French film festival 2025
INFORMATION BELOW IS FROM 2024. NEW UPTDATES COMING SOON
Tickets
Ama Gloria: Special Screening Friday 12pm: $12 No Concessions
The Three Musketeers - D´ Artagnan: Opening Night $30/$25 Concession (includes a glass of sparling wine
and finger food)
All other sessions: $25 / $19 Concession
Festival Pass only $80/$110 Concession : 7 movies excluding opening night
Concessions apply to Alliance Française de Cairns & End Credits members. Membership card required.
***All tickets can be purchased online except the passes that are only available to be purchased in person at Event cinemas Cairns Central***
Friday 10 May
12pm
Ama Gloria
DRAMA / FRANCE / 2023 / 84 MINS / PG
Celebrated as one of the major discoveries of the Cannes Film Festival, writer/director Marie Amachoukeli’s remarkable ÀMA GLORIA is a vibrant drama that explores the precious bond between a six-year-old French girl and her Cape Verdean nanny, and what happens when it is unexpectedly placed in jeopardy as they spend one last summer together in her island community.
Paris, present day. Vivacious, personable young Cléo (extraordinary newcomer Louise Mauroy-Panzani) lives with her widowed father (Arnaud Rebotini), but has mostly been raised by her beloved Cape Verdean carer, Gloria (Ilça Moreno Zego), in whose comforting arms she finds refuge and emotional stability. So when Gloria’s mother passes away – a life-changing blow for both of them – Gloria must return to her homeland to care for her own children. To ease the anguish of the impending separation, Gloria invites Cléo to her island community to spend one last summer together… There, the young girl will discover an entirely different culture and a new family, and must learn to understand that the world does not revolve around her.
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Friday 10 May
8pm
the three musketeers - d´ artagnan
ACTION, ADVENTURE, HISTORICAL, THRILLER / FRANCE / 2023 / 121 MINS / M
Alexandre Dumas’s thrilling and beloved classic novel The Three Musketeers has spawned multiple adaptations since its publication in 1844, but none have approached the scope and spectacle of this wildly entertaining, blockbuster two-film production from director Martin Bourboulon, who assembles an all-star cast for the first French cinematic treatment in over 30 years. This 1st installment follows D’Artagnan on his journey from Gascony to Paris and was France’s biggest box office success of 2023.
Set in the early 17th century kingdom of France, the opening installment D’ARTAGNAN follows a spirited young swordsman, Charles D’Artagnan
(François Civil), on his journey from Gascony to Paris to join the King’s elite Musketeers of the Guard. France’s biggest box-office success
of 2023, Bourboulon’s magnificent production - lavishly produced with a budget of over €70 million - is both respectful of its source but
enriched with contemporary touches; the film is chock-full of humour, romance, palace intrigue and pulse-pounding action. THE THREE
MUSKETEERS - D’ARTAGNAN unquestionably delivers a smart and hugely-involving big-screen experience for all ages.
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Saturday 11 May
1:30pm
Abbe pierre - a century of devotion
BIOPIC, DRAMA, HISTORICAL / FRANCE / 2023 / 138 MINS / M
Featuring a revelatory performance from Benjamin Lavernhe (Delicious, C’est la vie!), writer/director Frédéric Tellier’s sweeping and deeply-affecting new historical epic charts the extraordinary life of the titular priest and humanitarian (1912-2007) who, throughout a tumultuous span of modern history, advocated for those most in need whilst frequently placing himself in peril and at risk of ostracisation from the church.Spanning 70 years of recent history, ABBÉ PIERRE is an uplifting and memorable drama and a major word-of mouth sensation and box office success in France in late 2023.
A major word-of-mouth sensation and box office success in France in late 2023, Tellier’s grand, big-budget production features a stirring
soundtrack by The National’s Bryce Dessner, but is truly elevated by the remarkable Lavernhe. Spanning 70 years of recent history, ABBÉ
PIERRE is an uplifting and memorable drama that – in capturing the feelings, doubts and contradictions of an inspirational man - speaks
eloquently to the concerns of our current era.
