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Le Voyage dans la lune
(Georges Méliès, 1902) |
Fantômas
(Louis Feuillade, 1913) |
Les Vampires
(Louis Feuillade, 1915) |
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| This early science-fiction fantasy shows some extraordinarily imaginative use of early filmmaking technique. [More...] | The first great thriller series in cinema followed the dastardly exploits of master criminal Fantômas. [More...] | This legendary crime thriller series shocked audiences and made Musidora a star in her role as villainous Irma Vep. [More...] |
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L'Atlantide
(Jacques Feyder, 1921) |
Crainquebille
(Jacques Feyder, 1922) |
La Roue
(Abel Gance, 1923) |
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| Feyder's first notable film was this adaptation of Pierre Benoît’s novel, a lavish production famous for its stunning location shots of the Sahara desert and sumptuous interiors. [More...] | This poignant realist comedy-drama featuring a Chaplinesque street pedler is one of Feyder's early achievements, a film of great charm and humanity. [More...] | This epic romantic drama is sustained by Abel Gance's imaginative cinematic technique and an extraordinary performance from Severin-Mars. [More...] |
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Eldorado
(Marcel L'Herbier, 1921) |
Les Trois mousquetaires
(Henri Diamant-Berger, 1921) |
La Fille de l'eau
(Jean Renoir, 1925) |
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| L’Herbier takes a plain melodrama and transforms it into an enthralling dream-like fantasy, heaving with emotional turmoil. [More...] | This ambitious historical adventure series is arguably the best film adaptation of Alexandre Dumas' swashbuckling novel. [More...] | Not Renoir's best film, but certainly one of his most inspired, a stunningly realised romantic fantasy. [More...] |
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Les Misèrables
(Henri Fescourt, 1925) |
Paris qui dort
(René Clair, 1925) |
Visages d'enfants
(Jacques Feyder, 1925) |
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| One of the greatest film versions of Victor Hugo's great novel, capturing the humanity, pathos and scale of the literary classic. [More...] | The Eiffel Tower is the star of this early sci-fi classic, one of René Clair's weirder films. [More...] | A remarkably poignant realist melodrama, in which a young boy comes to terms with the death of his beloved mother. [More...] |
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Nana
(Jean Renoir, 1926) |
Le Joueur d'échecs
(Raymond Bernard, 1927) |
Napoléon
(Abel Gance, 1927) |
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| This lavish adaptation of an Emile Zola novel virtually ruined its director but is now regarded as one of his early masterpieces. [More...] | This spectacular historical drama is one of the triumphs of early French cinema, and makes some powerful statements on the futility of war. [More...] | Often cited as the greatest film ever made in France, this epic portrayal of the early career of Napoleon Bonaparte is a paean to French nationalism. [More...] |
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L'Argent
(Marcel L'Herbier, 1928) |
Chute de la maison Usher
(Jean Epstein, 1928) |
Coquille et le clergyman
(Germaine Dulac, 1928) |
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| With its lavish Art Deco sets, this monumental adaptation of Emile Zola's novel provides cinema's most powerful condemnation of the sin of speculation. [More...] | Edgar Allen Poe’s famous ghost story is brought to life in this haunting surreal horror film, the crowning glory of Jean Epstein's career. [More...] | A bizarrely surreal conjuration of a holy man's unholy thoughts, one of cinema's most baffling works. [More...] |
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Passion de Jeanne d'Arc
(Carl Theodor Dreyer, 1928) |
Chapeau de paille d'Italie
(René Clair, 1928) |
Le Capitaine Fracasse
(Alberto Cavalcanti, 1929) |
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| This definitive account of Joan of Arc's trial is a film with a rare emotional intensity and searing humanity. [More...] | Arguably the greatest French comic film of the silent era is this hilarious adaptation of Labiche’s celebrated play. [More...] | Perhaps the best film adaptation of Théophile Gautier's well-known novel is this stylish early work from Cavalcanti. [More...] |
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Monte Cristo
(Henri Fescourt, 1929) |
Mystères du château Dé
(Man Ray, 1929) |
Un chien andalou
(Luis Buñuel, 1929) |
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| This epic adaptation of Dumas' classic novel is a work of breathtaking ambition realised with immense skill and humanity. [More...] | A bizarre but utterly fascinating surreal short whose meaning seems to change drastically with every viewing. [More...] | This perplexing mélange of unrelated images, which include a novel approach to eye surgery, launched the career of cinema's greatest surrealist filmmaker. [More...] |
For DVDs of silent French films...
