French films about the 20th century

List of the best French films about the 20th century according to the audience: Bis, Boule & Bill, Something in the Air, Rommel, Camille Claudel, 1915, Violette, Nicholas on Holiday, Serial Killer 1, Pirate TV, Camille Rewinds.

In the top there are new films of 2021, a plot description and trailers for films that have already been released.

Country
Markimdb: 5.5
Genrefantasy, comedy
CountryFrance

Éric and Patrice have been friends since high school. Over the years, they have both taken very different paths: Éric has become a hedonist, has a string of girlfriends and is always on the look out for a new one; Patrice has become a monogamous father with a very ordered life. After a drunken evening, the two childhood friends find themselves cast back into 1986, when they were 17 years old. This return to the past is a dream opportunity to try to change the path their lives will take. What will they do with this second chance?

Markimdb: 4.4
Genrecomedy, family
CountryFrance, Belgium, Luxembourg
Duration01:22

Buddy is an abandoned young cocker spaniel waiting dejectedly in his cage for a kind, new owner to adopt him. Suddenly, Billy, a little boy whose hair is as red as Buddy's, appears. It's love at first sight and the beginning of a great friendship. But for Billy's parents, this is where the trouble begins.

Markimdb: 6.4
Genredrama
CountryFrance
Duration02:02

During the 1970s a student named Gilles gets entangled in contemporary political turmoils although he would rather just be a creative artist. While torn between his solidarity to his friends and his personal ambitions he falls in love with Christine.

Markimdb: 6.5
Genreaction, drama, military, biography, history
CountryGermany, France, Austria
Duration02:00

The story of the final seven months in the life of German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel.

Markimdb: 6.4
Genredrama, biography
CountryFrance
Duration01:35

Winter, 1915. Confined by her family to an asylum in the South of France - where she will never sculpt again - the chronicle of Camille Claudel's reclusive life, as she waits for a visit from her brother, Paul Claudel.

Markimdb: 6.9
Genremelodrama, drama, biography
CountryFrance, Belgium
Duration02:19

Born out of wedlock early in the last century, Violette Leduc meets Simone de Beauvoir in postwar Saint-Germain-des-Près. An intense lifelong relationship develops between the two women authors, based on Violette's quest for freedom through writing and on Simone's conviction that she holds in her hands the destiny of an extraordinary writer.

Markimdb: 6.2
Genrecomedy, family
CountryFrance, Belgium
Duration01:37

It's the end of the school year. The long-awaited moment of the holidays is arrive. The little Nicolas, her parents and Grandma take the road towards the sea, and settle in for some time at the Hotel Beau-Rivage.

Markimdb: 6.6
Genredrama, crime
CountryFrance

The hunt, capture and trial of Guy Georges, one of France's most notorious serial killer.

Markimdb: 5.9
Genrecomedy
CountryFrance, Belgium

It all began when camcorders replaced cameras. Making TV programs then became within everyone's reach. Jean-Lou, Yasmina, Victor, Clara, Adonis, and the others didn't only want to create their own television channel, they above all wanted to make a revolution. Thus Télé Gaucho was born, as anarchic and provocative as the main channels were conformist and reactionary. Five years of mayhem, brutal pirate TV demonstrations, drunken parties, and thwarted love.. And that was my idyllic interlude.

Markimdb: 6.2
Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama
CountryFrance
Duration01:55

Camille was only sixteen and still in high school when she fell in love with Eric, another student. They later married and a child and were happy for a while. But now twenty-five years have passed and Eric leaves her for a younger woman. Bitter and desperate Camille drinks so much liquor at a New Year Eve's party that she falls into an ethylic coma and she finds herself... propelled into her own past! Camille is sixteen again when she wakes up this morning, her parents are not dead anymore and she must go to school, where she will meet her schoolmates and, of course, Eric. Is she going to fall for him again and... be miserable twenty-five years later? Or will she avoid him with the result never having her beloved daughter? Who ever said that time traveling was fun?

