The First Day of the Rest of Your Life(2008)

A Happy Event(fr)

She drove me into a corner, then forced me to go beyond my limits. She made me confront the absolute: love, sacrifice, tenderness, abandonment. She dislocated me, transformed me. Why didn't anyone warn me? Why doesn't anyone ever talk about this?" Un heureux événement, or an intimate view of motherhood, sincere and with no taboos.

A Taste of Ink(fr)

Vincent, still of tender age, has already tattooed most of his body and hoarsened his voice with his post-hardcore band – his way of venting his frustrations and desires. Ever since his mother died, he shares his time between Porte de Clignancourt and Bastille, between a piercer job he is unhappy with and his fishmonger father, Hervé, who is trying to start a new life with a younger woman named Julia. Vincent is initially appalled by the woman, with whom his father has ‘betrayed’ his mother, but the more they get to know each other, the more he becomes intrigued by the beautiful and empathetic woman. Unlike his father, she shows interest in him, even attending one of his gigs. What starts out as a potential way of reconciling with his father soon implodes.

David et Madame Hansen(fr)

David is an occupational therapist who has recently arrived at a clinic for wealthy patients. One morning, he is entrusted with Madame Hansen-Bergmann, a wealthy woman suffering from transient amnesia and post-traumatic stress , with the mission of taking her to the nearby village to buy a new pair of shoes. Against his will, he embarks with her on a breathtaking chase during which he discovers the past life of his patient and the origins of the illness from which she suffers.

Rumba(fr)

Teachers in a rural school, happy couple Fiona and Dom have a common passion: Latin Dancing. One night, after a glorious dance competition, they have a car accident and see their lives turn upside down. Rumba or how optimism and humour can overcome fatality!

Father of My Children(fr)

Grégoire Canvel has everything a man could want. A wife he loves, three delightful children and a stimulating job. He's a film producer. Discovering talented filmmakers and developing films that fit his conception of the cinema-free and true to life-is precisely his reason for living. Yet his prestigious production company, Moon Films, is on its last legs. Too many productions, too many risks, too many debts. Storm clouds are gathering. But Grégoire ploughs on at all costs. Where will his blind obstinacy lead him?

Angels in Fast Motion(da)

The unflinching tale of Maria, Allan and Steso, who are struggling for survival. Maria is a pusher frau, wandering restlessly among addicts, abusers and bikers in a relentless search for love. Allan has just returned from an ill-fated trip across the Pacific and must reclaim his life and stay clean, but ghosts from his past return to haunt him. Steso, the intellectual, god-forsaken and prophetic cynic, does his utmost to unite the two polar opposites that give meaning to his life: his girl and drugs. All three try desperately to make some sense of the madness, but how do you find meaning in the chaos that is life? And how do you find love if you can't recognize it?

The Merry Widow(fr)

Anne-Marie lives an easy life with Gilbert, a rich plastic surgeon: a beautiful house, a doggy, a cleaning lady, expensive furniture, the lot. Not so easy in fact when she thinks twice. She does not get on with her husband any longer. She gets on his nerves and he does not attract her any longer. She feels good only when she jogs on the beach and ... when she is the arms of her lover, Leo. One day, Gilbert gets killed in a car accident. Good news, since she will be able to live with Leo. The trouble is her well-meaning family settle at her villa with a view to supporting the "poor widow" morally. Anne-Marie just cannot admit she is not distressed at all, especially to her son Christophe. She is now even more of a prisoner than when Gilbert was alive...

The Man of My Life(fr)

A man vacationing in the country with his wife and children finds ideas he has of himself unexpectedly challenged.

The Straight Line(fr)

Leila is released from prison after five years of confinement. She will meet Yannick, a young athlete who became blind after an accident. This last practice race despite his disability, but to run it must be connected by a wire to guide a person called. It offers Leila to be his guide. Through this project, they will learn to rebuild.

...and again that Lucy!(cs)

A second part of a funny adventures of six years old Lucie and her two magic dolls.

The Children of the Marshland(fr)

The film is set in Marais, a quiet region along the banks of Loire river in 1918. Riton is afflicted with a bad-tempered wife and three unruly children. Garris lives alone with his recollections of World War I trenches. Their daily life consists of seasonal work and visits from their two pals: Tane, the local train conductor and Amédée, a dreamer and voracious reader of classics.

