French Language Films Shine in Glowing Foreign Film Report

This is not a massive surprise (to us anyway), but the BBC has just suggested that "French can claim to be the international language of acclaimed cinema".

This finding is a part of a recent large scale poll developed by the BBC just last week to come up with the top 100 foreign language films. The company boasts a deep and broad research, with 209 voters from 43 different countries and 41 different languages spoken. According to BBC, "27 of the highest-rated films were in French, followed by 12 in Mandarin, and 11 each in Italian and Japanese." Seven Samurai turned out at number one.

So which French flicks made the cut? Take a look at what the critics had to say about those that made it in the top 25:

Carl Theodore Dreyer's The Passion of Joan of Arc at #23 displays dramatic angle, a lighting style that feels celestial, and "intense close ups".

At #19, The Battle of Algiers is a true revolutionary film of the 1960s, action packed and highly revered, Gillo Pontecorvo creates a film and grim atmosphere that withstands the test of time.

This wouldn't be a best foreign films list without Master Jean Luc Godard, and coming in at #11 is Breathless. Critics laud the film for reinventing cinema as we knew it, implementing jump cuts, a "temperamental score" and beautiful naturalistic cinematography.

Francois Truffaut's semi-autobiographical debut The 400 Blows makes the top ten at #8. It is credited as influencing the famous French New Wave movement.

Lastly, the reviewers call Jean Renoir's The Rules of the Game his magnum opus and it is listed at #5. The improvised performances and epic long takes make for beautiful chaos.

Honorable modern mention at #43: Beau Travail by one of the 4 female directors on this colossal list, Claire Denis. The 1999 film follows Officer Galoup, stationed on the Gulf of Dijbouti, and his tention with newcomer Sentain.

Click here to view BBC's full list. Which will you watch first?

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