Stars: Yvan Attal, Anne Consigny, André Marcon, Françoise Fabian
Votes: 2,224 | Gross: $0.05M
24. Farewell (2009)
Not Rated | 113 min | Drama, Romance, Thriller
The French intelligence service alerts the U.S. about a Soviet spy operation during the height of the Cold War, which sets off an unfortunate chain of events.
Director: Christian Carion | Stars: Guillaume Canet, Emir Kusturica, Alexandra Maria Lara, Ingeborga Dapkunaite
Votes: 6,969
25. Tell No One (2006)
Not Rated | 131 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
An accidental discovery near a doctor's estate stirs up some painful memories eight years after his wife's hideous murder, and now, things are bound to take a turn for the unexpected. Does the good doctor know more than he's letting on?
Director: Guillaume Canet | Stars: François Cluzet, Marie-Josée Croze, André Dussollier, Kristin Scott Thomas
Votes: 57,863 | Gross: $6.18M
26. Ridicule (1996)
R | 102 min | Comedy, Drama, History
To get royal backing on a needed drainage project, a poor French lord must learn to play the delicate games of wit at court at Versailles.
Director: Patrice Leconte | Stars: Charles Berling, Jean Rochefort, Fanny Ardant, Judith Godrèche
Votes: 8,163 | Gross: $2.50M
27. C.R.A.Z.Y. (2005)
Not Rated | 129 min | Comedy, Drama
A young French Canadian, one of five boys in a conservative family in the 1960s and 1970s, struggles to reconcile his emerging identity with his father's values.
Director: Jean-Marc Vallée | Stars: Michel Côté, Marc-André Grondin, Danielle Proulx, Émile Vallée
Votes: 34,089
28. The Crook (1970)
G | 120 min | Crime, Thriller
Story about an incurable thief, his success and his failures.
Director: Claude Lelouch | Stars: Jean-Louis Trintignant, Danièle Delorme, Charles Gérard, Christine Lelouch
Votes: 955
29. A Christmas Tale (2008)
Not Rated | 150 min | Comedy, Drama
The troubled Vuillard family is no stranger to illness, grief, and banishment, but when their matriarch requires a bone-marrow transplant, the estranged clan reunites just in time for Christmas.
Director: Arnaud Desplechin | Stars: Catherine Deneuve, Jean-Paul Roussillon, Mathieu Amalric, Anne Consigny
Votes: 7,554 | Gross: $1.06M
30. Ultimate Heist (2009)
R | 95 min | Action, Crime, Drama
The Malakian clan, a family of ruthless gangsters, controls the underworld of Southern France.
Director: Laurent Tuel | Stars: Jean Reno, Gaspard Ulliel, Vahina Giocante, Sami Bouajila
Votes: 3,568
31. Carlos (2010)
Not Rated | 334 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
The story of Venezuelan revolutionary Ilich Ramírez Sánchez, who founded a worldwide terrorist organization and raided the 1975 OPEC meeting.
Stars: Edgar Ramírez, Alexander Scheer, Fadi Abi Samra, Philippe Tran
Votes: 14,380 | Gross: $0.15M
32. The Lost Son (1999)
R | 102 min | Crime, Drama, Romance
Xavier Lombard is a world-weary private eye in London, in exile from his native Paris; his best friend is Nathalie, a high-class call girl. He gets a call from an old friend from the Paris ... See full summary »
Director: Chris Menges | Stars: Daniel Auteuil, Nastassja Kinski, Katrin Cartlidge, Marianne Denicourt
Votes: 2,001
33. Sleepless Night (I) (2011)
Not Rated | 103 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A cop with a connection to the criminal underworld finds his secret life exposed when he and his partner are caught stealing cocaine from a powerful drug dealer, a move that puts his son's life in jeopardy.
Director: Frédéric Jardin | Stars: Tomer Sisley, Serge Riaboukine, Julien Boisselier, JoeyStarr
Votes: 5,102 | Gross: $0.00M
34. The Closet (2001)
R | 84 min | Comedy
A man spreads the rumor of his fake homosexuality with the aid of his neighbor, to prevent his imminent firing at his work.