Markimdb: 6.4
Genrethriller, drama, crime
CountryFrance
Duration01:51

Between 1978 and 1979, the inhabitants of the Oise are in fear of a maniac who kills several hitchhikers and escape the police. He was then dubbed "the killer of the Oise" is actually a shy young policeman who will investigate his own murder, only to lose control of the situation.

Markimdb: 5.9
Genremelodrama, drama, adventure, history
CountryFrance, Canada, Russia, Germany
Duration01:41

1979: Cousins Carole and Jérôme go on an organized trip to Odessa, behind the Iron Curtain. During the day, posing as tourists celebrating their engagement, they visit monuments and museums. In the evening they slip away from the group and meet “refuseniks”, Jews persecuted by the Soviet regime for wanting to leave the country. While Carole is motivated by political commitment and a taste for risk, Jérôme’s motivation is Carole.

Markimdb: 7
Genredrama, cartoon
CountryQatar, France, Lebanon, Canada, USA, Republic of Ireland, United Kingdom

Exiled artist and poet Mustafa embarks on a journey home with his housekeeper and her daughter; together the trio must evade the authorities who fear that the truth in Mustafa's words will incite rebellion.

Markimdb: 6.1
Genredrama
CountrySpain, France, Bulgaria

Ellesmere Island, northern Canada, 1908. Josephine, a brave but naive woman, embarks on a dangerous journey through inhospitable regions in search of her husband, the explorer Robert Peary, who tries to find a route to the North Pole.

Markimdb: 7.1
Genrethriller, drama, crime
CountryFrance, Belgium
Duration02:15

Newly transferred to the bustling port city of Marseille to assist with a crackdown on organized crime, energetic young magistrate Pierre Michel is given a rapid-fire tutorial on the ins and outs of an out-of-control drug trade. Pierre's wildly ambitious mission is to take on the French Connection, a highly organized operation that controls the city's underground heroin economy and is overseen by the notorious —and reputedly untouchable— Gaetan Zampa. Fearless, determined and willing to go the distance, Pierre plunges into an underworld world of insane danger and ruthless criminals.

Markimdb: 6.6
Genrethriller, drama, adventure, military
CountryUnited Kingdom, Israel, France

Beirut, 1982: a young Palestinian refugee and an Israeli fighter pilot form a tentative bond in their attempt to make their way across war-torn Lebanon back to their home.

Markimdb: 6.5
Genremelodrama
CountryFrance
Duration01:51

The Côte d’Azur. 1915. In his twilight years, Pierre-Auguste Renoir is tormented by the loss of his wife, the pains of arthritic old age and the terrible news that his son Jean has been wounded in action. But when a young girl miraculously enters his world, the old painter is filled with a new, wholly unexpected energy. Blazing with life, radiantly beautiful, Andrée will become his last model, and the wellspring of a remarkable rejuvenation. Back at the family home to convalesce, Jean too falls under the spell of the new, redheaded star in the Renoir firmament. In their Mediterranean Eden - and in the face of his father's fierce opposition - he falls in love with this wild, untameable spirit... and as he does so, within weak-willed, battle-shaken Jean, a filmmaker begins to grow.

Markimdb: 7
Genredrama, military
CountryFrance, Germany

The night of August 24, 1944. The fate of Paris is in the hands of General von Choltitz, governor of Grand Paris, who is preparing, on Hitler’s orders, to blow up the French capital. The descendent of a long line of Prussian military men, the general has never had any hesitation when it came to obeying orders. This is what’s on Swedish consul Raoul Nordling’s mind as he takes the secret staircase that leads to General von Choltitz’s suite at the Hôtel Meurice. The bridges on the Seine and the major monuments of Paris (including the Louvre, Notre Dame, the Eiffel Tower) are mined with explosives, ready to be detonated. Armed with all the weapons of diplomacy, the consul will try to convince the general not to follow Hitler’s order of destruction.