The French Revolution(fr)

A history of the French Revolution beginning from the decision of the king to convene the Etats-Generaux in 1789 in order to deal with France's debt problem. Part one spans the event until August 10, 1792 (when the King Louis XVI lost all authority and was imprisoned). Part two carries the story through the end of the terror in 1794.

Never-Ending Man: Hayao Miyazaki(ja)

A look at legendary Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki following his retirement in 2013.

The Nun(fr)

Suzanne Simonin describes her life of suffering in letters. As a young woman she is sent to a convent against her will. Since her parents cannot afford the dowry required for a marriage befitting her rank they decide she must instead become a nun. Although a kind and understanding Mother Superior helps her to learn the convent’s daily routine, Suzanne’s desire for freedom remains unabated. When the Mother Superior dies, Suzanne finds herself faced with reprisals, humiliation and harassment at the hands of the new Abbess and the other Sisters. For many years, Suzanne is subjected to bigotry and religious fanaticism. (Berlinale.de)

The Discreet(fr)

There is an author who has been dumped by his girlfriend and has no inspiration for a next novel. In an attempt to find a solution to both crises, he, along with his publisher friend, decides to seduce a young woman with the singular purpose of keeping a diary of the seduction and then dump her before publishing the book about it. Unfortunately he falls in love with her.

21 Nights with Pattie(fr)

During the height of summer, Caroline, a forty-year-old Parisian and mother, arrives in a small village in the south of France. She must hastily organize the funeral of her mother, a flighty lawyer, whom she barely used to see. Caroline is welcomed by Pattie, who likes to talk about her love affairs with the local men to anyone who'll listen. Then, while the whole valley gets ready for the traditional mid-summer dance, Caroline's mother's corpse mysteriously disappears...

The Tiger Brigades(fr)

The film, set in 1912, is about the exploits of France's first motorized police brigade.

Marseille(fr)

Faced with the insistence of his brother Joseph, whom he has not seen for 25 years, Paolo resolves to give up his calm and harmonious life in Canada, to return to Marseilles at the bedside of his rugged father. He left, therefore, with his son under his arm, determined not to linger in that city which he had fled years before, after a tragedy. He does not imagine that the affection of his newfound family, his love affair with a young woman and the joyful and simple solidarity of the Marseillais will reconcile him with this city he would never have wanted to leave...Marseillle.

I Do(fr)

Life is easy for 43-year-old Luis, a happy single guy, fulfilled in his job of star nose with a perfume creation company, cosseted by his mother and five sisters. It could have lasted for a whole life, but fed up with mollycoddling and helping him, his mother and sisters decide it's time he got married, and the sooner the better!

Playing Dead(fr)

Jean, a forty-year-old struggling, out-of-work actor has hit rock bottom. Although open to any kind of work, he can't get a break. At the unemployment office, his counselor has a rather odd proposal: he can get a job helping the police reconstruct crime scenes, by standing in for the dead victim. Jean's obsession for detail impresses the detectives, allowing him to take a leading role in a sensitive investigation in Megève ski resort, during low season, after a series of murders

My Life Partner(ml)

My Life Partner deals with the deep and intricate emotional relationship between two men. The movie narrates the story of two friends-turned-lovers, Richard and Kiran, who were both born and brought up in different cultural backgrounds. Issues crop up when they plan to add a baby to their lives, reinforcing their mutual bond as the Indian law does not allow a man to adopt a child on his own. To find a way around this, Richard, who is a bisexual, marries an orphan, Pavithra. Their life goes topsy-turvy, when Pavithra discovers Richard and Kiran's relationship.

The Wedding Banquet(zh)

A Taiwanese-American man is happily settled in New York with his American boyfriend. He plans a marriage of convenience to a Chinese woman in order to keep his parents off his back and to get the woman a green card. Chaos follows when his parents arrive in New York for the wedding.

Le Divorce(en)

While visiting her sister in Paris, a young woman finds romance and learns her brother-in-law is a philanderer.

Man on Fire(en)

Jaded ex-CIA operative John Creasy reluctantly accepts a job as the bodyguard for a 10-year-old girl in Mexico City. They clash at first, but eventually bond, and when she's kidnapped he's consumed by fury and will stop at nothing to save her life.

Vermilion and Green(ja)

A businessman’s daughter falls in love with one of her father’s employees.

Space Raiders(en)

Wendy and Lucy(en)

A near-penniless drifter's journey to Alaska in search of work is interrupted when she loses her dog while attempting to shoplift food for it.

