Brigitte Roüan
Jeanne works as an auxiliary in a maternity in Marseilles. Day and night, Jeanne and her colleagues fight to help mothers and their babies against the lack of staff and constant management pressure. Jeanne lives with her 18 year-old daughter, Zoé. When a tragedy occurs at the maternity and Zoé leaves to study in Paris, Jeanne’s secret past suddenly resurfaces and forces her to assert her life choices.
Anna and Adam, a young couple from Paris with Polish Jewish origins, leave for the first time of their lives in Poland. They were invited to commemorate the seventy-fifth anniversary of the destruction of the birth village community of Adam's grandfather. If Adam is not very excited about this trip, Anna is excited to discover the land that is also her grandmother's. Finally - from what little she knows. Here they are, looking for their origins in a journey full of surprises, during which they will not find exactly what they came for.
Alex, 43, is not a man of many responsibilities. He works as a tow truck driver in the car repair garage run with an iron fist by his mother Antoinette. She hopes he will someday take over the business, but Alex manages to consistently prove that he’s not up to the task. One day, he assists a woman whose car broke down and ends up spending the night at her place. The next morning, she is nowhere to be found, and Alex discovers he is alone... with three kids!
Gauthier, a young journalist, learns from his mother that he is the illegitimate son of Guy Jamet, a popular French singer whose heyday stretched unevenly from the 1960’s to the nineties. Guy is currently promoting a new album of old material and heads on tour. Armed with a camera, Gauthier decides to follow Guy, recording his daily routine and his concerts to create a documentary portrait.
20-year-old Margaux makes the acquaintance of 45-year-old Margaux: they have a lot in common – so much so that it turns out they are one and the same person, at two different ages and stages of their life…
"Train de vies" crosses a series of characters who, in pairs, confess to each other their innermost desires and their most secret memories.
Four childhood friends are reunited at a wedding in Rio. But when they accidentally kill a young man during a party that gets out of hand, they are forced to flee the city in a crazy adventure.
Erwan, a strapping Breton who clears mines for a living, is shaken when he discovers that his father is not his father. Despite his affection for the man who raised him, he quietly sets out to find his biological father, and succeeds in locating Joseph, an endearing old codger he takes a liking to. Just when things look settled, another unexpected “bomb” hits Erwan in the form of Anna, an elusive nymph.
Delphine is the author of an autobiographical novel that has become a bestseller. Exhausted by the promotional tour, just when she feels out of place, paralyzed by the idea of having to start writing again, she meets Elle, a young, attractive, intelligent, intuitive woman who seems to understand her better than anyone.
An adaptation of Milena Agus' eponymous novel set after WWII, "Mal de Pierres" ("Mal di Pietre") spans 20 years, following the destiny of a passionate, free-spirited woman who is in a loveless marriage and falls for another man.
Arnaud, facing an uncertain future and a dearth of choices in a small French coastal town, meets and falls for the apocalyptic-minded Madeleine, who joins an army boot camp to learn military and survival skills to prepare for the upcoming environmental collapse. Intrigued and excited by Madeleine’s wild ideas, Arnaud signs up for the boot camp himself. They soon realize that the boot camp is harder than they’d imagined, but the experience nonetheless cements them together as the couple continues to explore their young love.
When Nénette (Josiane Balasko) discovers the identity of her father in a letter, she quickly goes off in search of him. But instead of finding her father, she is met by her half-brother, Paul (Michel Blanc). Paul, a bitter man who gave up his dream to take over his father’s pharmacy business, is less than thrilled at the arrival of his ‘embarrassing’ half-sister. After refusing to take her in, he soon gets a taste of his own medicine. Under the influence of a potent drug, for one day Paul is generous, happy and sensitive. The next morning, however, once the drug has worn off, his nasty side comes back...
The story of Aleksandra and Cyrille, a prominent, trendy, and very well-off Parisian couple, whose life is not quite the same after seven-year-old Alekseï from Russia suddenly pops up in their 100% cashmere, childless home. Aleksandra soon realises that this little boy they have adopted is not quite what she had been hoping for...
"Everything will be fine" the doctor promised Jo while she was giving birth to her first child. But, some forty years and four sons later, nothing is happening like it should be during this month of August: as she arrives on Greek soil to organize her traditional festival with her tribe, Jo learns that the latter has been cancelled, courtesy of the economic crisis. The hour seems to be tragic but the maternal instinct grows stronger, she is ready to do everything for the happiness of her sons. Between squabbles and blood and destiny blows, this summer will be like no other.