Markimdb: 7.5
Genrethriller, drama, family, history
CountryGermany, France, USA

Two families attempt a daredevil plan to escape the GDR with a homemade hot air balloon, but it crashes just before the border. The Stasi finds traces of this attempt to escape and immediately starts investigations, while the two families are forced to build a new escape balloon. With each passing day the Stasi is closer on their heels – a nerve-wracking race against time begins.

Markimdb: 7.2
Genredrama, western, military
CountryFrance

A French teacher in a small Algerian village during the Algerian War forms an unexpected bond with a dissident who is ordered to be turned in to the authorities.

Markimdb: 6.7
Genredrama
CountryFrance

"Marius" takes place in Marseilles' Old Port, at the La Marine Bar, owned by César and his son Marius. Marius' biggest dream is to embark on one of the boats passing by his dad's bar and to set off to a faraway land. Fanny, a young and pretty seafood peddler, has secretly been in love with Marius since her childhood; Marius, never admitting it, has always loved Fanny. One day, a sailor drops by La Marine and offers him a job on an exploratory ship. Trying to hold him off and to make him jealous, Fanny confesses his love to him and provokes a fight between Marius and one of César's old friends, Panisse, a boat merchant, who despite his old age, has been courting Fanny for a while. Torn between the call of the sea and his love for her, Marius abandons his dream to be with Fanny who gives herself to him. As César and Honorine, Fanny's mother, are getting ready for the wedding, Marius changes his mind, drawn back to the call of the sea.

Markimdb: 6.1
Genredrama, crime
CountryFrance
Duration01:56

In 1976 in Nice, Agnes, the daughter of the owner of the Palais de la Méditerranée, falls in love with an older lawyer.

Markimdb: 6.6
Genredrama, adventure, biography
CountryFrance, Belgium
Duration02:12

Biopic of the great French ocean-going adventurer and filmmaker

Markimdb: 7.2
Genredrama
CountrySingapore, Japan, Taiwan, France
Duration01:39

Set in the mid 1990s in Singapore, ILOILO chronicles the relationship between a family and their maid from Ilo Ilo, a province in the Philippines.

Markimdb: 2.1
Genredrama, history, sport
CountryFrance
Duration01:50

An epic, untold story that brings to life the inspiring saga of the World Cup and the three determined men who created it. Driven by their vision and passion, three men, overcame their doubts and fought obstacles and scandals to make the World Cup a reality. Spanning the tumultuous 20th Century, this timeless saga celebrates the event that became the most popular sporting event in the world.

Markimdb: 5.9
Genredrama, biography
CountryFrance, Belgium, Italy

We are with Pasolini during the last hours of his life, as he talks with his beloved family and friends, writes, gives a brutally honest interview, shares a meal with Ninetto Davoli, and cruises for the roughest rough trade in his gun-metal gray Alfa Romeo. Over the course of the action, Pasolini’s life and his art (represented by scenes from his films, his novel-in-progress Petrolio, and his projected film Porno-Teo-Kolossal) are constantly refracted and intermingled to the point where they become one.

Markimdb: 6.5
Genrethriller, fantasy, crime
CountryFrance
Duration01:42

Inspector Richard Kemp never got around to putting the handcuffs around the Eardrum Slasher, a dangerous serial killer whose rampage began 20 years before. When Hélène, a psychologist, witnesses the Slasher’s latest crime and offers to testify, Kemp falls in love with her at first sight. In a mysterious turn of event, Kemp is suddenly transported back in time to the site of the Eardrum Slasher’s first murder, he realizes that this could provide a second chance to catch the killer...

Markimdb: 5.2
Genrecomedy, melodrama
CountryFrance
Duration01:34

Over this long hot summer, Claude and Isabelle get their marriage back on track, while Bibou and Simon, spend a memorable summer discovering the world of grown-ups.

Markimdb: 6.1
Genredrama, crime
CountryFrance, Canada
Duration02:23

Set in the 1950s, a a group of young girls in upstate New York form their own gang.

Markimdb: 5.5
Genremelodrama, drama, biography
CountryUnited Kingdom, France, Sweden, Belgium
Duration01:52

During the last two years of her life, Princess Diana campaigns against the use of land mines and has a secret love affair with a Pakistani heart surgeon.

