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  HOME > FRENCH NEW WAVE FILM GUIDE > French New Wave Top 10 Films


New Wave Film Guide  

wondering what to watch? We introduce you to the best of the best, category by category...
FRENCH NEW WAVE TOP 10 FILMS © 2008 Simon Hitchman

Top 10 New Wave Films By...

Pierrot Le Fou
FILM DIRECTOR
SUB-GENRE
ACTORS & PERFORMANCES

All of these lists will be linking to the encyclopedia soon!
SIGNIFICANT & DEFINING
SOUND & VISUALS
COMING SOON!
Nouvelle Vague Directors' Top Movies
Your Movie Picks!

TOP 10 FRENCH NEW WAVE FILMS BY DIRECTOR
10 BEST FRANCOIS TRUFFAUT FILMS
  1. Les Quatre Cents Coups (The 400 Blows, 1959)
  2. Jules et Jim (Jules and Jim, 1962)
  3. La Nuit Américaine (Day for Night, 1973)
  4. Tirez sur le Pianiste (Shoot the Pianist, 1960)
  5. Baiser Volés (Stolen Kisses, 1968)
  6. Les Deux Anglaises et le Continent (Two English Girls, 1971)
  7. La Mariée Était en Noir (The Bride Wore Black, 1967)
  8. La Peau Douce (Soft Skin, 1964)
  9. Le Dernier Métro (The Last Metro, 1980)
  10. Farenheit 451 (1965)
10 BEST JEAN-LUC GODARD FILMS (pre-1968)
  1. Pierrot le Fou (1965)
  2. Bande à Part (Band of Outsiders, 1964)
  3. Á Bout de Souffle (Breathless, 1960)
  4. Week End (1967)
  5. Vivre sa Vie (My Life to Live, 1962)
  6. Le Mépris (Contempt, 1963)
  7. Made in U.S.A. (1966)
  8. Alphaville (1965)
  9. Une Femme Mariée (A Married Woman, 1964)
  10. Deux ou Trois Choses que Je Sais d’Elle (Two or Three Things I Know About Her, 1967)
10 BEST JEAN-LUC GODARD FILMS (post-1968)
  1. Éloge de l’Amour (In Praise of Love, 2001)
  2. Nouvelle Vague (New Wave, 1990)
  3. Le Gai Savoir (The Joy of Learning, 1968)
  4. For Ever Mozart (1996)
  5. Sympathy for the Devil (1968)
  6. Soigne ta Droite (Keep Your Right Up, 1987)
  7. Passion (1982)
  8. Tout va Bien (All’s Well, 1972)
  9. Sauve qui Peut (La Vie) (Slow Motion, 1979)
  10. Je Vous Salue, Marie (Hail Mary, 1985)
10 BEST CLAUDE CHABROL FILMS
  1. Le Boucher (The Butcher, 1970)
  2. Juste Avant la Nuit (Just Before Nightfall, 1971)
  3. La Femme Infidele (The Unfaithful Wife, 1968)
  4. Les Bonnes Femmes (The Good Girls, 1960)
  5. Le Cérémonie (1995)
  6. Que la Bête Meure (This Man Must Die, 1970)
  7. La Rupture (The Break Up, 1970)
  8. Les Biches (The Does, 1968)
  9. Nada (The Nada Gang, 1974)
  10. Merci pour le Chocolat (Thank you for the Chocolate, 2000)
10 BEST ERIC ROHMER FILMS
  1. Ma nuit chez Maud (My Night at Maud’s, 1969)
  2. Le Rayon Vert (The Green Ray/Summer, 1986)
  3. Le Genou de Claire (Claire’s Knee, 1970)
  4. Conte d’hiver (A Tale of Winter, 1992)
  5. L’Amour l’après-Ómidi (Love in the Afternoon, 1972)
  6. Les Nuits de la pleine lune (Full Moon in Paris, 1984)
  7. La Collectionneuse (The Collector, 1967)
  8. L’Anglaise et le duc (The Lady and the Duke, 2001)
  9. Pauline à la Plage (Pauline at the Beach, 1983)
  10. Conte d’été (A Summer’s Tale, 1996)