Is there such a thing as strictly feminine cinema? Is it more difficult for a woman than for a man to direct a film? Is gender parity necessary in the industry? Actress and producer Julie GAYET and actor and director Mathieu BUSSON ask these questions to twenty French woman filmmakers, who face a camera together for the first time. After over an hour of lively, informal, spontaneous and funny interviews, it becomes obvious that these issues are still problematic and definitely worthy of a documentary. As Mia HANSEN-LØVE remarks, “In the eyes of the people, a woman’s film is always a woman’s film, while a man’s movie is simply… a movie”.
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.
French writer Luca Morandi was born in Italy. He is forty years old and finds himself at a crossroads in his life. He doesn't know where to turn: France, his adopted home where he was raised, or Italy, the country of his birth, perfect, wonderful and ideal, like a child’s dream.
Ismael and Julie, who in the hope of sparking their stalled relationship, enter a playful yet emotionally laced threesome with Alice. When tragedy strikes, these young Parisians are forced to deal with the fragility of life and love. For Ismael, this means negotiating through the advances of Julie's sister and a young college student – one of which may offer him redemption.
A magician announces in a show that in Ciénaga, a small town on the Colombian Atlantic Coast, there's a little girl whose hair is made of real gold: Juana. The Deacon, the Mayor, and the greedy population of this town find in this unusual gift the solution of their financial difficulties. But sooner or later, Juana's gift will become in a curse she'll try to fight.
Chantal, an advocate involved in defending homeless illegal immigrant, decides to refurbish her flat. Following her convictions she calls Columbian workers led by an unforeseeable architect. In the mean time a former client decides he is in love with her, her son and daughter are becoming nearly homeless since the flat's walls are demolished, the architect has new plans every day, an irregular workers fall in love with Chantal too and dance with her daughter, Martin (the son) still continue to roller blade around... Could the works go forward in this mess?
A beautiful, self-centered young woman's life turns upside down when she suddenly "loses her clitoris" (i.e. her ability to have an orgasm).
When Anna and her family arrive at their holiday home, they find it occupied by strangers. This confrontation is just the beginning of a painful learning process.
"Her Mother, the Whore" - After Coralie was found dead in a vacant lot, her mother Catherine - who thinks that her daughter was murdered - conducts her own investigation.
Maria is a bright and attractive but not especially responsible young woman who is used to having things go her way in life. Out of school and with no clear career path, Maria ends up taking a job putting together cushions for chairs. But after a single day on the job she quits, claiming the work hurts her hands and she'd rather start her own restaurant. As Maria plots her next move, she impulsively swipes a piece of lingerie from a store, then tries to lie her way out of the situation when she's caught. But Maria finds that words can't get her out of this bind, and soon she's in jail and dealing with much deeper trouble than she ever imagined possible.
One hot summer's day in a little french town, a building worker accidentally finds the skeleton of a newborn baby and calls the police. Detective Jacques Deveure (Vincent Winterhalter) is place in charge of the investigation. His investigation uncovers evidence of numerous shady dealings, revealing a strange underbelly of the private lives of a cadre of people including Grandier (Francois Berleand) and Blandine Piancet (Audrey Tautou). This multi-layered story continually unveils new twists and turns.
The idea for this film about a generation and its lost ideals came to Romain Goupil after attending several funerals of friends in the fall of 1996, where the '68 generation, now in influential positions in media or politics, kept meeting each other. It seemed as if the revolution that they had tried to make was being buried with each coffin. A MORT LA MORT is in some ways an homage to this generation, now in their fifties. They were a privileged generation that thought that they could change the world, doing everything that their parents failed to do. There were no actual deaths in France as there were in Germany or Italy, but the system was not ideal for personal issues or for love. There was always a scapegoat for the injustices of the world, be it capitalism or imperialism. That way the blame could be placed somewhere else. Some of the '68 generation are still faithful to the principles of their youth and still continue to fight for the illusions of the past.
Four gay French expatriots share a business in Barcelona. When they and their parents are thrown together for a "coming out" party, another French Farce ensues.
Twenty years ago, Robert left his home in the provincial northern town of Boulogne to make it as an actor. His career never amounted to much, as he managed only a couple of acting jobs on TV. Without warning, he returns to his hometown and drops in on his sister who is in the throes of a sordid affair with her married boss. Later, Robert drops in on his younger brother, who is mentally retarded and lives with his elderly mother. As the film progresses, it quietly, sensitively depicts Robert's disruption of the lives of the members of his family.
