Hands up who else binge watches movies about the places they're heading before booking or going on a trip?
I've done this for... ever. I've always been a huge film fan, it's an escape, and when I was younger, before being able or allowed to book trips to where I wanted to go, I'd disappear into a binge of movies set in or about which ever city was taking my fancy at that moment in time.
Paris was always at the top of my travel bucket list, so I've seen all the movies (good & awful) & the following is a list of my favourites that I would recommend to any lover of Paris.
001 - M o u l i n R o u g e
Even for someone that isn't usually too big on musicals, this is one of my favourite movies, I will always go back & re-watch this one.
The movie, set within Montmartre, follows Christian a young English writer/poet who moved to Paris to join the bohemian movement who ends up falling head over heels in love with Satine, a cabaret performer & courtesan at the Moulin Rouge.
The whole movie just a feast for the eyes, every shot is just beautiful, the set design, the costumes, the make up, it's all just so rich with sumptuous colour. Baz Luhrmanns' Paris is viewed through the eyes of those belonging to the underworld of Paris, from the rooftops of the Moulin Rouge, it's dream-like with all the colours & twinkling lights, with the Eiffel Tower & Sacré-Coeur in the distance, through the clouds.
002 - F u n n y F a c e
003 - C h a r a d e
Audrey Hepburn really did get to be in some great movies all set on location, several of which are in Paris.
Funny Face & Charade just happen to be my favourites, but she also did Paris When It Sizzles - which I'm not so keen on, I like the premise of it, but it just seemed too cheesy for me. How To Steal A Million - with Peter O'Toole, which is a great crime/rom-com movie. And Sabrina, which I also love, but only a small part of it is shot in Paris.
In Funny Face Audrey plays Jo, a really shy, bookshop worker in New York, who is spotted by a high end fashion photographer, played by Fred Astaire, who believes she has what it takes to become a fashion model. And, despite her reluctance at first, she agrees to travel to Paris to pose for photographs of her in beautiful clothes in front of all the famous Parisian landmarks.
Put simply its a bubbly old hollywood musical that won't fail to put a smile on your face. Expect to see all the sights, accompanied with some beautiful 1950s fashion, singing, dancing, & romance.
In Charade, Audrey plays Regina Lampert who returns to Paris after a holiday in the Alps, to find her apartment bare & her husband murdered. Through a series of twists & turns, she, with the help of Cary Grants character finds out why her husband was murdered, and by whom, all while Regina herself avoiding being harmed or murdered by the same people.
It's a super watchable spy-thriller with a hint of rom-com, all shot on location in Paris.
004 - A m é l i e
You see snippets of her unusual childhood, which she spent mostly alone, developing a wild imagination, and learning to love the tiny pleasures in life such as sinking her hand into a sack of seeds or cracking the top of a creme brûlée.
All of the scenes outside of Amélies apartment are shot in Paris, even the café she works in, Café Des Deux Moulins, is a real place which you can visit in Montmartre. Paris through Amélies eyes is almost fairytale like & full of possibility & wonder.
005 - M i d n i g h t I n P a r i s
I think this is possibly one of my favourite movies ever made. It focuses on both present day Paris as well as 1920s Paris - which is one of my favourite moments in history, which is probably why I love it so much.
Owen Wilson plays a hollywood screenwriter, who dreams of being a novelist, called Gil Pender who is visiting Paris with his fiancé, played by Rachel McAdams, and her family.
While on the trip Gil is constantly put down for his romantic, idealistic and nostalgic views by his materialist, and just generally awful, fiancé, her family and her friends.
The one night, at midnight while walking back to his hotel, he is transported back to 1920s Paris & finds himself mingling with the great writers, artists & musicians of the time, all who love Paris as he does & he finds himself connecting with a few of the characters, and thus opening his eyes to the shortcomings in his relationship, and eventually helps him to decide to change his life from something that felt unfulfilling, to living his dream by staying in Paris & working on his novel.
While on the trip Gil is constantly put down for his romantic, idealistic and nostalgic views by his materialist, and just generally awful, fiancé, her family and her friends.
The one night, at midnight while walking back to his hotel, he is transported back to 1920s Paris & finds himself mingling with the great writers, artists & musicians of the time, all who love Paris as he does & he finds himself connecting with a few of the characters, and thus opening his eyes to the shortcomings in his relationship, and eventually helps him to decide to change his life from something that felt unfulfilling, to living his dream by staying in Paris & working on his novel.
