Chinese Puzzle / Casse-tête Chinois (2013)
★★★☆☆
The road stops here for the travels of young Xavier, as Cédric Klapisch’s Chinese Puzzle takes on fatherhood and the mind-bending complexity of modern living.
France
TS Spivet (2013)
★★★☆☆
With a magical use of 3D, Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s TS Spivet sees a gifted 10-year-old trek across America to receive an award for his invention, given to him in the belief he is an adult.
A Perfect Plan / Un Plan Parfait (2012)
★★★☆☆
With a deliciously against-type performance from Diane Kruger, Pascal Chaumeil’s A Perfect Plan sees a frantic woman cross the globe in search of Mr Wrong.
Venus In Fur/La Vénus à la fourrure (2013)
★★★★☆
A personal film from Roman Polanski, Venus In Fur is an exhilarating satire with a career-defining performance from Emmanuelle Seigner.
Before The Winter Chill / Avant l’Hiver (2013)
★★★☆☆
As a thirty-year marriage crumbles in Luxembourg, Philippe Claudel’s Before The Winter Chill goes beyond family drama to find a black heart of darkness.
The Informant / Gibraltar (2013)
★★☆☆☆
In Gibraltar, a French bar owner agrees with French Customs to inform on international drug smugglers and quickly gets out of his depth.
The Past / Le Passé (2013)
★★★★☆
The emotional secrets of two families are revealed when an Iranian returns to Paris to finalise his divorce from his French wife.
Yves Saint Laurent (2014)
★★★☆☆
Undressing the high life of the fashion designer, his label, loves and lows, Jalil Lespert’s Yves Saint Laurent cuts a fine figure.
Suzanne (2013)
★★★☆☆
An elliptical life torn apart by love and crime, Katell Quillévéré’s Suzanne offers a journey back to happiness and family through absence.
Stranger By The Lake / L’Inconnu Du Lac (2013)
★★★★☆
With murderers among us, Alain Guiraudie’s Stranger By The Lake turns a sexually explicit peek at gay cruising into a political metaphor in the horror genre.
Love Is In The Air / Amour et Turbulences (2013)
★★★☆☆
A French rom-com set against Paris’ most romantic boulevards, Alexandre Castagnetti’s Love Is In The Air sees passion reignited on the red-eye.
Bastards / Les Salauds (2013)
★★★☆☆
A haunting nightmare in a Parisian dystopia, Claire Denis’ Bastards is an infernal cacophony of sex, blood and broken families.
Archive: Lift To The Scaffold / Ascenseur pour l’échafaud (1958)
An iconic black and white classic, Louis Malle’s Lift To The Scaffold is a noirish Parisian tale of murder and suspense which made a star of Jeanne Moreau.
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Journal de France (2012)
★★★☆☆
Journal de France looks back at the career of photojournalist and filmmaker Raymond Depardon, interwoven with his latest project: a portrait of rural France.