French Cinema from Its Beginnings to the Present

by Rémi Fournier Lanzoni

To a large extent, the story of French filmmaking is the story of moviemaking. From the earliest flickering images of the late nineteenth century through the silent era, Surrealist influence, the Nazi Occupation, the glories of the New Wave, and the present, Rémi Lanzoni examines a considerable number of the world's most beloved films. In French Cinema, he focuses his lens on outstanding examples from each era to give the cineaste in each of us new insight into our own favorites. Directors such as Robert Bresson, Marcel Carné, Claude Chabrol, René Clair, Jean Cocteau, Abel Gance, Louis Malle, Jean Renoir, Eric Rohmer, Jacques Tati, and François Truffaut are covered in depth, as are stars such as Arletty, Brigitte Bardot, Jean-Paul Belmondo, Maurice Chevalier, Catherine Deneuve, Max Linder, Jean Marais, Yves Montand, Jeanne Moreau, and Simone Signoret. French Cinema is enhanced by over 100 film stills as well as rare, archival photographs of the personalities who created and informed this superb national tradition.

Genres: Film, Nonfiction, Art, Media Tie In

496 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2002

Reviews

[Steven Godin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I hold the French cinema of the late 50s & 60s as possibly my favourite from any era or any country. But that's not to say I don't love French cinema from other times too - from Jean Renoir (La Grande Illusion) right up to the likes of Jean-Pierre Jeunet (The City of Lost Children) and Mathieu Kassovitz(La Haine). And as soon as I layed my eyes on that cover featuring Amélie (which I fell in love with back in 2001), I knew I just had to read this. Clearly a lot of effort had gone into writing this book, as it's very dence and deep and goes from from early 20th century through to early 21st century; from its origins and silent era right through to the digital revolution, and although I did find myself getting bogged down in places (bacically, I just skipped past certain things that weren't as important to me), on the whole I found it well worth reading, and makes me now think I don't ever need to read any other book on French cinema again. I probably will do though when the time is right.

[Helynne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I used this wonderful anthology and history of French cinema in an honors seminar on French film back in 2006, so it is already a little bit dated in terms of more recent films. I hope Lanzoni will eventually publish an updated version because since 2004 there have appeared so many wonderful French films such as La Vie en Rose, Persepolis, Les Poupées Russes, and Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis, and I would love to hear this author's comments on those works as well. Nonetheless, this book cannot be beat for its historical approach from the very beginnings of film in 1895 developed from the French Lumière brothers, Louis and Auguste--(How could these two not be filmmakers? They have that great name!)--through the silent era of film, the golden age of the 1930s, the classics of the 1940s, up through the New Wave of the late 1950s and early 1960s that featured bold innovative new films by directors Francois Truffaut (Jules et Jim, Tirez sur le Pianiste), Jean-Luc Goddard (Au Bout du Souffle [Breathless:]), Une Femme est une Femme), Jacques Demi (Les Parapluies de Cherbourg), Alain Resnais (Hiroshima, Mon Amour) and others. The book also follows chronologically the film careers of many great French actors such as Simone Signoret, Jean Gabin, and Gerard Depardieu. Also featured are wonderful literary films including Jean de Florette and Germinal, gritty period pieces such as Ridicule, goofball comedies like Rabbi Jacob and La Cage aux Folles, and contemporary films about social problems in France such as La Haine. This study also looks at how Hollywood filmmakers were inspired to make American remakes of French classics such as Trois Hommes et un Couffin which became Three Men and a Baby and Les Compères, which later had a bumbling Robin Williams (in Father's Day) taking over the role first played by the bumbling Pierre Richard. All in all, this is a great comprehensive look at French cinema, and even though it stops at 2004, for every significant French film made up until then, this study is invaluable.

[Christina]

The tricky thing about reading books about film is that you can't see what the author is referring to. (and you desperately want to!) When I read this book, I had probably seen two of the films mentioned in the whole thing, so I was completely lost. I also found myself disappointed that the author discusses film plot to the extent of "spoiling" the ending. However, if you're looking for a comprehensive book that ties the historical context to a film and its production, this is a good book to try. Just maybe watch the films first?

[Christopher Heaney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Terrific survey of French cinema from the birth of cinema right up to the early aughts. After reading this, I want to run out to watch (or rewatch) so many French films after reading this well-written, well-organized & well-organized book.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Extremely dense, but well-researched and fascinating. Quite the film textbook!

[Andy · Rating 3 out of 5]

After realizing that I've really enjoyed the last several French films I've seen, I decided I wanted to read more about French cinema. Lanzoni does a pretty good job (especially in the first half of the book) of discussing French cinema by examining French history and culture, but as the book progresses, it gets bogged down in political history. That would be fine if that history translated directly into consequences and repercussions in French film, but that is often not the case.

Lanzoni also tends to pick a handful of films to illustrate historical trends, which is okay, since these are generally the most famous and available films. Be aware that all of the films discussed contain spoilers.

Again, the early portion of the book is quite good. The treatment of the French New Wave is good and could've been expanded into a separate book. (But I'm sure there are many books on the French New Wave already out there.)

I was looking for a good introduction to French film. This one isn't bad, and I'll keep it as a reference, but my search will definitely continue.