It's basically an ode to Paris, it's nostalgic for the past lives the city has led and has a wonderful romantic view on the city. If you weren't already in love with the idea of Paris, this film surely will leave you infatuated with the city.
006 - T h e H u n c h b a c k O f N o t r e D a m e
Hunchback is about a deformed boy, Quasimodo whose mother is killed while attempting to claim sanctuary on the steps of Notre Dame, who is then begrudgingly taken in by Frollo the minister of justice of Paris, and all around horrible little man. Honestly, I hate him even more as an adult, he is creepy af with Esmeralda & throughly toxic to poor Quasimodo.
As an adult, and the bell ringer living, hidden away in the lofts of Notre Dame, the story is about Quasimodos fight to be accepted both by himself and the society.
If you were an fan of this as a child, and still are, I'd recommend looking up The Hunchback of Notre Dame 2, it's actually pretty damn good!
007 - T h e A r i s t o c a t s
I blame these two movies for sparking my love of Paris as a tiny wee girl. I re-watched both these movies before writing this post, and all the joy I got from them came flooding back to me.
I feel like everyone has seen these two classic Disney movies at some point in their lifetime. If not, where the hell have you been?! Get them watched immediately.
I feel like everyone has seen these two classic Disney movies at some point in their lifetime. If not, where the hell have you been?! Get them watched immediately.
Everyone should know these stories, but just incase you don't...
Hunchback is about a deformed boy, Quasimodo whose mother is killed while attempting to claim sanctuary on the steps of Notre Dame, who is then begrudgingly taken in by Frollo the minister of justice of Paris, and all around horrible little man. Honestly, I hate him even more as an adult, he is creepy af with Esmeralda & throughly toxic to poor Quasimodo.
As an adult, and the bell ringer living, hidden away in the lofts of Notre Dame, the story is about Quasimodos fight to be accepted both by himself and the society.
If you were an fan of this as a child, and still are, I'd recommend looking up The Hunchback of Notre Dame 2, it's actually pretty damn good!
The Aristocats is basically about a family of cats whose owner is an elderly, aristocratic, single woman living alone in Paris, who is planning on leaving her entire estate to her cats in her will, but when her dastardly butler overhears this conversation, he plans to kidnap the cats, so he, instead, can inherit everything from her.
After being kidnapped, Duchess & the kittens are helped by a number of characters to get back to Paris and their home.
It shows you both the upperclass side of Paris and the 'alley-cat' side of Paris. I loved rewatching this, if anything it just make me want to get lost in Paris & start a jazz band.
After being kidnapped, Duchess & the kittens are helped by a number of characters to get back to Paris and their home.
It shows you both the upperclass side of Paris and the 'alley-cat' side of Paris. I loved rewatching this, if anything it just make me want to get lost in Paris & start a jazz band.
If you have never seen this movie, at the very least just look up the alley cat Jazz band scene, which, lets face it, is a party we all want to go to.
008 - T h e R e d B a l l o o n
The Red Balloon is a french short film made in the 50s, which follows the adventures of a young boy, who befriends a red balloon. It was all filmed on the streets of the Ménilmontant neighbourhood in Paris.
At the start of the film he mearly notices a balloon tied to a lamppost which he unties and keeps for himself, but as it goes on, he realises the balloon has a mind of it's own and it begins to follow him wherever he goes.
The pair draw a lot of attention from other children, and eventually a gang of older boys attempt to steal and then destroy the balloon, it's then when a whole bunch of other balloons appear from all over the city and come to the boys aid, and then basically take him on a balloon ride over the city - AKA THE childhood dream of being swept up by holding too many balloons.
The pair draw a lot of attention from other children, and eventually a gang of older boys attempt to steal and then destroy the balloon, it's then when a whole bunch of other balloons appear from all over the city and come to the boys aid, and then basically take him on a balloon ride over the city - AKA THE childhood dream of being swept up by holding too many balloons.
It's a simple, yet beautiful film, that can be interpreted in many different ways. You can actually find the whole movie on youtube here.
There are so many movies about Paris and set in Paris, these just happen to be a few of my favourites. Hopefully there might be one or two on this list you haven't seen, and I'd love any recommendations of any I haven't mentioned and may not have seen!
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