I Love You Phillip Morris(en)

Steven Russell leads a seemingly average life – an organ player in the local church, happily married to Debbie, and a member of the local police force. That is until he has a severe car accident that leads him to the ultimate epiphany: he’s gay and he’s going to live life to the fullest – even if he has to break the law to do it. Taking on an extravagant lifestyle, Steven turns to cons and fraud to make ends meet and is eventually sent to the State Penitentiary where he meets the love of his life, a sensitive, soft-spoken man named Phillip Morris. His devotion to freeing Phillip from jail and building the perfect life together prompts him to attempt (and often succeed at) one impossible con after another.

Reservation Road(en)

Two fathers' lives intersect when one of them is involved in a terrible and sudden hit-and-run car accident that leaves the other's son dead. In response, the two men react in unexpected ways as a reckoning looms in the near future.

Harry and the Hendersons(en)

Returning from a hunting trip in the forest, the Henderson family's car hits an animal in the road. At first they fear it was a man, but when they examine the "body" they find it's a "bigfoot". They think it's dead so they decide to take it home (there could be some money in this). As you guessed, it isn't dead. Far from being the ferocious monster they fear "Harry" to be, he's a friendly giant.

Friends with Money(en)

As she reaches her mid-thirties and quits her lucrative job, singleton Olivia finds herself unsure about her future and her relationships with her successful and wealthy friends. She begins to envy the security of her richer friends and, although their lives may seem easier, Olivia's friends have their problems too: screenwriters Christine and Patrick are unable to collaborate on their latest project, Jane and Aaron have lost the romance in their relationship, and Franny and Matt have difficulties handling the demands of parenthood.

The Banger Sisters(en)

In the late '60s, the self-proclaimed belles of the rock 'n' roll ball, rocked the worlds of every music legend whose pants they could take off -- and they have the pictures to prove it. But it's been more than two decades since the Banger Sisters earned their nickname -- or even laid eyes on each other. Their reunion is the collision of two women's worlds; one who's living in the past, and one who's hiding from it. Together they learn to live in the moment.

Jaguar Man(pt)

Two moments in the life of Pedro. First in 1997, he lives with his family in Rio de Janeiro and works at Gás do Brasil, a company that is undergoing a tough restructuring process, with layoffs and early retirements. Soon, privatization will come. In the second moment, two years later, Pedro lives retired in his hometown Barbosa, in the company of his childhood memories, his dog and his girlfriend. By interweaving these two moments in time, we put ourselves in Pedro's skin and experience his fears and delights.

Knitting(pt)

Five brothers end up being raised by their older brother after their mother's death. One day, as adults, they receive the news that a comatose man in an ICU could be their father. In the hospital's waiting room, the brothers immerse themselves in their conflicts and memories, and through the knitting learned in childhood.

Die Anruferin(de)

A lonely woman's prank phone call leads to an unexpected friendship with a grieving widow.

Youth Without Youth(en)

Professor of language and philosophy Dominic Matei is struck by lightning and ages backwards from 70 to 40 in a week, attracting the world and the Nazis. While on the run, the professor meets a young woman who has her own experience with a lightning storm. Not only does Dominic find love again, but her new abilities hold the key to his research.

Hopeakihlajaiset(fi)

Docent Einar Koskimaa is applying for a professorship in odontology, or dentistry. He is not selected for the position because his wayward daughter Lotta Koskimaa has caused a scandal at the school dance. Frustrated and estranged from his wife, Einar falls in love with candidate Raili Tervola, who is also liked by the docent's student son Viljo Koskimaa.

Discordia(es)

In Her Shoes(en)

Irresponsible party girl Maggie is kicked out of her father's and stepmother's home—where she lives for free—and is taken in by her hard-working sister, Philadelphia lawyer Rose. After Maggie's disruptive ways ruin her sister's love life, Rose turns her out as well. But when their grandmother, who they never knew existed, comes into their lives, the sisters face some complicated truths about themselves and their family.

The Gamblers(de)

General arrives in Baden-Baden with his stepdaughter Polina and his mother, seeking social standing and respite. Secretly, they chase casino fortunes alongside a French businessman and beauty. Alexej, Polina’s tutor, struggles with his own gambling past while falling for her. When the wealthy “Babushka” dies, the family’s financial woes vanish, freeing Alexej to court Polina. Yet he loses everything in a sudden winning streak that upends loyalties and reveals the world’s true stakes: love, money, and chance.