French Films at Cannes (the Competition)
Anatomy of a Fall, by French director Justine Triet, won the Palme d'Or at the recent 76th Cannes Film Festival. This week we look back at the other French films that have won the top prize since the Festival began.
The Ordinaries
In a repressive three-class society, a young woman in a Supporting Role must prove she is worthy of becoming a Main Character.
- Germany • 2023
- Director Sophie Linnenbaum
- Cast Fine Sendel, Jule Böwe, Henning Peker, Sira-Anna Faal, Noah Tinwa, Denise M'Baye
- Genre Comedy, Drama, Science Fiction
- Available on No streaming locations found.
Titane
A near-fatal car crash leaves a girl with physical and emotional trauma that shapes her future — and her fetishes.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- France, Belgium • 2021
- Director Julia Ducournau
- Cast Vincent Lindon, Agathe Rousselle, Garance Marillier, Laïs Salameh, Mara Cissé, Marin Judas
- Genre Drama, Horror, Thriller
- Available on DIRECTV, Microsoft Store, Redbox, Google Play Movies, AMC on Demand, Vudu, Kanopy, Hulu, Apple TV
Dheepan
To escape the Sri Lankan civil war, a former soldier, a woman, and a little girl pose as a family.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- France • 2015
- Director Jacques Audiard
- Cast Jesuthasan Antonythasan, Kalieaswari Srinivasan, Claudine Vinasithamby, Vincent Rottiers, Marc Zinga, Faouzi Bensaïdi
- Genre Crime, Drama
- Available on DIRECTV, Criterion Channel, Google Play Movies, Amazon Video, Vudu, AMC+ Amazon Channel, Kanopy, Tubi TV, YouTube, AMC+, Apple TV
Blue Is the Warmest Color
(La Vie d'Adèle - Chapitres 1 et 2)
Adèle's life changes completely when she meets Emma, a young woman with blue hair.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- France, Belgium, Spain • 2013
- Director Abdellatif Kechiche
- Cast Adèle Exarchopoulos, Léa Seydoux, Salim Kechiouche, Aurélien Recoing, Catherine Salée, Benjamin Siksou
- Genre Drama, Romance
- Available on AMC+, AMC+ Amazon Channel, AMC Plus Apple TV Channel , DIRECTV, Apple TV, Vudu, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, Tubi TV, Kanopy
Amour
Love never ends.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Austria, France, Germany • 2012
- Director Michael Haneke
- Cast Jean-Louis Trintignant, Emmanuelle Riva, Isabelle Huppert, William Shimell, Ramón Agirre, Rita Blanco
- Genre Drama, Romance
- Available on Apple TV, Vudu, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, DIRECTV, AMC on Demand
The Class
(Entre les murs)
Based on his real life, a teacher must deal with the challenging dynamics of his multicultural classroom.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- France • 2008
- Director Laurent Cantet
- Cast François Bégaudeau, Franck Keïta, Louise Grinberg, Rabah Nait Oufella, Esmeralda Ouertani, Rachel Regulier
- Genre Drama
- Available on DIRECTV, Google Play Movies, Amazon Video, Vudu, Tubi TV, YouTube, Apple TV
Secrets & Lies
Family secrets are laid bare.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- France, United Kingdom • 1996
- Director Mike Leigh
- Cast Timothy Spall, Brenda Blethyn, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Phyllis Logan, Claire Rushbrook, Lee Ross
- Genre Drama
- Available on Criterion Channel, Max, Max Amazon Channel
Underground
(Podzemlje)
Black marketeer Marko has a talent for exploitation and puts it to work in Yugoslavia over the course of the 20th century.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Yugoslavia, France, Germany • 1995
- Director Emir Kusturica
- Cast Miki Manojlović, Lazar Ristovski, Mirjana Joković, Slavko Štimac, Ernst Stötzner, Srđan Todorović
- Genre Comedy, Drama, War
- Available on Kino Now
Under the Sun of Satan
(Sous le soleil de Satan)
Satan tempts Father Dossignan, who is trying to save the soul of a young girl who killed one of her lovers.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- France • 1987
- Director Maurice Pialat
- Cast Gérard Depardieu, Sandrine Bonnaire, Maurice Pialat, Brigitte Legendre
- Genre Drama
- Available on Google Play Movies, Amazon Video, Cohen Media Amazon Channel, Kanopy, YouTube, Fandor Amazon Channel, Apple TV, MUBI Amazon Channel, MUBI
The Umbrellas of Cherbourg
(Les parapluies de Cherbourg)
A film for all the young lovers of the world.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- France, West Germany • 1964
- Director Jacques Demy
- Cast Catherine Deneuve, Nino Castelnuovo, Anne Vernon, Mireille Perrey, Marc Michel, Ellen Farner
- Genre Drama, Romance
- Available on Criterion Channel, Google Play Movies, Amazon Video, Kanopy, YouTube, Apple TV, Max, Max Amazon Channel
Black Orpheus
(Orfeu Negro)
A retelling of the Greek legend of Orpheus and Eurydice that introduced Bossa Nova to the world.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Brazil, France, Italy • 1959
- Director Marcel Camus
- Cast Breno Mello, Marpessa Dawn, Marcel Camus, Fausto Guerzoni, Lourdes de Oliveira, Léa Garcia
- Genre Drama, Fantasy, Music, Romance
- Available on Criterion Channel, Amazon Video, Vudu, Alamo on Demand, Kanopy, Apple TV, Max, Max Amazon Channel
The Wages of Fear
(Le Salaire de la peur)
A rivalry develops between the two sets of drivers on remote roads where the slightest jolt can be deadly.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- France, Italy • 1953
- Director Henri-Georges Clouzot
- Cast Yves Montand, Charles Vanel, Peter van Eyck, Folco Lulli, Véra Clouzot, Antonio Centa
- Genre Drama, Thriller, Adventure
- Available on Criterion Channel, Amazon Video, Kanopy, Apple TV, Max, Max Amazon Channel
The Damned
(Les Maudits)
To avoid their fate in Europe, a group of Nazis board a submarine bound for South America.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- France • 1947
- Director René Clément
- Cast Henri Vidal, Florence Marly, Fosco Giachetti, Paul Bernard, Jo Dest, Michel Auclair
- Genre Drama, War
- Available on Amazon Video, Kino Now, Kanopy, Apple TV