French Film Festival

Latest reviews

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  Omen

  Review preview for Omen

  The powerful forces of family and fable, old and new, intertwine and vie for supremacy in Belgian-Congolese director Baloji’s visually striking debut.

  When a man who was cast out as a child after being considered a sorceror returns home, he faces prejudice.
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  Four Daughters

  Review preview for Four Daughters

  The exposure of the film’s underlying structures...invites audiences to think about the processes of storytelling and interpretation, which is important, because it’s a story which took the missing women away.

  A creative documentary following ten years in the life of a fortysomething Tunisian mother, a cleaning lady from a poor environment, who sees her two teenage daughters become radicalised, run away and join the terrorist organisation Daesh in Libya.
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  Driving Madeleine

  Review preview for Driving Madeleine

  The destination of the film might feel like a bit of a foregone conclusion but the graceful and sometimes unpredictable manner in which Carion arrives at it is impressive.

  A taxi driver drives a passenger across Paris as she recalls her life.
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  Goliath

  Review preview for Goliath

  A crisp, downbeat, clever exploration of the issues, combined with a whodunnit.

  In the aftermath of President Macron's U-turn on a glyphosate ban, the stories of lawyer Patrick, victim France and lobbyist Mathias intertwine when the wife of a farmer dead from cancer commits a terrible act of protest.
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  Anatomy Of A Fall

  Review preview for Anatomy Of A Fall

  Hüller has always been an unfussy actress, who allows a character's flaws to shine out in interesting ways.

  A woman is accused of her husband's murder.
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  A Forgotten Man

  Review preview for A Forgotten Man

  Nègre's finely wrought film suggests that it is not that power corrupts, but rather that corrupt people can more easily bear the experience of power.

  May 1945: after the surrender of Nazi Germany, Heinrich Zwygart, Swiss ambassador in Berlin, is ordered back home. Soon he gets caught up in past decisions. He got through the war. Will he survive the peace?
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  The Taste Of Things

  Review preview for The Taste Of Things

  While the end result is important, Hùng’s film is all about savouring the moment, something that becomes more urgent as it progresses - although talk of speed has little place in a film that unfolds with the pace and beauty of a flower.

  The story of Eugenie, an esteemed cook, and Dodin, the fine gourmet she has been working for over the last 20 years.
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  The Animal Kingdom

  Review preview for The Animal Kingdom

  The aerial shots of the forest and the believable transformations with feathers, wings, beaks and claws as well as fish scales, make for riveting viewing.

  Sci-fi adventure set in a world where humans are mutating into "creatures".
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  Little Nicholas: Happy As Can Be

  Review preview for Little Nicholas: Happy As Can Be

  Everything flows with the flourish of an expensive ink pen on paper, as sketches are made to bloom with colour or a bicycle ride turns into a mini adventure, all given additional life by the zippy score from Ludovic Bource.

  The French schoolboy's adventures mix with the biography of his creators.
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  French Tech

  Review preview for French Tech

  This is satire. Sharp, observant, but unlike British films in similar vein, never cutting.

  An unemployed man has two months while his wife is away to prove he can take care of the kids and find a job.

A–Z of French Film Festival 2023 reviews →

Features

• Summoning and questioning the past
  Kaouther Ben Hania on Tunisia’s Oscar submission Four Daughters
• Building a better childhood
  Benjamin Massoubre on Little Nicholas: Happy As Can Be