Markimdb: 5.1
Genredrama, biography
CountryAustria, France, Germany, United Kingdom
Duration02:11

A portrait of Austrian artist Gustav Klimt whose lavish, sexual paintings came to symbolize the art nouveau style of the late 19th and early 20th century.

Markimdb: 6.1
Genrethriller, drama, biography
CountryUSA, France
Duration01:54

Adapted from the 1951 non-fiction account by psychoanalyst Georges Devereux, “Psychotherapy Of A Plains Indian,” the film follows the true story of Picard (Del Toro), a Plains Indian of the Blackfeet nation, as he returns from WWII and begins experiencing unexplainable symptoms shortly thereafter. He travels to the famous Winter Hospital in Topeka, Kansas, where he meets Devereux (Amalric), thus beginning a professional and personal friendship guided by compassion and understanding of Native American culture.

Markimdb: 6.4
Genredrama
CountryNorway, Sweden, Denmark, France
Duration01:27

It’s not easy to rebel when your dad wants to join the party... One day (in 1979), Magnus and his son Nikolaj hit the wall in their new terrace house in Rykkinn. Magnus is an architect, hippie and free spirit, a glaring exception in a community where equality and conformity is the norm. He always stands up for his son, supporting him unconditionally, even when Nikolaj decides to stop giving a damn. Sons of Norway is a film about rebellion, punk rock, suburban hell and the struggle between freaks and punks. But most of all, it’s the story of an unusual father-son relationship, and about the strength of the bonds we sometimes do our best to rip apart.

Markimdb: 6.5
Genrethriller, drama, crime
CountryFrance, Spain, Belgium, Panama
Duration01:59

For Pablo Escobar family is everything. When young surfer Nick falls for Escobar's niece, Maria, he finds his life on the line when he's pulled into the dangerous world of the family business.

Markimdb: 7.2
Genremelodrama, drama, history
CountryChina, France
Duration01:49

Lu and Feng are a devoted couple forced to separate when Lu is arrested and sent to a labor camp as a political prisoner during the Cultural Revolution. He finally returns home only to find that his beloved wife no longer remembers him.

Markimdb: 6.5
Genrecomedy
CountryItaly, France, Russia
Duration01:55

When he loses his position as a powerful government minister, Vincent is dropped by his pretty mistress and must begin life anew, without the privileges of power. As he gradually becomes acquainted with milieus which he d either forgotten or never known and a host of sometimes eccentric, often remarkable everyday people, Vincent really begins to start living again.

Markimdb: 7.1
Genreaction, drama, military, biography
CountryGermany, France, Poland
Duration01:48

Run Boy Run is the true story of Jurek, an eight-year-old boy, who escapes from the Warsaw ghetto, then manages to survive in the woods and working as a farmhand, disguising himself as a Polish orphan. He encounters people who will betray him for a reward, who will beat him up or try to kill him, and he meets those, who will do and risk almost everything to help him. Jurek’s resilience is put to the ultimate test, when an accident cripples him, making it harder to find work. But he struggles on against all odds. Eventually the Russians reach his area and Jurek even finds a family where he could stay. Yet he is betrayed again, and a young man from a Jewish orphanage forcefully tries to bring Jurek back to his people and his faith.

Markimdb: 6.4
Genrecomedy
CountryFrance
Duration01:54

It is 1979 and Albertine, 10, and all her family members have gathered in Brittany to celebrate the birthday of her grandmother. Everyone thinks that the Skylab space station from NASA will fall on their heads this summer. The meeting turns into a crazy weekend full of revelations, love and song.

