2023 was a great year for film and streaming! For all your movie-watching needs in 2024, we’re spotlighting the best French film releases from last year, plus some older films that finally made it to our favorite streaming platforms.
By ALAINA SCHWARTZ
Comedy
Fumer fait tousser / Smoking Causes Coughing (2022)
Available on Hulu, Prime
Directed and written by Quentin Dupieux, Fumer fait tousser was applauded by critics for its clever and wacky sense of humor. The film follows a group of five superheroes, the “Tobacco Force,” as they head off on a mandatory retreat to reconnect with one another. The retreat is going well until they are forced to go up against Lézardin, Emperor of Evil. While Dupieux’s style may not be for everyone, his humor is at its best in the film—an extremely silly and fun watch!
Cash / Gold Brick (2023)
Available on Netflix
Set in Chartres, Daniel Sauveur (Raphaël Quenard) works in a perfume factory owned by the Breuil family. Their business and money dominate the city. Fed up with the Breuil family earning all of the wealth and doing none of the work, Daniel, with the help of his coworkers, devises an elaborate heist, stealing hundreds of thousands of euros a month in product.
See also:
- Délicieux (Delicious) (2021) – Available on Peacock, Plex, Pluto, Prime, Tubi
Watch the trailer HERE - En corps (Rise) (2022) – Available on Prime
Watch the trailer HERE
ACTION & ADVENTURE
Astérix et Obélix : L’empire du milieu / Astérix and Obélix: The Middle Kingdom (2023)
Available on Netflix
If you aren’t already familiar with Astérix and Obélix, now is the perfect time to get acquainted! Heroes of la bande dessinée (French comic books) since 1959, the dynamic duo head to Han-era China for a fifth installment of the live action Astérix films. While the film didn’t perform very well in the box office, we still recommend it if you’re in the mood for something a bit silly and want to see these iconic characters in action.
Loin du périph / The Takedown (2022)
Available on Netflix
After its release on Netflix, Loin du périph became the platform’s sixth most-watched non-English film of all time. The action comedy is a sequel to De l’autre côté du périph (2012), with actors Omar Sy and Laurent Lafitte reprising their roles as Dakité and Monge, an unlikely pair of Parisian “flics” (cops) with totally opposite personalities and approaches. Reunited, the two investigate a seemingly simple drug deal, which turns out to have much higher stakes than either anticipated.
See also:
- Wingwoman (2023) – Available on Netflix
Watch the trailer HERE - L’innocent (The Innocent) (2023) – Available on Prime
Watch the trailer HERE - L’ascension (The Climb) (2017) – Available on Netflix
Watch the trailer HERE
DOCUMENTARY
Affaire Bettencourt : scandale chez la femme la plus riche du monde / The Billionaire, The Butler, and The Boyfriend (2023)
Available on NETFLIX
L’affaire Bettencourt is a documentary miniseries based on the real-life story of the political scandal surrounding the richest woman in the world. In 2010, Liliane Bettencourt, socialite and heiress to the L’Oréal fortune was alleged to have made illegal payments to photographer Francois-Marie Banier and members of the French government under Nicolas Sarkozy. The three-part documentary follows the years of her life leading up to the scandal and the fallout.
See also:
- Vjeran Tomic : L’homme araignée de Paris (Vjeran Tomic: The Spider-Man of Paris) (2023) – Available on Netflix
Watch the trailer HERE - Les femmes et l’assassin / The Women and the Murderer (2021) – Available on Netflix
Watch the trailer HERE
THRILLER
Anatomie d’une chute / Anatomy of a Fall (2023)
Available on PRIME
Anatomie d’une chute was one of 2023’s most talked about films, and it’s easy to see why. Set in Switzerland, the story takes off when Samuel, married to Sandra, a German woman, is found dead in their isolated chalet. An investigation into this “suspicious death” is initiated, testing the limits of the relationship between Sandra, and their partially sighted son, Daniel, the only witness. The film is gripping, and has dialogue in both French and English!
See also:
- L’amour et les forêts (Just the Two of Us) (2023) – Available on Prime
Watch the trailer HERE
DRAMA
HAWA (2022)
Available on PRIME
Hawa tells the coming-of-age story of the title character Hawa, who lives in Paris with her grandmother. After discovering her grandmother has fallen ill, Hawa has one mission, which is to avoid ending up in foster care. How to accomplish this? During a scheduled visit to France by the first lady of the United States, Hawa will ask Michelle Obama to adopt her. Her journey is as whimsical as it is inspiring.
SAINT-OMER (2022)
Available on Hulu, prime
Saint Omer is an adaptation of the true story of Fabienne Kabou, who in 2013 abandoned her 15-month-old daughter on a beach during high tide, and the film’s director and co-writer, Alice Diop, who attended her trial. The film follows Rama, a novelist, who attends the trial of Laurence Coly (the character inspired by Kabou) with plans of adapting the story into a modern-day retelling of the myth of Medea. Brimming with emotion, this film will take your breath away.
See also:
- Violette (2024) – Available on Prime
Watch the trailer HERE - Les Olympiades, Paris 13e (Paris 13th District) (2021) – Available on Hulu, Prime
Watch the trailer HERE - Petite Maman (2023) – Available on Hulu, Prime
Watch the trailer HERE - L’événement (Happening) (2024) – Available on Hulu, Prime
Watch the trailer HERE - Madame Claude (2021) – Available on Netflix
Watch the trailer HERE - Les enfants des autres (Other people’s children) (2022) – Available on Prime
Watch the trailer HERE - Revoir Paris (Paris memories) (2022) – Available on Prime
Watch the trailer HERE
