French period dramas
by messalyn-52399 | created - 26 Feb 2018 | updated - 11 Apr 2021 | Public- Instant Watch Options
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1. Tous les matins du monde (1991)
Not Rated | 115 min | Biography, Drama, History
The story of Monsieur de Sainte Colombe, fierce and somber man, grand master of the viola da gamba and professor of Marin Marais, prestigious musician in the court of Louis XIV.
Director: Alain Corneau | Stars: Gérard Depardieu, Jean-Pierre Marielle, Anne Brochet, Guillaume Depardieu
Votes: 7,947 | Gross: $3.09M
2. Queen Margot (1994)
R | 161 min | Biography, Drama, History
Young Queen Margot finds herself trapped in an arranged marriage amidst a religious war between Catholics and Protestants. She hopes to escape with a new lover, but finds herself imprisoned by her powerful and ruthless family.
Director: Patrice Chéreau | Stars: Isabelle Adjani, Daniel Auteuil, Jean-Hugues Anglade, Vincent Perez
Votes: 19,000 | Gross: $2.02M
3. The Lover (1992)
R | 115 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
In 1929 French Indochina, a French teenage girl embarks on a reckless and forbidden romance with a wealthy, older Chinese man, each knowing that knowledge of their affair will bring drastic consequences to each other.
Director: Jean-Jacques Annaud | Stars: Jane March, Tony Ka Fai Leung, Jeanne Moreau, Frédérique Meininger
Votes: 23,509 | Gross: $4.90M
4. House of Tolerance (2011)
Not Rated | 122 min | Drama
At an elegant Parisian bordello at the dawn of the 20th century exists a cloistered world of pleasure, pain, hope, rivalries--and, most of all, slavery.
Director: Bertrand Bonello | Stars: Noémie Lvovsky, Hafsia Herzi, Céline Sallette, Jasmine Trinca
Votes: 7,811 | Gross: $0.02M
5. The Story of Adele H (1975)
PG | 96 min | Biography, Drama, History
The story of Adèle Hugo's unrequited love for a lieutenant.
Director: François Truffaut | Stars: Isabelle Adjani, Bruce Robinson, Sylvia Marriott, Joseph Blatchley
Votes: 8,977
6. The Artist (I) (2011)
PG-13 | 100 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
When George, a silent movie superstar, meets Peppy Miller, a dancer, sparks fly between the two. However, after the introduction of talking pictures, their fortunes change, affecting their dynamic.
Director: Michel Hazanavicius | Stars: Jean Dujardin, Bérénice Bejo, John Goodman, James Cromwell
Votes: 248,657 | Gross: $44.67M
7. Camille Claudel (1988)
R | 175 min | Biography, Drama, History
Camille Claude impresses already-famous sculptor Auguste Rodin. He hires her as an assistant, but soon Camille begins to sculpt for herself and she also becomes his mistress. But after a while, she would like to get out of his shadow.
Director: Bruno Nuytten | Stars: Isabelle Adjani, Gérard Depardieu, Madeleine Robinson, Laurent Grévill
Votes: 7,396 | Gross: $0.20M
8. Brotherhood of the Wolf (2001)
R | 142 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
In 18th-century France, the Chevalier de Fronsac and his Native American friend Mani are sent to the Gevaudan province at the king's behest to investigate the killings of hundreds by a mysterious beast.
Director: Christophe Gans | Stars: Samuel Le Bihan, Mark Dacascos, Jérémie Renier, Vincent Cassel
Votes: 71,503 | Gross: $11.26M
9. The Horseman on the Roof (1995)
R | 118 min | Adventure, Drama, Romance
In a time of war and disease, a young officer gallantly tries to help a young woman find her husband.
Director: Jean-Paul Rappeneau | Stars: Olivier Martinez, Juliette Binoche, Pierre Arditi, François Cluzet
Votes: 6,397 | Gross: $1.88M
10. Thérèse (2012)
110 min | Drama
An unhappily married woman struggles to break free from social pressures.
Director: Claude Miller | Stars: Audrey Tautou, Gilles Lellouche, Anaïs Demoustier, Catherine Arditi
Votes: 3,900
11. Farewell, My Queen (2012)
R | 100 min | Drama, History, Romance
A look at the platonic relationship between Marie Antoinette and one of her female readers during the first days of the French Revolution.
Director: Benoît Jacquot | Stars: Léa Seydoux, Diane Kruger, Virginie Ledoyen, Noémie Lvovsky
Votes: 9,154 | Gross: $0.07M
12. The Last Mistress (2007)
Unrated | 115 min | Drama, Romance
Secrets, rumors and betrayals surround the upcoming marriage between a young dissolute man and virtuous woman of the French aristocracy.