10 BEST ALAIN RESNAIS FILMS
  1. Muriel (1963)
  2. Hiroshima mon amour (1959)
  3. Nuit et brouillard (Night and Fog, 1955)
  4. Mon oncle d’Amérique (My American Uncle, 1980)
  5. L’Année dernière à Marienbad (Last Year at Marienbad, 1961)
  6. Stavisky... (1974)
  7. La Guerre est Finie (The War is Over, 1966)
  8. On Connaît la Chanson (Same Old Song, 1997)
  9. Providence (1977)
  10. Toute la Mémoire du Monde (All the World’s Memory, 1956)
10 BEST LOUIS MALLE FILMS
  1. Le Feu Follet (The Fire Within, 1963)
  2. Au Revoir, les Enfants (Goodbye, Children, 1987)
  3. Le Voleur (The Thief, 1967)
  4. Atlantic City (1980)
  5. Lacombe Lucien (1974)
  6. Vanya on 42nd Street (1994)
  7. Ascenseur pour l’Échafaud (Lift to the Scaffold, 1958)
  8. Calcutta (1968)
  9. Le Souffle au Coeur (Dearest Heart, 1971)
  10. My Dinner with Andre (1981)
10 BEST JACQUES RIVETTE FILMS
  1. L’Amour Fou (Mad Love, 1968)
  2. Out 1 (1971)/Out 1: Spectre (1972)
  3. La Bande des Quatre (The Gang of Four, 1988)
  4. Céline et Julie vont en Bateau (Celine and Julie Go Boating, 1974)
  5. La Belle Noiseuse (The Beautiful Troublemaker, 1991)
  6. La Religieuse (The Nun, 1966)
  7. Va Savoir (Who Knows?, 2001)
  8. Secret Défense (Secret Defence, 1998)
  9. Jeanne la Pucelle (Joan of Arc, 1994)
  10. Paris Nous Appartient (Paris Belongs to Us, 1962)
10 BEST JACQUES DEMY FILMS
  1. Les Parapluies de Cherbourg (The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, 1964)
  2. Lola (1961)
  3. Les Demoiselles de Rochefort (The Young Girls of Rochefort, 1967)
  4. La Baie des Anges (Bay of Angels, 1963)
  5. Une Chambre en Ville (A Room in Town, 1982)
  6. Model Shop (1969)
  7. Peau d’Âne (Donkey Skin, 1970)
  8. Parking (1985)
  9. Trois Places pour le 26 (Three Places for the 26th, 1988)
  10. Le Bel Indifférent (1957)
10 BEST AGNES VARDA FILMS
  1. Cléo de 5 à 7 (Cleo from 5 to 7, 1962)
  2. La Pointe-Courte (1956)
  3. Le Bonheur (Happiness, 1965)
  4. Jacquot de Nantes
  5. Kung-Fu Master (1987)
  6. Lions Love (1969)
  7. Sans Toit Ni Loi (Vagabond, 1985)
  8. L’Opera-Mouffe (1958)
  9. Les Glaneurs et la Glaneuse (The Gleaners and I, 2000)
  10. Les Creatures (The Creatures, 1966)
10 BEST FILMS BY NEW WAVE DIRECTORS YOU'VE NEVER HEARD OF!
  1. La Jetée (The Pier, 1962) - dir: Chris Marker
  2. La Maman et la Putain (The Mother and the Whore, 1973) - dir:
    Jean Eustache
  3. Le Combat dans L'isle (Fire and Ice, 1962) - dir: Alain Cavalier
  4. Une Aussi Longue Absence (The Long Absence, 1961) - dir: Henri Colpi
  5. Adieu Philippine (1963) - dir: Jacques Rozier
  6. L’Eau a la Bouche (A Game for Six Lovers, 1960) - dir: Jacques Doniol-Valcroze
  7. Le Bel Age (Love Is When You Make it, 1959) - dir: Pierre Kast
  8. Une Vie (One Life, 1958) - dir: Alexander Astruc
  9. Marie Pour Mémoire (Marie For Memory, 1967) - dir: Philippe Garrel
  10. Chronik der Anna Magdalena Bach (1968) - dirs: Jean-Marie Straub and Daniele Huillot

