French Film Ooh-la-la

Two of my books are set in France, and when I was doing research for my 2010 novel, The Tapestry Shop, I spent a few weeks there. I love everything French, from the sidewalk cafes to the chocolate-filled pastries and medieval cathedrals, but I think the French excel at making films. Granted, American filmmakers are masters of technology and sound effects, but I believe the French are better at capturing images of the human condition. Somehow, the emotions are more raw, more apparent in their films. Is it because they are more comfortable with showing emotion? In any park or square in Paris, on any main street, one can see couples locked in an embrace. No one frowns or gives them the time of day.



This is all to say that their culture, the way they are comfortable with their emotions, shines through in their films. I love French films. If you get films from Netflix, they come with English subtitles, and believe me, you will be so engrossed in the film you will forget you’re reading the English. Some of the best I’ve seen recently are Avenue Montaigne, Tous les Matins du Monde (All the Mornings of the World), The Chorus, and Un Coeur en Hiver (A Heart in Winter). Try just one. You’ll be hooked.