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Saturday 11 May
4:30pm
a difficult year
COMEDY, ROMANCE / FRANCE / 2023 / 120 MINS / M
The wildly entertaining new comedy from irrepressible filmmaking duo Éric Toledano and Olivier Nakache (The Intouchables, C'est la vie!), A DIFFICULT YEAR stars Pio Marmaï and Jonathan Cohen as two compulsive spenders who get much more than they bargained for when they try and scam their way out of trouble.Both in debt up to their necks, Albert (Marmai) and Bruno (Cohen) have turned to a community worker (Mathieu Amalric) to try and help get a grip on their lives. However at one of their group sessions, they stumble into an adjoining meeting room hosting a gathering of young social activists, led by a vivacious organiser (the fabulous Noémie Merlant).
Attracted more by the free beer and chips than the group's struggle against consumerism and protection of the environment Albert and Bruno join the movement without any particular conviction, but soon sense an opportunity... if they don't get arrested first. Expertly poking fun at their characters while simultaneously honouring them, A DIFFICULT YEAR delivers both laughs and pathos in spades, thanks to the directors' ongoing faith in humanity's desire to change.
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Saturday 11 May
8pm
all your faces
DRAMA / FRANCE / 2023 / 118 MINS / MA 15+
A powerhouse cast - Adèle Exarchopoulos and Gilles Lellouche - headlines this compelling drama about France’s Restorative Justice program, first introduced in Australia in 2001 and later in France in 2014. The program brings together crime victims and offenders in a controlled environment for open dialogue.The film follows two stories, in which six characters, three offenders and three victims, cautiously take part in this process. Their experiences veer between anger and hope, alliances and torn relationships, realisations, and regained trust. For some, there is even the possibility of restoration.
ALL YOUR FACES explores how the unspeakable can be subverted to guide characters on journeys of self-realisation and forgiveness in this
intelligent and emotional film.
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Sunday 12 May
1:30pm
a chance to win
COMEDY / FRANCE / 2023 / 97 MINS / M
In the picturesque South West of France, two villages have long been rivals. Particularly when it comes to rugby. Long-harboured resentments and pettiness find expression via scrums and tackles in this new comedy crafted by Philippe Guillard, renowned sports journalist, former professional rugby player and filmmaker.As their 100th match nears, the arrival of asylum seekers injects a new dynamic into village life. Where some villagers harbour suspicion, others see opportunity and the newcomers are enlisted to bolster chances of victory on the field.
A Chance to Win uses a compelling blend of humor and heart to showcase the power of sport to create community. Differences are
overcome, friendships are formed, vulnerabilities fade and tries are scored in this unpredictable and feel-good film.An inspiring tale of
unity that does a world of good.
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Sunday 12 May
4pm
take a chance on me
COMEDY / FRANCE / 2023 / 103 MINS / M
WATCH TRAILER HERE
Rarely have
there been two people so fundamentally different from each other as the down on her luck young woman Marie-Line and the older male judge
who rules against her when she is brought before his court.Yet this same judge sees something in Marie-Line that nobody else does, and
hires her to be his driver. The result is a poignant, fun-filled and ultimately life-changing road trip, filled with heated debate,
misadventures and personality clashes.
Beloved French pop singer Louane Emera is sensational as the downtrodden yet high spirited Marie-Line, while legendary stage and screen
veteran Michel Blanc inhabits his role as the loveably grumpy judge with conviction and humour. They're a gloriously mismatched odd couple,
whose journey together results in a heartwarming and delightful film about the most unlikely of friendships and the unexpected joys of
second chances.
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Sunday 12 May
8pm
the sitting duck
BIOPIC, DRAMA, THRILLER / FRANCE / 2022 / 121 MINS / M
WATCH TRAILER HERE
Academy Award nominee Isabelle Huppert is nothing short of electrifying in the role of real-life whistle-blower Maureen Kearney, a trade unionist who dared to challenge the powerful nuclear industry at an immense personal cost. Feared, admired and loathed for her considerable influence, Kearney's world takes a harrowing turn when she exposes the unsettling details of a clandestine deal between French and Chinese power companies. This revelation leads to a brutal assault that sets off a chain of events exposing the failures of the justice system and the pervasive corruption within government and corporate realms.
Since its debut at the Venice Film Festival, this rage-inducing political thriller crafted by writer/director Jean-Paul Salomé, has gripped
audiences with an unrelenting tension, unveiling the shocking truths of Kearney's plight. The Sitting Duck is intensely
compelling in the way it immerses audiences in the high-stakes world of political intrigue and personal peril.Brace yourself for a
fascinating and revealing real-life tale of courage and resilience that demands to be seen!
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Thanks to our generous sponsors that made the Cairns French Film Festival 2024 possible.
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