Director: Catherine Breillat | Stars: Asia Argento, Fu'ad Aït Aattou, Roxane Mesquida, Claude Sarraute
Votes: 3,789 | Gross: $0.79M
13. The Dancer (2016)
Not Rated | 108 min | Biography, Drama, History
Loïe Fuller was the toast of the Folies Bergères at the turn of the 20th century and an inspiration for Toulouse-Lautrec and the Lumière Brothers. The film revolves around her complicated relationship with protégé and rival Isadora Duncan.
Director: Stéphanie Di Giusto | Stars: Soko, Gaspard Ulliel, Mélanie Thierry, Lily-Rose Depp
Votes: 2,754
14. Coco Before Chanel (2009)
PG-13 | 105 min | Biography, Drama
The story of Coco Chanel's rise from obscure beginnings to the heights of the fashion world.
Director: Anne Fontaine | Stars: Audrey Tautou, Benoît Poelvoorde, Alessandro Nivola, Marie Gillain
Votes: 42,119 | Gross: $6.11M
15. A Very Long Engagement (2004)
R | 133 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance
Tells the story of a young woman's relentless search for her fiancé, who has disappeared from the trenches of the Somme during World War One.
Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet | Stars: Audrey Tautou, Gaspard Ulliel, Jodie Foster, Dominique Pinon
Votes: 75,962 | Gross: $6.17M
16. 8 Women (2002)
R | 111 min | Comedy, Crime, Musical
A man is murdered in an isolated chalet, and the eight female residents are all suspects; their secrets are revealed as they try to determine who is guilty.
Director: François Ozon | Stars: Fanny Ardant, Emmanuelle Béart, Danielle Darrieux, Catherine Deneuve
Votes: 34,348 | Gross: $3.08M
17. Les petits meurtres d'Agatha Christie (2009–2024)
TV-PG | 90 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
Agatha Christie's masterful storytelling gets a soupçon of French flair in these attractive, witty mysteries. These French adaptations are a fresh, stylish twist on classic Christie tales.
Stars: Blandine Bellavoir, Samuel Labarthe, Elodie Frenck, Dominique Thomas
Votes: 1,496
18. Madame Bovary (1991)
PG-13 | 143 min | Drama, Romance
In nineteenth-century France, the romantic daughter of a country squire marries a dull country doctor. To escape boredom, she throws herself into love affairs with a suave local landowner and a law student, and runs up ruinous debts.
Director: Claude Chabrol | Stars: Isabelle Huppert, Jean-François Balmer, Christophe Malavoy, Jean Yanne
Votes: 4,484 | Gross: $1.94M
19. Violette (1978)
Not Rated | 124 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
In an interwar France struggling with profound social and political change, 18-year-old Violette Noziere rebels against the constraints of her claustrophobic, working-class (and possibly incestuous) family, with troubling consequences.
Director: Claude Chabrol | Stars: Isabelle Huppert, Stéphane Audran, Jean Carmet, Jean-François Garreaud
Votes: 2,527
20. Un barrage contre le Pacifique (2008)
116 min | Drama
A troubled mother's spirit crumbles when her adult children strike out for independence. Feeling abandoned she contemplates taking drastic action.
Director: Rithy Panh | Stars: Isabelle Huppert, Gaspard Ulliel, Astrid Bergès-Frisbey, Randal Douc
Votes: 869
21. Gabrielle (2005)
90 min | Drama, Romance
The marriage between Gabrielle and Jean begins to fray after the discovery of a letter that belongs to Gabrielle.
Director: Patrice Chéreau | Stars: Isabelle Huppert, Pascal Greggory, Claudia Coli, Thierry Hancisse
Votes: 2,128 | Gross: $0.01M
22. La Vie En Rose (2007)
PG-13 | 140 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Biopic of the iconic French singer Édith Piaf. Raised by her grandmother in a brothel, she was discovered while singing on a street corner at the age of 19. Despite her success, Piaf's life was filled with tragedy.