TOP 10 FRENCH NEW WAVE FILMS BY SUB-GENRE
10 BEST NEW WAVE LOVE STORIES
  1. Les Parapluies de Cherbourg (The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, 1964) - dir: Jacques Demy
  2. Jules et Jim (1962) - dir: Francois Truffaut
  3. Pierrot le fou (1965)
  4. L’Amour l’Après-midi (Chloe in the Afternoon, 1972) - dir: Eric Rohmer
  5. Le Mépris (Contempt, 1963) - dir: Jean-Luc Godard
  6. Un Homme et une Femme (A Man and a Woman, 1966) - dir: Claude Lelouch
  7. Ma nuit chez Maud (My Night with Maud, 1969) dir: Eric Rohmer
  8. Les Demoiselles de Rochefort (The Young Girls of Rochefort, 1967) dir: Jacques Demy
  9. Les Deux Anglaises et le Continent (Two English Girls, 1971) dir: Francois Truffaut
  10. L’Eau a la Bouche (A Game for Six Lovers, 1960) dir: Jacques Doniol-Valcroze
10 BEST NEW WAVE COMEDIES
  1. Conte d'Automne (Autumn Tale, 1998) - dir: Eric Rohmer
  2. Les Contrebandières (The Smugglers, 1967) - dir: Luc Moullet
  3. Baisers Volés (Stolen Kisses, 1968) - dir: Francois Truffaut
  4. L’Acrobate (The Acrobat, 1976) - dir: Jean-Daniel Pollet
  5. Paris vu Par... (Six in Paris, 1965) - dir: various
  6. Une Belle Fille Comme Moi (Such a Gorgeous Kid Like Me, 1972) - dir: Francois Truffaut
  7. Brigitte et Brigitte (1966) - dir: Luc Moullet
  8. Une Femme est une Femme (A Woman is a Woman, 1961)
  9. Conte d'Été (A Summer’s Tale, 1996) - dir: Eric Rohmer
  10. Zazie dans le Métro (1960) - dir: Louis Malle
10 BEST NEW WAVE THRILLERS
  1. Le Boucher (The Butcher, 1969) - dir: Claude Chabrol
  2. À Bout de Souffle (Breathless, 1960) - dir: Jean-Luc Godard
  3. Le Deuxième de souffle (Second Breath, 1966) - dir: Jean-Pierre Melville
  4. Bande à part (Band of Outsiders, 1964) - dir: Jean-Luc Godard
  5. Que la Bête Meure (This Man Must Die, 1969) - dir: Claude Chabrol
  6. Le Cercle Rouge (The Red Circle, 1970) - dir: Jean-Pierre Melville
  7. Le Voleur (The Thief, 1967) - dir: Louis Malle
  8. Vivement Dimanche! (Confidentially Yours; Finally, Sunday, 1983) - dir: Francois Truffaut
  9. Made in U.S.A. (1966) - dir: Jean-Luc Godard
  10. La Cérémonie (1995) - dir: Claude Chabrol
10 BEST NEW WAVE NOIR
  1. Le Samourai (1967) –  dir: Jean-Pierre Melville
  2. Juste Avant La Nuit (Just Before Nightfall, 1971) – dir: Claude Chabrol
  3. Tirez sur le Pianiste (Shoot the Piano Player, 1960) – dir: Francois Truffaut
  4. Atlantic City (1980) - dir: Louis Malle
  5. Le Doulos (The Finger Man, 1961)  dir: Jean-Pierre Melville
  6. La Femme Infidèle (The Unfaithful Wife, 1968) - dir: Claude Chabrol
  7. Alphaville (1965) - dir: Jean-Luc Godard
  8. Bob le flambeur (Bob the Gambler, 1955)
  9. La Mariée était en noir (The Bride Wore Black, 1967) - dir: Francois Truffaut
  10. Ascenseur pour l'échafaud (Lift to the Scaffold, 1958) - dir: Louis Malle
10 BEST NEW WAVE WEIRD & SURREAL FILMS
  1. Les Yeux Sans Visage (Eyes Without a Face, 1960) - dir: Georges Franju
  2. L' Année Dernière à Marienbad (Last Year in Marienbad, 1961) - dir: Alain Resnais
  3. Céline et Julie Vont en Bateau (Celine & Julie Go Boating, 1974) - dir: Jacques Rivette
  4. Trans-Europ-Express (1966) - dir: Alain Robbe-Grillet
  5. Black Moon (1975) - dir: Louis Malle
  6. Judex (1963) - dir: Georges Franju
  7. Out 1 (1971) and Out 1:/Spectre (1972) - dir: Jacques Rivette
  8. Berceau de Cristal (1976) - dir: Philippe Garrel
  9. King Lear (1987) - dir: Jean-Luc Godard
  10. Glissemens Progressifs du Plaisir (Successive Slidings of Pleasure, 1974) - dir: Alain Robbe-Grillet
10 BEST NEW WAVE DOCUMENTARIES (chronological order)
  1. Le Sang des Bêtes (Blood of the Beasts, 1948) (dir. Georges Franju)
  2. Les Statues Meurent Aussi (1953) (Dirs. Alain Resnais and Chris Marker)
  3. Nuit et Brouillard (Night and Fog, 1955) (dir. Alain Resnais)
  4. Chronique d’un Été (Paris 1960, 1961) (Jean Rouch)
  5. Le Joli Mai (1962) (dir. Chris Marker)
  6. Méditerranée (1963) (dir: Jean-Daniel Pollet)
  7. Phantom India (1969) (dir. Louis Malle)
  8. Général Idi Amin Dada: Autoportrait (General Idi Amin Dada: A Self Portrait, 1974) (dir. Barbet Schroeder
  9. Sans Soleil (1983) (dir. Chris Marker)
  10. Les Glaneurs et la Glaneuse (The Gleaners and I, 2000) (dir. Agnes Varda)
10 BEST NEW WAVE WAR FILMS
  1. Au Revoir les Enfants (Goodbye Children, 1987) - dir: Louis Malle
  2. L’Armée des Ombres (Army in the Shadows, 1969) - dir: Jean-Pierre Melville
  3. Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959) - dir: Alain Resnais
  4. La Longue Marche (Long March, 1966) - dir: Alexandre Astruc
  5. Le Dernier Métro (The Last Metro, 1980) - dir: Francois Truffaut
  6. La Guerre est Finie (The War is Over, 1966) - dir: Alain Resnais
  7. Lacombe Lucien (1974) - dir: Louis Malle
  8. Triple Agent (2004) - dir: Alain Resnais
  9. Le Silence de la Mer (The Silence of the Sea, 1947) - dir: Jean-Pierre Melville
  10. Les Carabiniers (The Riflemen, 1963) - Jean-Luc Godard
10 BEST NEW WAVE TALES OF REBELLION
  1. Week End (1967) - dir: Jean-Luc Godard
  2. Cuba Si! (1961) - dir: Chris Marker
  3. La Chinoise (1967) - dir: Jean-Luc Godard
  4. Les Quatre Cents Coups (The 400 Blows, 1959) - dir: Francois Truffaut
  5. Nada (The Nada Gang, 1974) - dir: Claude Chabrol
  6. La Religieuse (The Nun, 1966) - dir: Jacques Rivette
  7. La Tête Contre les Murs (The Keepers, 1959) - dir: Georges Franju
  8. Moi, un Noir (I, A Negro, 1958) - dir: Jean Rouch
  9. Milou en Mai (May Fools, 1989) - dir: Louis Malle
  10. L'Enfant Sauvage (The Wild Child, 1969) - dir: Francois Truffaut
 

