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| Photo by Glenn Carstens-Peters on Unsplash |
Movies, TV shows, and YouTube channels are great ways to pass time. They’re also a great opportunity to sharpen your language skills. Watching content in whichever language you're studying greatly increases your fluency. Even if you don’t understand the words at first, you’ll get better soon enough. Listening to YouTubers helped me improve my French. I’m mentioning YouTubers because as an American, they’re easier to access than foreign movies and shows. There is French content available on sites like Netflix, but it’s not much.
Without further ado, here’s some French language content I liked. I’ll start with YouTubers and continue with movies and shows. Here they are:
FRENCH YOUTUBE CHANNELS
Topics: Lifestyle, culture, fashion
Overview: Patty Lynn Q is my favorite YouTuber. I’ve been following her channel since 2016, when she was known as Patricia B in France. She’s an American who lived in France for several years. Patty changed her channel name after relocating to Canada recently. Most of her content used to be about fashion and makeup. Patty now largely vlogs about French and American culture and lifestyle. Although she’s not a native Francophone, Patty is easy to understand. Her videos are entertaining and informative as well.
Topics: Fashion, lifestyle
Overview: Laura is one of my recent discoveries. I only found out about her when she showed up in my YouTube suggestions. Laura’s channel has been active for a year. No wonder I never found her before when I Googled ‘French YouTubers’. Anyway, Laura is French-Italian and currently lives in Los Angeles. She posts videos about her life in the city and about fashion. Laura has a pleasant voice and lots of charm. She also has a chipper look about her that I find attractive.
Topics: Travel, fashion, beauty
Overview: I’ve been following Claire’s channel almost as long as Patty’s. She lives in France, though she travels often. Claire’s voice is quite raspy, but she makes up for it with interesting content. She’s been vlogging for years now, since she was a student. Some of Claire’s earlier videos were school-focused. Now she mainly vlogs about her travels. Claire seems to prefer beach locations. She’s traveled to several places but has a special fondness for Thailand.
Topics: Beauty, fashion, lifestyle
Overview: This is another channel I’ve followed for years. I discovered Sweet Ness around the same time as Patty and Claire. I like Sweet Ness despite the large amount of beauty videos she posts (I’m a guy). She has a pretty voice and she’s, well, beautiful. Sweet Ness is also native French, so her speech is easy to understand.
Topics: Books
Overview: I found Audrey after searching for French book vloggers some time ago. She seems to be one of the most popular. Audrey loves books, which is obvious from the large bookcases in her room. She mostly features fiction published in French. Audrey has a clear-sounding, pretty voice and a friendly demeanor. Audrey’s been vlogging for years, too. She has lots of videos on her channel. I still haven’t caught up with her most recent ones.
FRENCH MOVIES AND TV SHOWS
Genre: Romantic comedy
Rating: PG-13
Release Year: 2006
Length: 106 minutes
Overview: Jean (Gad Elmaleh) is a hotel staffer who falls for Irène (Audrey Tautou) when she stays at his hotel. Irène is a gold digger who only dates rich men, though. Jean pretends to be wealthy to get her attention, until his ruse is exposed. Jean is hopelessly in love, so he drives himself into bankruptcy just to spend time with Irène. Lucky for Jean, a wealthy older woman turns him into a male version of Irène. I found this hilarious. It was entertaining and amusing to see the lengths Jean goes to in his pursuit of Irène’s love. Hors de Prix is excellent if you like laugh-out-loud rom-coms or if you are a fan of Audrey Tautou. I highly recommend it.
Genre: Thriller, mystery
Rating: NR
Release Year: 2015
Length: 93 minutes
Overview: Dany (Freya Mavor) is a secretary who takes her boss Michel’s (Benjamin Biolay) luxury car for a joyride. He let her drive it back home from the airport. As Dany makes a few stops along a town, she is shocked when people claim to recognize her. They even know her name. Dany has never visited those places before. The mystery stretches through most of the film. It makes you wonder what funny business is going on. The closer Dany gets to the truth, the more dangerous the situation becomes. It’s a solid movie, though I think I’d like it less if it starred an actress who’s not as likable as Freya Mavor. There’s also a twist at the end. It’s not genius, but still good.
Genre: Romance, sport
Rating: R
Release Year: 2012
Length: 116 minutes
Overview: This is a period romance centered on character Rose Pamphyle (Déborah François). She applies for a job as a secretary for Louis Echard (Romain Duris), an insurance agent. When Louis discovers Rose’s incredible typing speed, he convinces her to enter a speed-typing competition. Rose ends up losing. Still having faith in her, Louis brings Rose to his house and teaches her to type with all ten fingers (she used only two). Eventually, Rose competes in more typing contests. Louis and Rose also fall in love, but there’s an obstacle: Louis’s belief that he’s not enough for her. Populaire is a good romance, and at times riveting. François’s charm and solid acting gives the movie extra points in its favor, IMO. You could do a lot worse than this fun French flick.
Genre: Romance
Rating: NR
Release Year: 2011
Length: 110 minutes
Overview: Camille (Lola Créton) and Sullivan (Sebastian Urzendowsky) are a pair of lovesick teens from Paris. They have sizzling chemistry and love each other so much it’s painful. This is particularly the case for Camille. When Sullivan leaves on a long trip to find himself, Camille is heartbroken. She waits for him impatiently. Sullivan was supposed to be gone for ten months, but those turn into years. Camille turns into a more mature woman. She studies to become an architect. After a long time, Camille gets into a serious relationship. When she least expects it, Sullivan is back in her life. All the old pain resurfaces as if it had happened only the day before. Will Camille and Sullivan end up together, or will she finally move on with her life? This was a poignant film about first love and how much it can hurt. ‘Nuff said. When it comes to French romances, Un Amour de Jeunesse is a winner.
Genre: Drama
Rating: TV-MA
Premiere Year: 2012
Overview: This is a somewhat supernatural drama with an ensemble cast. It takes place in a small town in France in the Alps. Léna (Jenna Thiam) and Camille Séguret (Yara Pilartz) are among a few people who have been dead for years. They suddenly turn up without any explanation. These returned try to go about their lives as normal, until they learn the truth. Several of their loved ones have moved on and even started new families. The town is also struck by serial killings very much like ones that happened when the returned ‘died’. It’s an eerie show but it won’t give you nightmares. If you can stomach something like Legacies you’ll be just fine with Les Revenants.
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There are more great French movies and shows. These are just the ones I’ve had a chance to watch, though. As I said, it’s not easy to get French content in the States. I look forward to watching Amélie (yes, that famous one), La Petite Lili, La délicatesse (another Tautou drama) and La Vie en Rose. That last one is where Marion Cotillard plays the late Edith Piaf. I wonder how she handled the role.
That’s it for this post. I hope this content keeps you entertained through the quarantine. Depending on where you live, it might be extended for several more weeks. I'm thinking of re-watching old shows I enjoyed. Anyway, have a good day! Until next time.
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