Markimdb: 6.6
Genredrama, sport
CountryFrance, Canada
Duration02:10

A true sports story that utterly defies the odds, Duguay’s film captures the wild ups and downs of the Olympics-bound career of legendary equine star Jappeloup and his troubled rider, locked in a tense relationship with his horseman father and forever uncertain of his own skills as an equestrian

Markimdb: 7.2
Genrecartoon, biography
CountryPoland, Spain, Germany, Belgium, Hungary, France

In 1975, Ryszard Kapuściński, a veteran Polish journalist, embarked on a seemingly suicidal road trip into the heart of the Angola's civil war. There, he witnessed once again the dirty reality of war and discovered a sense of helplessness previously unknown to him. Angola changed him forever: it was a reporter who left Poland, but it was a writer who returned…

Markimdb: 6.9
Genredrama, music, biography
CountryFrance, Belgium
Duration02:28

A biopic of French pop star Claude Francois, most famous for co-writing the song 'My Way'. Tracing his life from his childhood in Egypt through his success in France to his untimely death in Paris in 1978.

Markimdb: 7.2
Genredrama
CountryIsrael, Germany, France

A young Arab is caught between cultures as he is sent to a prestigious Jewish boarding school in Israel in the 1980s.

Markimdb: 6.6
Genredrama, adventure
CountryChina, France
Duration02:25

In 1969, a young Beijing student, Chen Zhen, is sent to live among the nomadic herdsmen of Inner Mongolia. Caught between the advance of civilization from the south and the nomads' traditional enemies - the marauding wolves - to the north; humans and animals, residents and invaders alike, struggle to find their true place in the world

Markimdb: 5.5
Genredrama
CountryFrance, Belgium
Duration02:07

The story of the women and relationships that define a family across a century.

Markimdb: 5.5
Genrecomedy
CountryFrance, Belgium
Duration01:37

The story of a woman who dreams to join an intervention group in the police department called RAID. Unfortunately, she is rather clumsy and both her family (and soon to be family-in-law) and a veteran of the RAID do not approve. However, Johanna is determined to prove them wrong.

Markimdb: 7.3
Genredrama, crime
CountryFrance
Duration02:07

Paris, France. Fred and his colleagues, members of the BPM, the Police Child Protection Unit, dedicated to pursuing all sorts of offenses committed against the weakest, must endure the scrutiny of Melissa, a photographer commissioned to graphically document the daily routine of the team.

Markimdb: 4.3
Genreaction, comedy, adventure
CountryFrance
Duration01:29

Brice is back. The world has changed, but not him. When his best friend, Marius, calls for help, he goes on a wild adventure that will lead him to the other side of the world... Travel shapes youth but will he remain the king of the "casse" ?

Markimdb: 6.1
Genrecomedy, melodrama
CountryFrance, Belgium
Duration01:27

Julien Monnier has a serious problem. Though he's a brilliant couples counselor, he can't keep a woman in his life for more than two weeks. Indeed, ever since his childhood, Julien jinxes every woman who falls in love with him. But it's not just any small jinx. It's the kind that sends you to the hospital several times a week, that destroys your professional life or that turns your friends into enemies. Julien is strictly speaking a true black cat for women. Joanna Sorini will soon learn this at her expense the day she meets him. A career that's just taking off, a love life that finally seems to be taking a good turn, all that may just change.

Markimdb: 6.7
Genrethriller, drama
CountryFrance, Belgium

Sebastien Nicolas is a reclusive realtor leading a double life – in his spare time he creates complex disguises based on acquaintances. Combined with minutely studied and rehearsed impersonations, Sebastien can disappear completely into other people's lives. Things spiral out of control after he impersonates the wrong man.

Markimdb: 7.8
Genrecomedy, drama, history
CountryUnited Kingdom, France, USA
Duration02:00

Based on a true story, the film is set in the summer of 1984 – when Margaret Thatcher is in power and the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) is on strike. At the Gay Pride March in London, a group of gay and lesbian activists decides to raise money to support the families of the striking miners. But there is a problem - the union seems embarrassed to receive their support. However the activists are not deterred. They decide to ignore the union and go direct to the miners. They identify a mining village of Onllwyn, in the Dulais Valley in Wales, and later set off in a mini bus to make their donation in person. And so begins the extraordinary story of two seemingly alien communities who form a surprising and ultimately triumphant partnership.




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