Director: Francis Veber | Stars: Daniel Auteuil, Gérard Depardieu, Thierry Lhermitte, Michèle Laroque
Votes: 18,299 | Gross: $6.68M
35. Caché (2005)
R | 117 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
A married couple is terrorized by a series of surveillance videotapes left on their front porch.
Director: Michael Haneke | Stars: Daniel Auteuil, Juliette Binoche, Maurice Bénichou, Annie Girardot
Votes: 84,933 | Gross: $3.63M
36. The Returned (2012–2015)
TV-MA | 418 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
In a small French mountain town where everyone knows each other, the dead begin to inexplicably return as if their death never happened. Forcing the townsfolk to confront their difficult past as they seek to understand this phenomenon.
Stars: Anne Consigny, Clotilde Hesme, Frédéric Pierrot, Céline Sallette
Votes: 21,280
37. Blue Is the Warmest Colour (2013)
NC-17 | 180 min | Drama, Romance
Adèle's life is changed when she meets Emma, a young woman with blue hair, who will allow her to discover desire and to assert herself as a woman and as an adult. In front of others, Adèle grows, seeks herself, loses herself, and ultimately finds herself through love and loss.
Director: Abdellatif Kechiche | Stars: Léa Seydoux, Adèle Exarchopoulos, Salim Kechiouche, Aurélien Recoing
Votes: 162,617 | Gross: $2.20M
38. Little White Lies (2010)
Not Rated | 154 min | Comedy, Drama
A near-fatal accident leaves one friend in the hospital while the rest go on their annual vacation. But their secrets and personal grief threaten to drive them apart.
Director: Guillaume Canet | Stars: François Cluzet, Marion Cotillard, Benoît Magimel, Jean Dujardin
Votes: 26,962 | Gross: $0.21M
39. Age of Uprising: The Legend of Michael Kohlhaas (2013)
Unrated | 122 min | Drama, History
In the 16th century in the Cévennes, a horse dealer by the name of Michael Kohlhaas leads a happy family life. When a lord treats him unjustly, he raises an army and puts the country to fire and sword in order to have his rights restored.
Director: Arnaud des Pallières | Stars: Mads Mikkelsen, Mélusine Mayance, Delphine Chuillot, David Kross
Votes: 9,173
40. Elevator to the Gallows (1958)
Not Rated | 91 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A self-assured businessman murders his employer, the husband of his mistress, which unintentionally provokes an ill-fated chain of events.
Director: Louis Malle | Stars: Jeanne Moreau, Maurice Ronet, Georges Poujouly, Yori Bertin
Votes: 28,498 | Gross: $0.11M
41. Two Days, One Night (2014)
PG-13 | 95 min | Drama
Liège, Belgium. Sandra is a factory worker who discovers that her workmates have opted for a EUR1,000 bonus in exchange for her dismissal. She has only a weekend to convince her colleagues to give up their bonuses in order to keep her job.
Directors: Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne | Stars: Marion Cotillard, Fabrizio Rongione, Catherine Salée, Baptiste Sornin
Votes: 50,456 | Gross: $1.44M
42. Sister (2012)
Unrated | 97 min | Crime, Drama
A drama set at a Swiss ski resort and centered on a boy who supports his sister by stealing from wealthy guests.
Director: Ursula Meier | Stars: Léa Seydoux, Kacey Mottet Klein, Martin Compston, Gillian Anderson
Votes: 7,198
43. Rififi (1955)
Not Rated | 118 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Four men plan a technically perfect crime, but the human element intervenes...
Director: Jules Dassin | Stars: Jean Servais, Carl Möhner, Robert Manuel, Janine Darcey
Votes: 36,745 | Gross: $0.06M
44. The Professional (1981)
Not Rated | 108 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Victim of a plot which has resulted in his imprisonment in a Central African jail for two years, a French secret agent arrives in Paris to settle accounts.
Director: Georges Lautner | Stars: Jean-Paul Belmondo, Jean Desailly, Cyrielle Clair, Marie-Christine Descouard
Votes: 17,188
45. I've Loved You So Long (2008)
PG-13 | 117 min | Drama
A woman struggles to interact with her family and find her place in society after spending fifteen years in prison.
