Father's Day French Films 2020
Depending on your lockdown rules, as you're shopping for Father's Day gifts this year, you may start to feel a pang of disappointment that it's not possible to visit your dad this time, mixing up margaritas together and making fun of his sensitivity to his prowess at the grill. That doesn't mean you can't celebrate the guy who taught you how to ride your first bike or who thinks he can outsmart a GPS. Luckily we have pulled together a few fatherly flick suggestions and where to stream them- all dad approved by our own proud papas on the FrenchFlicks staff!
Papa (2005)
Any movie with Alain Chabat is worth watching, but this one was one of his few dramatic roles, in which he plays a dad on a road trip with his son trying to keep a brave face but hiding a darker secret. The movie is a succession of scenes on the road, some light, some very funny, some tearful. Alain Chabat is absolutely perfect playing a dad trying his darndest to be a good father and finds in Martin Combes a perfect match. Plus, we all know how hard it is to find a good child actor.
Available on Youtube movies $2.99 or Vudu $2.99 and Google Play
Back to Burgundy/Ce qui nous lie (2017)
Sibling rivalry getting you down on Father's Day? It happens to the best of us. Especially if you're all a bit estranged and reconvene in your childhood home back in the Loire Valley to settle the ownership of your late father's vineyard. For bougie wine loving dads, we recommend this story of personal growth, reacquainting yourself with your old life and good old fashioned familial jealousy, all presented against the literal blood, sweat, tears and hard work it takes to run a wine business.
Available for free with Amazon Prime
He Even Has Your Eyes/Il a déjà tes yeux (2016)
A light-hearted and heartfelt French treasure, Lucien Jean-Baptiste's He Even Has Your Eyes treats us to a much needed fresh look on the subject of race and is realistic and honest in its storytelling, as well as its acting. Adorable florist couple Paul (Lucien Jean-Baptiste) and Sali (Aïssa Maïga) finally get the call that they're going to be parents through adopting a baby boy named Benjamin. A caucasian baby isn't what they expected, but the loving new parents don't hesitate to embrace the newest member of the family. Read our full review here.
Papa ou maman/Daddy or Mommy (2015)
Not your average cheesy feel-good family film, this mom and dad pair are going through a tense custody battle... fighting for the other spouse to take their precious kiddos. For a hilarious taste of divorce, French style, check out this cringe worthy but laugh out loud comedy that plays a little bit of devil's advocate to Pamela Druckerman's famed Bringing up Bébé, a novel describing the so-called "perfect French parenting" method.
My Father the Hero (1994)
A solid 90's comedy with a young Katherine Heigl playing the teenage daughter of Gérard Depardieu! After not seeing his daughter for several years, Andre decides to take his daughter Nicole on the vacation of a lifetime to the Bahammas. When a new love enters the scene, Nicky, embarrassed she's only 14 and on a vacation with her father, decides to make up a story about who her father actually is...which is her lover... leading to scandal, gossip and all types of comical crises along the island. True farce at its hilariously uncomfortable, Depardieu is, as usual, charming and bold, and takes the role in stride.
Available through DirectTV or rent it on Amazon, Vudu, Google Play, Youtube or iTunes.
You Will Be My Son/Tu seras mon fils (2011)
If you and your father are in a bit of a darker mood thanks to those accidental burnt burgers at lunch (Ok Dad, VERY well done...), have a look at a completely different father son dynamic, in You Will Be My Son. In Saint-Emilion, a father prepares to leave his vineyard legacy to local vineyard manager's son Philippe (Nicolas Bridet)... not his son Martin. Philippe is of course everything Martin is not: suave, confident in his knowledge acidity, balance and body, and internationally experienced, fresh from Francis Ford Coppola's vineyard in California. What begins as familial drama, undercutting and jealousy slowly moves into chilling thriller as Martin is pushed over the edge. (Yes, we are aware that this is the second film set upon a vineyard, but this is French cinema after all).
Available to rent on Vudu and Amazon for $2.99, and on Kanopy
Dad in training/Tout pour être heureux (2015)
Today is the ultimate day of dad jokes, so stop fighting it and embrace your pop's "special" kind of humor... but if you need a break, go ahead and watch something that's actually written by a comedic professional! Your mom will thank you. Dad in Training stars the endlessly entertaining Manu Payet as a self involved father who, after his marriage falls apart, realizes the importance of his role in his daughters' lives, and theirs in his.
Daddy cool (2017)
What's the craziest thing your dad's done to win your mom back? After Maud (Laurence Arné) gets sick and tired of her immature 40 year old partner Adrien (Vincent Elbaz), she leaves him after 10 years because of his resistance have any sort of ambition or to think about starting a family. Adrian's logical response to prove Maude wrong is to open up his own private daycare from home, taking care of children full time. Horrified, Maud tries to warn the poor unsuspecting parents! Hilarity ensues.