TOP 10 NEW WAVE FILMS BY ACTORS & PERFORMANCE
10 GREAT NEW WAVE PERFORMANCES (chronological)
  1. Emmanuelle Riva in Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959)
  2. Jean-Pierre Leaud in Les Quatre cents coups (The 400 Blows, 1959)
  3. Charles Aznavour in Tirez sur le pianiste (Shoot the Pianist, 1960)
  4. Jeanne Moreau in Jules et Jim (1961)
  5. Delphine Seyrig in Muriel (1963)
  6. Maurice Ronet in Le Feu Follet (The Fire Within, 1963)
  7. Brigitte Bardot in Le Mepris (Contempt, 1963)
  8. Anna Karina in La Religieuse (The Nun, 1966)
  9. Michel Bouquet in La Femme Infidele (The Unfaithful Wife, 1969) and Juste avant la nuit (Just Before Nightfall, 1971)
  10. Isabelle Adjani in L’Histoire of Adèle H. (The Story of Adele H, 1975)
10 BEST FRENCH NEW WAVE SEX SYMBOLS ON FILM
  1. Anna Karina in Bande a Part (Band of Outsiders, 1964)
  2. Jean-Paul Belmondo in À Bout de Soufflé (Breathless, 1960)
  3. Jean Seberg in À Bout de Soufflé (Breathless, 1960)
  4. Brigitte Bardot in Le Mepris (Contempt, 1963)
  5. Stephane Audran in Les Biches (The Does, 1968)
  6. Francois Dorleac and Catherine Deneueve in Les Demoiselles de Rochefort (The Young Girls of Rochefort, 1967)
  7. Jean-Pierre Leaud in Baiser volés (Stolen Kisses, 1968)
  8. Jeanne Moreau in Jules et Jim (Jules and Jim, 1961)
  9. Jean Louis Trintignant in Un Homme et une Femme (A Man and a Woman, 1966)
  10. Anouk Aimée in Lola (1961)
   

