Six films to watch this July to improve your French

As France braces for a long hot summer, one of the best ways to escape the heat is in the shade, in front of your TV.

As well as a coping strategy for record-breaking temperatures, consuming French content is among the best ways to improve your French language skills. 

Watching TV and films works almost all parts of your language toolbox; accent and pronunciation; vocabulary expansion, listening and understanding. 

The exercise does not actively allow you to practise speaking, but you are sure to pick up a couple of phrases to try out from character dialogue.

An important part of language learning that is often missed in the classroom is cultural context, however in films and TV shows this is made clear, helping you adapt your usage to match that of the film.

If you are planning to go to the cinema (where you can benefit from aircon), look for showings with subtitles to help you fully follow the film. 

When watching at home, audio and subtitles in French from the beginning is usually the best way to go, as it will help with full immersion. 

Below are six films to watch this July.

Le bus, les bleus en grève

World Cup fever is currently taking everyone by storm, and once again France is among the favourites to lift the cup in 2026. 

Despite recent and historic successes, the country has not always succeeded on the world stage.

Le bus, les bleus en grève is a documentary tracking the controversy surrounding the 2010 French football team.

The group famously went on strike by missing a training session in South Africa during the tournament in support of teammate Nicolas Anelka, following a clash with manager Raymond Domenech.

It is considered the biggest controversy the French football team has ever seen, and shows just how quickly harmony can collapse.

The documentary is available to watch on Netflix. 

La Bataille de Gaulle

Only a month separated the release of the first and second instalments of La Bataille de Gaulle, meaning you can watch them back to back in the cinema, should you so desire.

Antonin Baudry’s biographical films of Charles de Gaulle are titled L’Age de fer and J’écris ton nom respectively, and are based on the work published by historian Julian T Jackson, detailing key moments of the famed French president’s life during World War Two.

The first film focuses on the period from 1940-1942 and the second instalment on 1942-1944. 

Both films are available to watch in cinemas now. 

Le Roi Soleil 

2025 comedy thriller Le Roi Soleil (The Sun King) has nothing to do with Louis XIV despite what the name may suggest. 

When a newly-crowned lottery winner dies in a tabac immediately after discovering his luck, the winnings are left without anyone to claim. 

What follows is a messy fallout as the fellow customers try to decide how to cover up the death, split the winnings, and fool the authorities over what truly happened.

Le Roi Soleil is available to watch on Canal+. 

L’été 36

The Côte d’Azur is the perfect setting for a holiday, so why not also a summer thriller? 

Set in Nice in 1936, an idyllic trip takes a turn for the worse when four women find themselves embroiled in a murder case at a prestigious hotel in the heart of the city.

As it turns out, luxury is not all it is cracked up to be when tensions mount and fingers are pointed.  

In addition to the film’s plot, visitors and residents of Nice will also find it interesting to see how the city looked almost a century ago, and how holiday patterns along the Riviera have changed.

L’été 36 is available to watch on Netflix. 

L'été meurtrier 

Keeping with the summer theme, L’été meurtrier is a 1983 psychological thriller masterpiece starring Isabelle Adjani and set against the backdrop of a heatwave in a remote southern village. 

Elaine, a young woman who moves into town with her family, strikes up a relationship with a gentle local mechanic.

However, all is not what it seems: underneath her erratic behaviour lies a plan for a brutal revenge for a crime committed against her mother decades ago.

The script is based on a famous novel by Sébastien Japrisot and the film relies heavily on internal monologues from different characters. 

This makes it a good film for learners, as it allows you to focus on one narration at a time rather than jumping rapidly between dialogue. 

It is available to watch on Canal+ and Amazon Prime.

Les Parfait(s): Arnaques en famille 

The story of this comedy centres on the Toussaint family, for whom scamming is a generational art and family business. 

However, after one of their schemes goes wrong they are forced to flee France for their safety.

To do so, they decide to steal the identity of a boring and law-abiding French family, suitably named the Parfaits ("The Perfects"). 

Posing as the Parfaits, they take refuge in a quiet town in Scotland, where they stumble across the biggest heist opportunity of their lives.

Anglophone film and theatre buffs will recognise Scotsman Alan Cumming in the cast, performing in French for the role.

More lighthearted than the other entries on this list, the film is perfect for those looking to unwind and is out in cinemas across France now.