{"id":118931,"date":"2017-12-14T01:34:57","date_gmt":"2017-12-14T06:34:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/french-movies-for-kids\/"},"modified":"2025-02-17T07:35:26","modified_gmt":"2025-02-17T12:35:26","slug":"french-movies-for-kids","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/french\/french-movies-for-kids\/","title":{"rendered":"6 Popular French Movies for Kids and Adults Alike"},"content":{"rendered":"

Watching films\u2014whether they\u2019re made for kids or adults\u2014can be a great way to learn French<\/a> and expose yourself to the culture.\u00a0In fact, this simple and fun activity will help you build your vocabulary and practice your listening skills at the same time.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve created the following guide to some of my personal favorite French children\u2019s films.<\/p>\n

[fluentu-toc]<\/p>\n

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1. “Kirikou et la Sorci\u00e8re”<\/em> <\/a><\/h2>\n

English Title:<\/strong> “Kirikou and the Sorceress”<\/p>\n

\"french<\/a><\/p>\n

“Kirikou et la Sorci\u00e8re”<\/em> is a very popular animated French kids’ film that was released in 1998.<\/p>\n

Directed by Michel Ocelot and Raymond Burlet, the movie takes place in an African village that’s been cursed by a sorceress named Karaba.<\/p>\n

The curse\u00a0has caused the village men to mysteriously disappear and the crops to dry up.<\/p>\n

Brave little Kirikou is born into the village and as a young baby decides to travel to the Forbidden Mountain to visit the wise man who lives there and seek help in lifting the curse.<\/p>\n

This is an excellent choice for anyone wanting to learn some unique vocabulary centered around magic and African culture. It’s also a must-see if you want to become acquainted with the most popular French children’s films.<\/p>\n

2. “Une vie de chat”<\/em><\/a><\/h2>\n

English Title:<\/strong> “A Cat in Paris”<\/p>\n

\"french<\/a><\/p>\n

“Une vie de chat”<\/em> is a fantastic French film that was released in 2010 and is directed by Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Felicioli.<\/p>\n

The story is an animated adventure and crime film that centers around three very different and interesting main characters.<\/p>\n

The first is Zo\u00e9, a little Parisian girl who no longer speaks due to the trauma of her father’s recent murder.<\/p>\n

The second principal character is Nico, a good-natured burglar who steals jewels and other priceless artifacts for a living.<\/p>\n

Lastly, the character who glues them together is none other than a cat who leads a double life\u2014spending his days as a house cat with Zo\u00e9 and sneaking out at night to accompany Nico on raids.<\/p>\n

The two worlds become interwoven in more than one unexpected way as Zo\u00e9 and Nico each run into trouble with gangster Victor Costa and his gang who are responsible for killing Zo\u00e9’s father.<\/p>\n

Beautiful in many ways, this story is a favorite in France and will take you on a wild, realistic journey through the streets of Paris.<\/p>\n

3. “Loup”<\/em> <\/a><\/h2>\n

English Title:<\/strong> “Wolf”<\/p>\n

\"french<\/a><\/p>\n

Directed by Nicolas Vanier and released in 2009\u2014this breathtaking, live-action film takes place in the cold, beautiful Siberian mountains.<\/p>\n

The main character, Sergue\u00ef is a 16-year-old living in a clan in which his father is chief.<\/p>\n

The clan has always fought with the predatory wolves who live in the area and who are a threat to their livestock and safety, yet Sergue\u00ef learns to connect with and love them.<\/p>\n

The story follows his relationship with these extraordinary animals and his fight to keep them safe, while at the same time remaining loyal to his clan and to his father.<\/p>\n

Great for practicing your French, you’ll also see some beautiful landscapes in this film and discover a unique and moving story.<\/p>\n

4. “Les Malheurs de Sophie”<\/em> <\/a><\/h2>\n

English Title:<\/strong> “Sophie’s Misfortunes”<\/p>\n

\"french<\/a><\/p>\n

A modern, live-action film, “Les Malheurs de Sophie”<\/em> is directed by Christophe Honor\u00e9 and was released in 2016.<\/p>\n

The movie is based on stories written by Sophie Feodorovna Rostopchine\u2014the Countess of S\u00e9gur\u2014in the late 19th century.<\/p>\n

The film tells the sweet story of young Sophie who’s very mischievous and disobedient, always getting into trouble with her cousin, Paul.<\/p>\n

She eventually ends up living with the strict and horrible Madame Fichini\u00a0and must learn to survive with the help of her two friends and their mother, Madame de Fleurville.<\/p>\n

If you like the film, you could check out the book series as well. The first story<\/a> is available online for free thanks to the Canop\u00e9 Acad\u00e9mie de Strasbourg.<\/p>\n

5. “Mune, le gardien de la lune”<\/em> <\/a><\/h2>\n

English Title:<\/strong> “Mune, the Guardian of the Moon”<\/p>\n

\"french<\/a><\/p>\n

This unique, animated film was released in 2015 and is directed by Beno\u00eet Philippon and Alexandre Heboyan.<\/p>\n

The movie takes place in a fantastic world full of strange and exciting creatures.<\/p>\n

Among them is Mune, a small, fawn-like creature who was never expected to replace the guardian of the moon but is surprisingly chosen during the guardian ceremony.<\/p>\n

He’ll have to protect the dream world by pulling the moon along each night in conjunction with the strong and fierce Sohone\u2014the guardian of the sun who protects the day world.<\/p>\n

With the help of their friend Cire, this unlikely trio will have to face many trials and combat evil forces attempting to take over their worlds.<\/p>\n

6. “La Guerre des boutons”<\/em> <\/a><\/h2>\n

English Title:<\/strong> “War of the Buttons”<\/p>\n

\"french<\/a><\/p>\n

This live-action film released in 2011 and directed by Yann Samuell, takes place in a village in the south of France and follows the story of a band of young boys at war with the neighboring village boys.<\/p>\n

Between accepting a little girl into their gang, avoiding their parents’ ire from the dirty and worn state of their clothing and trying to win the war, the children have loads of adventures and learn many important lessons.<\/p>\n

The movie is a double treat with plenty of lighthearted scenes and the broaching of serious subjects\u2014such as gender, poverty and the relationship between parents and children.<\/p>\n

As a plus, viewers will be given a glimpse into the French countryside, which is full of the most gorgeous of landscapes.<\/p>\n

Tips for Watching French Children’s Films<\/h2>\n

Choosing Subtitles or Not<\/h3>\n

Once you pick your movie, you’ll need to carefully consider whether or not you want to use subtitles<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

They can be great for improving your reading level if you set them to French, but if you set them in English, you’ll want to pay particular attention to the dialogue.<\/p>\n

For an example of learning with French subtitles, the FluentU French YouTube channel<\/a> has a variety of video lessons that break down scenes from popular movies, such as “Ratatouille” and “Shrek”:<\/p>\n

<\/lite-youtube><\/p>\n

<\/lite-youtube><\/p>\n

If you like learning with subtitled videos, you might also like the FluentU<\/a> program.

FluentU<\/strong> takes authentic videos\u2014like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks\u2014and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.<\/p>\r\n

<\/p> \r\n

You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app<\/a> or Android app.<\/a><\/p>\r\n

P.S. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)<\/a><\/i>\r\n<\/p>\r\n

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