Director: Olivier Dahan | Stars: Marion Cotillard, Sylvie Testud, Pascal Greggory, Emmanuelle Seigner
Votes: 90,765 | Gross: $10.30M
23. The Libertine (2000)
Not Rated | 100 min | Comedy, History
The 'philosopher' (modernist intellectual of the French 18th-century Enlightenment) Denis Diderot is part of an aristocratic circle which practices the libertarian principles on the rural ... See full summary »
Director: Gabriel Aghion | Stars: Vincent Perez, Fanny Ardant, Josiane Balasko, Michel Serrault
Votes: 1,820
24. The Emperor of Paris (2018)
TV-MA | 120 min | Adventure, Crime, History
Vidocq escapes captivity in 1805; years later he's a fabric merchant in Paris under an alias. He makes a deal of amnesty for catching criminals. He builds an efficient team of ex-cons to catch or kill them.
Director: Jean-François Richet | Stars: Vincent Cassel, Patrick Chesnais, August Diehl, Olga Kurylenko
Votes: 6,131
25. The Poisoning Angel (2016)
100 min | Biography, Drama, History
A serial killer strikes fear into the lives of residents of a quiet French community during the early 19th century.
Director: Stéphanie Pillonca | Stars: Déborah François, Benjamin Biolay, Jonathan Zaccaï, Catherine Mouchet
Votes: 228
26. On Guard (1997)
TV-14 | 128 min | Adventure, Drama
The Comte de Gonzague schemes against his cousin, the Duc de Nevers, even though he is the Duke's heir and will inherit his estates. The Count has kept secret the existence of the Duke's ... See full summary »
Director: Philippe de Broca | Stars: Daniel Auteuil, Fabrice Luchini, Vincent Perez, Marie Gillain
Votes: 3,813 | Gross: $0.10M
27. The Bonfire of Destiny (2019)
TV-MA | 48 min | Drama, History
After a devastating fire in 1897 Paris, three women find their lives upended by betrayal, deception and romantic turmoil. Inspired by real events.
Stars: Audrey Fleurot, Julie De Bona, Camille Lou, Gilbert Melki
Votes: 6,208
28. Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019)
R | 122 min | Drama, Romance
On an isolated island in Brittany at the end of the eighteenth century, a female painter is obliged to paint a wedding portrait of a young woman.
Director: Céline Sciamma | Stars: Noémie Merlant, Adèle Haenel, Luàna Bajrami, Valeria Golino
Votes: 109,704 | Gross: $3.76M
29. From the Land of the Moon (2016)
R | 120 min | Drama, Romance
In 1950s France, Gabrielle is a passionate, free-spirited woman who is in a loveless marriage and falls for another man when she is sent away to the Alps to treat her kidney stones. Gabrielle yearns to free herself and run away with André.
Director: Nicole Garcia | Stars: Marion Cotillard, Louis Garrel, Alex Brendemühl, Brigitte Roüan
Votes: 6,699 | Gross: $0.04M
30. Eternity (2016)
115 min | Drama
The story of the women and relationships that define a family across a century.
Director: Anh Hung Tran | Stars: Audrey Tautou, Bérénice Bejo, Mélanie Laurent, Jérémie Renier
Votes: 1,399
31. Indochine (1992)
PG-13 | 160 min | Drama, Romance, War
Eliane adopts Camille, whose Vietnamese parents were friends. In 1930, a French navy officer is interested in Eliane (owns 60km2 plantation) and later in Camille. There's an uprising in Vietnam against French colonial power.
Director: Régis Wargnier | Stars: Catherine Deneuve, Vincent Perez, Linh-Dan Pham, Jean Yanne
Votes: 10,945 | Gross: $5.73M
32. The Lady and the Duke (2001)
PG-13 | 129 min | Drama, History, Romance
During the French Revolution, a Scottish aristocrat and her former lover, the Duke of Orleans, find themselves on opposite sides of the conflict.
Director: Éric Rohmer | Stars: Lucy Russell, Jean-Claude Dreyfus, Alain Libolt, Charlotte Véry
Votes: 2,873 | Gross: $0.33M
33. Adolphe (2002)
102 min | Drama
The action takes place at the turn of the 19th Century. Adolphe (Stanislas Merhar) is a carefree, somewhat jaded 22-year-old, scion of a preeminent aristocratic family, with a very ... See full synopsis »
Director: Benoît Jacquot | Stars: Isabelle Adjani, Stanislas Merhar, Jean Yanne, Romain Duris
Votes: 418
34. The Eiffel Tower Mystery (2015 TV Movie)
TV-PG | 86 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
The daughter of one of the architects who built the Eiffel Tower gets framed for a murder that has taken place there, so she and her girlfriend embark on a quest across Paris to solve the mystery.
