French film photo galley for Comedy/Thriller

French films Comedy/Thriller

Vivement dimanche! (1983)

François Truffaut’s last film is a pleasing résumé of his cinema work, and certainly an entertaining film in its own right. Here we have a delicious melange of film noir, intelligent comedy, a developing love between the main characters, location filming in neon-lit streets, strong, believable characters... [More...]

Les Ripoux (1984)

This comedy thriller, a no-holds barred satire on police corruption, was a major success for director Claude Zidi. The film won no less than three Césars in 1985 (for best film, best director and best editing) and it remains one of his best films, occupying a totally different league to his higher profile but comparatively trivial comic efforts such as Astérix et Obélix... [More...]

Les Spécialistes (1985)

After directing a string of popular comedies, such as Les Bronzés (1978), Patrice Leconte was eager to tackle another kind of film and gladly accepted an offer from producer Christian Fechner to direct a traditional policier. Despite being the most ambitious project he had undertaken, Leconte proves himself a capable thriller director and the result is one of his most energetic... [More...]

Lévy et Goliath (1987)

Director Gérard Oury is best known for his comic gems of the 1960s and 1970s – films such as La Grande vadrouille (1966) and Les Aventures de Rabbi Jacob (1973) which were massive box office hits and have since become undisputed comedy classics. His later films were, in comparison, disappointing, broaching thorny subjects (such as terrorism... [More...]

La Totale! (1991)

Thierry Lhermitte and Miou-Miou top the bill in this well-intended but somewhat over-the-top thriller parody from director Claude Zidi. Although there are a few very funny comic sequences, and the basic premise of the film is an appealing one, Zidi doesn’t quite manage to pull this one off. (Lhermitte’s previous collaboration with Zidi... [More...]

Fallait pas!... (1996)

There are some subjects which naturally do not lend themselves well to comedy, and the activities of evil, mind-bending sects is arguably one of them. Inspired by the headline-grabbing real-life drama of the Temple Solaire in 1994, Gérard Jugnot chose this as the subject of his seventh film, showing distinctly poor judgement when it comes to deciding what makes decent comedy... [More...]

Barracuda (1997)

Philippe Haïm had established himself as a much sought-after film score composer before he made this, his first film, in 1997. Not surprisingly, one of the strengths of Barracuda is its rich and varied music, which is as much a fabric of the film as the moody, claustrophobic cinematography and the intentionally kitsch setting... [More...]

Rien ne va plus (1997)

Whilst not as dark and interesting as some of Chabrol’s earlier thrillers, this film is not a bad effort. It is a pleasure to watch Isabelle Huppert and Michel Serrault playing two pretty hard-nosed criminals who ultimately get out of their depth, although one senses that both actors have some dissatisfaction with the quality of the script... [More...]

Trafic d'influence (1999)

One-time writer for French TV’s cult comedy groups Les Nuls, Dominique Farrugia directed this madcap comedy-thriller – not his best work, but an entertaining divertissement which offers some good laughs. Any film with Gérard Jugnot is worth watching and here, as ever, the popular actor gives great entertainment value... [More...]

Harry, un ami qui vous veut du bien (2000)

One of the French film highlights of the year 2000, Harry, un ami qui vous veut du bien is a brilliant combination of black comedy and suspense thriller, two genres which have an enduring popularity in French cinema. The film clearly shows it influence from such sources Alfred Hitchcock and Stephen King, whilst the plot is little more than a clever re-working of Hitchcock’s masterpiece... [More...]

8 femmes (2002)

With this outrageous mélange of murder mystery à la Agatha Christie and camp pastiche of 1950s Hollywood musical, François Ozon proves that he is not just one of France’s most versatile film directors. The film amply shows that he is also well on the way to becoming one of the most high profile and talented directors of his generation... [More...]

Mon idole (2002)

This entertaining (and surprisingly dark) satirical thriller about reality TV and megalomaniac TV executives officially marks the directorial debut of one of France’s most promising acting talents, Guillaume Canet. The streak of jet black comedy running through the film, rendering some of its more burlesque sequences actually rather disturbing... [More...]

La Fleur du mal (2003)

With La Fleur du mal, a masterfully composed psychological drama, acclaimed director Claude Chabrol revisits his favourite theme: murder within the bosom of the provincial Bourgeoisie. It is a subject which is evidently dear to the director’s heart, for it has given him the inspiration for some of his best films. The idea of an elite group of individuals who foster an image of respectability... [More...]

Les Triplettes de Belleville (2003)

Proving that there is a place for adult-targeted animated features if they are of a high enough standard, Les Triplettes de Belleville was one of the world cinema highlights of 2003, critically acclaimed and a box office success. With its mix of the traditional and the breath-takingly original, this stunning animated work... [More...]

Ripoux 3 (2003)

More than a decade after Ripoux contre ripoux (1990), director Claude Zidi managed to bring together Philippe Noiret and Thierry Lhermitte for a third and final time as the likeable crooked cops René and François, a.k.a. Les Ripoux. The film will certainly have some appeal for fans of the first two Ripoux films... [More...]

Tais-toi! (2003)

Tais-toi is another entertaining comedy from Francis Veber, one which follows the tried and tested format of his earlier films – a mad-cap thriller narrative involving the improbable pairing of a hard man and a clown. Anyone who is familiar with Veber’s work will get more than a sense of déjà-vu in watching this film... [More...]

San Antonio (2004)

What starts out as a promising albeit pretty wacky James Bond spoof very quickly degenerates into a tedious mélange of comedy fights, action stunts and silly sex jokes, with no real sign of a coherent plot and with characters that would be implausible in a child’s strip cartoon. The talent of Gérard Lanvin and Gérard Depardieu are totally wasted in this clumsy adaptation... [More...]

Le Couperet (2005)

Costa-Gavras, renowned for an impressive series of political thriller-dramas in the ’70s and ’80s, makes a rare excursion into black comedy with this inspired adaptation of a popular novel by American writer Donald E. Westlake. It’s a slick social satire with a razor sharp edge, in which the murderous antics of a psychopathic family man take on a disturbing banality when... [More...]

Lemming (2005)

Director Dominik Moll followed his hugely successful Harry, un ami qui vous veut du bien (2000) with a film that is even more weird and unpredictable, Lemming – his third and strangest film to date. Part thriller, part social satire, part ghost story, the film shows how the ordered world of a seemingly well-balanced control-freak is set in turmoil through a series of increasingly... [More...]

L'Entente cordiale (2006)

Entente cordiale is the latest in a series of French parody thrillers which plumb the depths of juvenile humour in an almost calculated attempt to drive the public away from cinema theatres whilst ruining the reputations of some perfectly respectable actors. To describe the film as mindless, delinquent, incoherent nonsense of the most excruciatingly inept kind would hardly do it justice... [More...]

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