Director: Philippe Claudel | Stars: Kristin Scott Thomas, Elsa Zylberstein, Serge Hazanavicius, Laurent Grévill
Votes: 20,694 | Gross: $3.17M
46. The Hole (1960)
Not Rated | 131 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Distrust and uncertainty arise when four long-term inmates cautiously induct a new prisoner into their elaborate prison-break scheme.
Director: Jacques Becker | Stars: André Bervil, Jean Keraudy, Michel Constantin, Philippe Leroy
Votes: 20,254 | Gross: $0.03M
47. The Connection (2014)
R | 135 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A French police magistrate spends years trying to take down one of the country's most powerful drug rings.
Director: Cédric Jimenez | Stars: Jean Dujardin, Gilles Lellouche, Céline Sallette, Mélanie Doutey
Votes: 12,218
48. The Wages of Fear (1953)
Not Rated | 131 min | Adventure, Drama, Thriller
In a decrepit South American village, four men are hired to transport an urgent nitroglycerine shipment without the equipment that would make it safe.
Director: Henri-Georges Clouzot | Stars: Yves Montand, Charles Vanel, Peter van Eyck, Folco Lulli
Votes: 66,191
49. Three Colors: Blue (1993)
R | 94 min | Drama, Music, Mystery
A woman struggles to find a way to live her life after the death of her husband and child.
Director: Krzysztof Kieslowski | Stars: Juliette Binoche, Zbigniew Zamachowski, Julie Delpy, Benoît Régent
Votes: 110,132 | Gross: $1.32M
50. Three Colors: Red (1994)
R | 99 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance
A model discovers a retired judge is keen on invading people's privacy.
Director: Krzysztof Kieslowski | Stars: Irène Jacob, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Frédérique Feder, Jean-Pierre Lorit
Votes: 109,681 | Gross: $4.04M
51. Three Colors: White (1994)
R | 92 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
After his wife divorces him, a Polish immigrant plots to get even with her.
Director: Krzysztof Kieslowski | Stars: Zbigniew Zamachowski, Julie Delpy, Janusz Gajos, Jerzy Stuhr
Votes: 79,328 | Gross: $1.46M
52. The 400 Blows (1959)
Not Rated | 99 min | Crime, Drama
A young boy, left without attention, delves into a life of petty crime.
Director: François Truffaut | Stars: Jean-Pierre Léaud, Albert Rémy, Claire Maurier, Guy Decomble
Votes: 127,741
53. Vivre sa vie (1962)
Not Rated | 85 min | Drama
Twelve episodic tales in the life of a Parisian woman and her slow descent into prostitution.
Director: Jean-Luc Godard | Stars: Anna Karina, Sady Rebbot, André S. Labarthe, Guylaine Schlumberger
Votes: 34,873
54. A Cop (1972)
PG | 98 min | Crime, Thriller
After a shaky first heist, a group of thieves plan an even more elaborate and risky second heist.
Director: Jean-Pierre Melville | Stars: Alain Delon, Richard Crenna, Catherine Deneuve, Riccardo Cucciolla
Votes: 10,688 | Gross: $0.05M
55. Amour (2012)
PG-13 | 127 min | Drama
Georges and Anne are an octogenarian couple. They are cultivated, retired music teachers. Their daughter, also a musician, lives in Britain with her family. One day, Anne has a stroke, and the couple's bond of love is severely tested.
Director: Michael Haneke | Stars: Jean-Louis Trintignant, Emmanuelle Riva, Isabelle Huppert, Alexandre Tharaud
Votes: 105,413 | Gross: $6.74M
56. Breathless (1960)
Not Rated | 90 min | Crime, Drama
A small-time crook, hunted by the authorities for a car theft and the murder a police officer, attempts to persuade a hip American journalism student to run away with him to Italy.
Director: Jean-Luc Godard | Stars: Jean-Paul Belmondo, Jean Seberg, Van Doude, Jean-Luc Godard
Votes: 87,667 | Gross: $0.34M
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