| Journal
d'un curé de campagne
Robert Bresson (1950) |
La
Ronde
Max Ophüls (1950) |
 |
The
heart-rending tale of a young country priest who has to contend with the
rejection from his parishioners and a debilitating illness. Bresson's
profoundly spiritual cinematography attains a new level of austerity.
[More...] |
 |
With
the grace of a Vienese waltz, this film carries its audience through a
series of dove-tailing love vignettes. With a wealth of acting talent
at his disposal, Ophüls conjures up one of his
most entertaining and charming films.
[More...] |
| Casque
d'or
Jacques Becker (1951) |
L’Étrange
Madame X
Jean Grémillon (1951) |
 |
With
its realistic reconstruction of Paris of the 1900s and a legendary performance
from Simone Signoret, Casque d'or has become one of the most emblematic
and memorable French films of the 1950s.
[More...] |
 |
This
is a simple story about love, deception and infidelity, but Grémillon’s
masterly direction and the calibre of the acting performances (particularly
from an unforgettable Michèle Morgan) elevate the film to the status
of a masterpiece.
[More...] |
| Jeux
interdits
René Clément (1952) |
Le
Plaisir
Max Ophüls (1952) |
 |
A
profoundly moving portrait of childhood innocence at a time of great human
tragedy, making a subtle yet powerful anti-war statement. With a
captivating performance from Brigitte Fossey and tragically poignant music
from Narciso Yepes.
[More...] |
 |
With
some remarkable cinematography, which ranges from the disturbingly sombre
to the voyeristic, with a smattering of comedy, the film relates three
short stories by Guy de Maupassant which have a common theme: pleasure.
[More...] |
| Madame
de...
Max Ophüls (1953) |
Le
Salaire de la peur
Henri-Georges Clouzot (1953) |
 |
Widely
regarded as Max Ophüls' best film, the director displays both artistic
genius and technical mastery in this tragic story of rejection, in which
a stunning Danielle Darrieux attains the height of her talents.
[More...] |
 |
Clouzot's
best film out-does Hitchcock at almost every level, making this one of
the greatest suspense thrillers of all time. The film has a sustained
dramatic intensity which makes it a truly exhausting and harrowing
cinematic experience.
[More...] |
| Touchez
pas au grisbi
Jacques Becker (1953) |
Du
rififi chez les hommes
Jules Dassin (1955) |
 |
One
of the earliest and best examples of the crime thrillers which would dominate
French cinema in the following decades. Its origins in American film
noir are very apparent, particularly in the nocturnal photography,
the haunting music and the inevitable bloody shoot-out.
[More...] |
 |
An
unashamed direct import of American film noir, this film became
a cult in it own time and is now regarded as one of the true masterpieces
of its genre. It is best known for the meticulously filmed jewellery
robbery, in which not a single word of dialogue is used.
[More...] |
| Nuit
et brouillard
Alain Resnais (1955) |
Voici
le temps des assassins
Julien Duvivier (1956) |
 |
Alain
Resnais' solemn meditation on the Holocaust offers both a harrowing historical
record of the worst attrocity in human history and also a grim warning
to future generations.
[More...] |
 |
Julien
Duvivier's most cynical portrait of human nature is most noted for its
recreation of the Halles market in Paris and for Danèle Delorme's
shocking portayal of an unscrupulous gold digger.
[More...] |
| Les
Diaboliques
Henri-Georges Clouzot (1955) |
Un
condamné à mort s'est échappé
Robert Bresson (1956) |
 |
An
extraordinarily compelling suspense thriller which, with its chillingly
macabre murder scene and nerve-shattering climax, remains a popular classic
with a very wide audience.
[More...] |
 |
Bresson's
austere and intentionally untheatrical, introspective style of film-making
is perfectly suited for this portrait of a real-life prison escape attempt.
Many regard it as the director's finest work.
[More...] |
| La
Traversée de Paris
Claude Autant-Lara (1956) |
Ascenseur
pour l'échafaud
Louis Malle (1958) |
 |
Black
marketeering during the Occupation is an odd subject for a film but it
gave its director Autant-Lara the perfect vehicle to vent his hostility
towards sham bourgeois conventions. With towering comic performances
from Gabin and Bourvil, the film has become a popular classic.
[More...] |
 |
This
stylish variation on the popular policier genre gave an early glimpse of
the determination of fresh young directors to break away from the traditional
film form.
[More...] |
| Hiroshima
mon amour
Alain Resnais (1959) |
Pickpocket
Robert Bresson (1959) |
 |
The
scars of the present reflect the unspeakable tragedy of the past, at both
a personal and societal level in this remarkable debut film from Alain
Resnais. Although thin on content, the cinematography is a work of
unfettered genius.
[More...] |
 |
This
compelling study in which a young man is consumed by an uncontrollable
desire to steal allows Bresson to develop his unique cinematography and
explore the themes of sin and redemption. A film with a rare silent
eloquence and humanity.
[More...] |
| Deux
hommes dans Manhattan
Jean-Pierre Melville (1959) |
Les
Yeux sans visage
Georges Franju (1959) |
 |
This
film is less a traditional policier and more a homage to American film
noir. Melville himself plays both detective and director, leaving
no cliché unturned but somehow managing to create a work of art
from the familiar trappings of the genre.
[More...] |
 |
The
most celebrated French fantasy horror film, and rightly so with its graphic
depiction of mad scientist surgery set in the creepiest house to make it
onto celluloid. Guaranted to give you nightmares.
[More...] |
| Les
Quatre cents coups
François Truffaut (1959) |
A
bout de souffle
Jean-Luc Godard (1959) |
 |
The
film that established Truffaut as a director is this moving account of
childhood rejection and rebellion, based on Truffaut's own experiences
as a child. It was the first in a series of five films following
the life of Truffaut's alter ego, Antoine Doinel.
[More...] |
 |
With
its radical departure from film-making conventions, this film firmly heralded
the arrival of the French New Wave. A defiant gesture of rebellion,
Godard's first full length film is also supremely entertaining, a tongue-in-cheek
ironic parody of the crime thriller.
[More...] |
© filmsdefrance.com 2009