TOP 10 SIGNIFICANT & DEFINING NEW WAVE FILMS
10 DEFINING FILMS OF THE NEW WAVE (chronological)
  1. Et Dieu... Crea La Femme (And God Created Woman, 1956)
  2. Ascenseur Pour L’Echafaud (Lift to the Scaffold, 1957)
  3. Le Beau Serge (Beautiful Serge, 1958)
  4. Les Quatre Cents Coups (The 400 Blows, 1959)
  5. Hiroshima, Mon Amour (1959)
  6. À Bout de Souffle (Breathless, 1960)
  7. Jules et Jim (1962)
  8. Vivre Sa Vie (One Life to Live) (1962)
  9. Les Parapluies de Cherbourg (The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, 1964)
  10. Week End (1967)
10 FILMS THAT INSPIRED THE NEW WAVE (chronological)
  1. Sunrise (1927) - dir: F.W. Murnau
  2. The Testament of Dr. Mabuse (1933) - dir: Fritz Lang
  3. L’Atalante (1934) - dir: Jean Vigo
  4. Le Regle du Jeu (The Rules of the Game, 1939) - dir: Jean Renoir
  5. Le Corbeau (The Raven, 1943) - dir: Henri-Georges Clouzot
  6. Les Enfants Terribles (The Horrible Children, 1950) - dir: Jean-Pierre Melville
  7. Rear Window (1954) - dir: Alfred Hitchcock
  8. Viaggio in Italia (Journey to Italy, 1954) - dir: Roberto Rossellini
  9. Johnny Guitar (1954) - dir: Nicholas Ray
  10. Touch of Evil (1958) - dir: Orson Welles
 

TOP 10 NEW WAVE FILMS BY SOUND & VISUALS
10 BEST NEW WAVE SOUNDTRACKS
  1. Le Mepris (Contempt, 1963) composer: Georges Delerue
  2. Les Parapluies de Cherbourg (The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, 1964) composer: Michel Legrand
  3. Ascenseur pour l’echafaud (Lift to the Scaffold, 1958) composer: Miles Davis
  4. Le Boucher (The Butcher, 1970) composer: Pierre Jansen
  5. Pierrot Le Fou (1965) composer: Georges Delerue
  6. A Bout de souffle (Breathless, 1960) composer: Martial Solal
  7. Jules and Jim (1962) composer: Georges Delerue
  8. Les Demoiselles de Rochefort (The Young Girls of Rochefort, 1967) composer: Michel Legrand
  9. Les Biches (The Does, 1968) composer: Pierre Jansen
  10. La Nuit Américaine (Day for Night, 1973) composer: Georges Delerue
 

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