Madam Nadine manages with pride the "Vénus Beauté" Salon which offers relaxation, massage and make-up services. The owner and her three beauticians: Samantha, Marianne and Angèle are pros. Contrary to her friend Marianne, who still dreams of the big day, Angèle no longer believes in love. Marie, the youngest of the three employees, discovers love in the hands of a sixty year-old former pilot, who risks everything...
A random montage of disturbing images tell a story about one summer in the lives of two teenagers who somehow find love within each other, Orso and Marie. After they realize this, they run off to a hidden island off the coast of France where they can not be bothered until Orso's hunger for danger and crime become too much for him, forcing him to return to his normal life...
An eight-year old boy learns about love and betrayal in this French drama set in rural France during WW II. The boy, Francois, has moved from Paris to a quiet chateau with his parents who want to escape the stress of the war. In a nearby town, his father's mistress works as a tutor. Soon his father allows a refugee family of Polish Jews to move into the basement. They have a young daughter, and Francois has a terrible crush upon her and refuses to stay safely away from her. Real trouble begins when a Nazi commander and his unit also move into the house, totally unaware of the refugees living below them.
Based on a true story. The story is set on the sweeping French countryside where Serge Duval, a veterinarian, lives with his wife, Elisabeth and their two young children. One day, their young son Olivier vanishes without a trace. Unable to accept the loss of her favorite child, the mother, Elizabeth, redirects her anguish and guilt at everyone. Little by little the fragile family falls apart. Six years later Olivier suddenly appears again, now as a teenage boy living on the streets of Paris, but is he really their missing son?
A naive, sixteen-year-old boy named Richard becomes involved with a single mother after babysitting her child.
In French Algeria, after WWII, three daughters of wealthy settlers begin their adult lives. Zon marries an often absent sailor. Malene's husband, Gildas, refuses to work in the farm, so she has to take care of everything. Gritte, the youngest, does not want to marry and is a nurse for the natives. We will follow their three different destinies.
Set in a cafe which has become the hangout for a group of unhappy and frustrated men, this slice-of-life film follows them as they complain to one another about their lives, discuss their options, and generally quarrel and suffer. They are joined by a woman who is the ex-lover of one of them. Her presence heightens the already immense sexual frustration of these unsuccessful men - so much so, that one of them rapes her in a back room of the cafe.
As a result of an automobile accident, a sophisticated TV producer meets her car mechanic/blue collar nemesis. They start a comic affair, but can they reconcile their totally different worlds?
Prof. Henri Laborit uses the stories of the lives of three people to discuss behaviorist theories of survival, combat, rewards and punishment, and anxiety. René is a technical manager at a textile factory and must face the anxiety caused by corporate downsizing. Janine is a self-educated actress/stylist who learns that the wife of her lover is dying and must decide to let them reunite. Jean is a controversial career-climbing writer/politician at a crossroads in life.
Three men with a penchant for gambling on the horses soon find themselves in trouble because of their addiction. Pierre (Michel Piccoli) is the math whiz who uses his talent for picking the winners. Charles (Michel Galabru) is the wealthy scrap-iron magnate who has embarrassing evidence on many prominent political figures. Loic (Jacques Dutronc) is the aspiring politico who seeks to further his career by any means possible. Charles approaches Loic and asks his political party for a loan in hopes of fixing an upcoming race....
François Perrin is a journalist who reads the news on RTL radio. Alone in life, his only "amusement" is his neighbor from Africa, who makes mildly fun of him from time to time. One evening, François is bored, and decides to call a random telephone number. He gets Christine on the line, a bit of an old school pharmacist, who hesitates to put down the phone, and plays the game of seduction with the charming "Mr X"...
The hero of this bleak science-fiction story is a married man who, along with his wife, survives the mysterious destruction of the world. After his wife dies, he makes plans to seek out whatever remnants of civilization exist. However, the arrival of a group of children and their older mentor changes his plans.
A middle-aged couple invites a group of youngsters to their luxury villa to introduce them into the rituals and mystery of love and lust.
The Man In The Hat sets off from Marseilles in a small Fiat 500. On the seat beside him is a framed photograph of an unknown woman. Behind him is a 2CV into which is squeezed Five Bald Men. Why are they chasing him? And how can he shake them off? As he travels North through France, he encounters razeteurs, women with stories to tell, bullfights, plenty of delicious food, a damp man, mechanics, nuns, a convention of Chrystallographers and much more, coming face to face with the vivid eccentricities of an old country.
