To follow from my Rome-locations film list which I made last April, this is a list of 10 films that showcase the City of Light – Paris, a place for romance, charm, mystery, elegance and sophistication. As usual, this is a subjective, in no particular order, slightly “off the beaten path” films list.   

I. Amelie (2001)  

This romantic comedy, directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet (Delicatessen (1991)) and starring Audrey Tautou and Mathieu Kassovitz, could be described as the very definition of whimsical Paris. The film is set around Montmartre, a place that once nurtured writers and painters, and is about a shy waitress, Amélie Poulain, who is seemingly on the mission to better the lives of those around her. Set in Montmartre, the film features the Basilica du Sacre-Coeur, and Café des Deux Moulins (15 rue Lepic) where Amélie works. However, the film also displays such sights as the distinctive staircase leading to the Métro Lamarck-Caulaincourt, as well as the Pont des Arts.

II. Breathless (1961)

A “New Wave” film-critic-turned-director Jean-Luc Godard produced in 1960 his directional debut À Bout de Souffle or Breathless, starring Jean-Paul Belmondo and Jean Seberg as Michel Poiccard and Patricia Franchini respectively, and what a debut it turned out to be! Breaking from previous confined film traditions, Breathless is a thriller and a love story in one package, showcasing such famous Parisian landmarks as Avenue des Champs-Élysées, l’Arc de Triomphe, and the Notre-Dame de Paris, while action also takes place around Avenues Mac-Mahon and George V (George V Métro station) and the Boulevard Saint-Germain. The final tense scenes take place not far from the Boulevard du Montparnasse – Rue Campagne Première. 

III. Midnight in Paris (2011)

This film by Woody Allen is all about the literary Golden Age of Paris as it mingles reality and fantasy, capturing the true magic of the city. Paris’s fancy hotels, cafes and gardens “populate” the imagination of this film. The posh Hotel Le Bristol (112 rue du Faubourg St Honoré), the chic restaurants Le Grande Véfour (17 rue du Beaujolais) and Maxim’s (3 rue Royale), and the gardens of Versailles are all part of the setting of the plot where an American screenwriter Gil and his fiancee Inez roam Paris. The characters also tour the Musée Rodin, while the steps of St Etienne du Mont provide the transition to the world of fantasy. Other settings include quai de Bourbon, quai des Orfèvres, the Musée de l’Orangerie, Place de la Concorde, Parc Jean XXIII on the Ile de la Cite, Maison Deyrolle (46 rue du Bac), 17 Place Dauphine, the bookshop Shakespeare and Co. (37 rue de la Bucherie), and the Pont Alexander III.

IV. Inception (2010)

When you are thinking about Paris-based films, you would not necessarily think about Nolan’s Inception, but there is something about its Paris location which is memorable. Very crudely put, this film is about one of the missions of a thief Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio), who has the ability to enter peoples’ dreams and steal their secrets. When Dom explains to their newly-hired member Ariadne (Elliot Page) the possibilities of dream-meddling, they sit at the Debussy Cafe, which is Da Stuzzi Patisserie at 6 rue Cesar Franck (corner of rue Bouchut). Later, the two walk along rue Bouchut and Ariadne “folds up” rue Cesar Franck.  The duo then approach Avenue du President Kennedy, and Ariadne constructs a footbridge over it. They continue walking on the Pont Bir Hakeim.

V. The Tenant (1976)

This maniacally-claustrophobic thriller by Polanski is based on the 1964 novel Le locataire chimérique by Roland Topor as it tells of a quiet man Trelkowski (Roman Polanski) who, after moving into his new apartment, starts to experience paranoia. Among other locations, the film features the beautiful exterior of the Abbesses Metro station, Place des Abbesses, and Port Debilly, overlooking the Tour Eiffel. The story also takes place near the Bassin Octagonal, Jardin des Tuileries (the place to float miniature boats), where Trelkowski gets angry with a boy.  Other settings include rue du Faubourg Saint-Martin (overlooking l’Arc de Triomphe), Passage de l’Industrie and rue Joseph de Maistre. 

VI. Three Colours: Blue (1993)

This is the first film from Krzysztof Kieślowski’s trilogy – other two films include Three Colours: White (1994) and Three Colours: Red (1994). Three Colours: Blue takes place in Paris, and Juliette Binoche plays Julie, a wife of a famous composer, who struggles to reconcile with the deaths of her husband and daughter. Unlike other movies on this list, Paris is not accentuated here, but the shooting did take place at the Palais de Justice, Place Monge, Cite du Midi, Rue de l’Alboni, and Rue Mouffetard. Perhaps, it is the great cinematography of the film, as well as its simple plot, which distinguishes itself above all other elements here, and there is something poetic about the idea of trying to find liberation from one’s past in Paris. 

VII. Le Samouraï (1967) 

In this influential film by Jean-Pierre Melville, Alain Delon is in the role of Jef Costello, a professional hitman who feels himself in a tight corner after being witnessed during one of his hits. Such Parisian landmarks as Pont Alexandre III, Quai des Orfèvres, Avenue des Champs-Élysées, George V Metro station, and church Saint-Jean-Baptiste-de-Belleville (the Jourdain Metro station), as well as many other sights, are referenced in the film. Despite its age, Le Samourai still feels relatively unique and sublime, with Alain Delon being perfectly cast. 

VIII. Cleo from 5 to 7 (1961)

Agnes Varda conveniently opens her film with a tarot-reading. In this film story, a young woman named Cleo (Corinne Marchand) is given just over one hour for her diagnosis to be known – whether she is ill with a terminal cancer or not. In these two hours, a somewhat spoiled pop-singer Cleo goes on with her arrangements for the day, but the impending diagnosis means she has to revise her attitudes towards issues and people around her. Together with Cleo, we are taken on the ride through the thrill and buzz of Parisian streets. There are shots of meetings at Parc Montsouris, taxi rides through rue du Pont-Neuf and quai de Conti, while the film also features the place d’Italie, rue de Vaugirard, Boulevard Raspail, place Denfert-Rochereau and rue Huyghens, among other locations.

IX. The Dreamers (2004)

This is a wilder card on my list. The Dreamers is a Bernardo Bertolucci (Last Tango in Paris (1972)) film, starring Eva Green, Michael Pitt and Louis Garrel as students who experience a “sexual awakening” in Paris amidst the ’68 Paris student riots. Notable Paris sights in this film include Pont d’Iéna, Palais de Chaillot, Rue Beethoven, Rue Malebranche, Port de la Bourdonnais, Avenue de Messine, and Church of the Val-de-Grâce. More significantly, though, the film includes the running through the Louvre. Green, Pitt and Garrel’s characters re-enact a scene from Godard’s Bande a part (1964), where the other trio does the same, wanting to break the world record. Incidentally, The Dreamers also pays an indirect tribute to Godard’s À Bout de Souffle.

X. The Apartment (1996)

A layered plot and shifting timelines characterise this film by French director/architect Gilles Mimouni. Starring Vincent Cassel, Romane Bohringer and Monica Bellucci, it is about a man Max who finds his heart aflame again after sighting his ex-girlfriend Lisa in Paris. Maybe this film is too “architecturally-complicated” for its own good, but, nonetheless, it points to some charming Parisian corners, including Place Vendôme (the opening sequence), Cimetière du Père Lachaise, rue de Sèvres, and the Boulevard Saint-Germain. More significantly though, the very picturesque Place de Furstenberg provides a romantic encounter point for two lovers – Max and Lisa.