Director: Léa Fazer | Stars: Marie Denarnaud, Aïssa Maïga, Grégori Derangère, Bruno Debrandt
Votes: 275
35. Lady J (2018)
TV-14 | 109 min | Drama, Romance
Fooled by a notorious libertine, a widow plans her revenge.
Director: Emmanuel Mouret | Stars: Cécile de France, Edouard Baer, Alice Isaaz, Natalia Dontcheva
Votes: 3,947
36. L'échange des princesses (2017)
100 min | Drama, History
In 1721, the Regent of France, wanting to seal the peace with Spain, offers to the Spanish King, a marriage between their respective heirs: Louis XV, age 11, and Maria Anna Victoria, the 4-... See full summary »
Director: Marc Dugain | Stars: Lambert Wilson, Anamaria Vartolomei, Olivier Gourmet, Catherine Mouchet
Votes: 1,310
37. Beaumarchais the Scoundrel (1996)
116 min | Adventure, Comedy, History
The life story of the titular Beaumarchais, playwright and adventurer, who gets himself into numerous different scrapes and romantic encounters in 18th Century France.
Director: Édouard Molinaro | Stars: Fabrice Luchini, Manuel Blanc, Sandrine Kiberlain, Michel Aumont
Votes: 1,468 | Gross: $0.63M
38. The Nun (2013)
Not Rated | 112 min | Drama
1760s France. Suzanne is shocked when her bourgeois family sends her to a convent. There she faces oppression and torment, leading her to fight back and expose the dehumanizing effect of cloistered life.
Director: Guillaume Nicloux | Stars: Pauline Etienne, Isabelle Huppert, Louise Bourgoin, Martina Gedeck
Votes: 1,994
39. Marguerite (2015)
R | 129 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
It is party day at Marguerite Dumont's castle. She sings wholeheartedly, but terribly out of tune. Marguerite has been living her passion in her own bubble, and the hypocrite audience acts as if she was the diva she believes she is.
Director: Xavier Giannoli | Stars: Catherine Frot, André Marcon, Michel Fau, Christa Théret
Votes: 5,671 | Gross: $0.51M
40. L'allée du roi (1996– )
Drama, History
Drama centering around the life at the court of Louis XIV and the role of the Marquise de Maintenon.
Stars: Dominique Blanc, Didier Sandre, Valentine Varela, Raphaëline Goupilleau
Votes: 315
41. The Princess of Montpensier (2010)
Not Rated | 139 min | Action, Drama, History
Based on the classic didactic novel, the action centers on the noble lady who soon becomes exposed to the sexual and political intrigues of the French court of the religious wars era.
Director: Bertrand Tavernier | Stars: Mélanie Thierry, Lambert Wilson, Gaspard Ulliel, Grégoire Leprince-Ringuet
Votes: 4,287 | Gross: $0.34M
42. Ridicule (1996)
R | 102 min | Comedy, Drama, History
To get royal backing on a needed drainage project, a poor French lord must learn to play the delicate games of wit at court at Versailles.
Director: Patrice Leconte | Stars: Charles Berling, Jean Rochefort, Fanny Ardant, Judith Godrèche
Votes: 8,184 | Gross: $2.50M
43. Journal d'une femme de chambre (2015)
Not Rated | 96 min | Drama
A scheming servant works for a wealthy couple in France during the late 19th century.
Director: Benoît Jacquot | Stars: Léa Seydoux, Vincent Lindon, Clotilde Mollet, Hervé Pierre
Votes: 3,037 | Gross: $0.05M
44. Marie Curie: The Courage of Knowledge (2016)
100 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
Follows the famous physicist and chemist Marie Curie and her struggle for recognition in the male-dominated science community in early 20th century France.
Director: Marie Noëlle | Stars: Karolina Gruszka, Arieh Worthalter, Charles Berling, Izabela Kuna
Votes: 1,607
45. Camille Claudel 1915 (2013)
Not Rated | 95 min | Biography, Drama
Winter, 1915. Confined by her family to an asylum in the South of France - where she will never sculpt again - the chronicle of Camille Claudel's reclusive life, as she waits for a visit from her brother, Paul Claudel.
Director: Bruno Dumont | Stars: Juliette Binoche, Jessica Errero, Robert Leroy, Jean-Luc Vincent
Votes: 3,938 | Gross: $0.02M
46. Children of the Century (1999)
135 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
A story of doomed passion between two genius writers of the 19th century - novelist George Sand and poet Alfred de Musset.
Director: Diane Kurys | Stars: Juliette Binoche, Benoît Magimel, Stefano Dionisi, Robin Renucci
Votes: 2,022 | Gross: $0.05M
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