French Syndicate of Cinema Critics

The French Syndicate of Cinema Critics (French: Syndicat français de la critique de cinéma et des films de télévision) has, each year since 1946, awarded a prize ("Prix de la critique", English: "Critics Prize"), the Prix Méliès, to the best French film of the preceding year. More awards have been added over time: the Prix Léon Moussinac for the best foreign film, added in 1967; the Prix Novaïs-Texeira for the best short film, added in 1999; prizes for the best first French and best first foreign films, added in 2001 and 2014, respectively; etc.

Each year, the Syndicate also organizes the Critics' Week, which is the oldest parallel competitive section of the Cannes Film Festival.

Best French Film

1940s

1946: La Bataille du rail by René Clément
1947: Le Silence est d'or by René Clair
1948: Paris 1900 by Nicole Védrès
1949: Manon by Henri-Georges Clouzot

1950s

1950: Rendezvous in July (Rendez-vous de juillet) by Jacques Becker
1951: Diary of a Country Priest (Journal d'un curé de campagne) by Robert Bresson
1952: Les Belles de nuit by René Clair
1953: The Wages of Fear (Le salaire de la peur) by Henri-Georges Clouzot
1954: The Red and the Black (Le rouge et le noir) by Claude Autant-Lara
1955: Rififi by Jules Dassin
1956: The Silent World (Le monde du silence) by Jacques-Yves Cousteau and Les Grandes Manœuvres by René Clair
1957: La Traversée de Paris by Claude Autant-Lara and A Man Escaped by Robert Bresson
1958: Mon Oncle by Jacques Tati
1959: Hiroshima mon amour by Alain Resnais and The 400 Blows by François Truffaut

1960s

1960: Le Trou by Jacques Becker and A bout de souffle by Jean-Luc Godard
1961: Last Year at Marienbad by Alain Resnais
1962: Cléo from 5 to 7 (Cléo de 5 à 7) by Agnès Varda
1963: The Trial by Orson Welles
1964: The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (Les parapluies de Cherbourg) by Jacques Demy
1965: The Shameless Old Lady (La vieille dame indigne) by René Allio
1966: The War Is Over (La guerre est finie) by Alain Resnais and Au hasard Balthazar by Robert Bresson
1967: Belle de Jour by Luis Buñuel and Mouchette by Robert Bresson
1968: Stolen Kisses (Baisers volés) by François Truffaut
1969: My Night at Maud's (Ma nuit chez Maud) by Éric Rohmer

1970s

1970: The Wild Child (L'enfant sauvage) by François Truffaut
1971: Claire's Knee (Le genou de Claire) by Éric Rohmer
1972: The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (Le charme discret de la bourgeoisie) by Luis Buñuel
1973: Day for Night (La nuit américaine) by François Truffaut
1974: Lacombe Lucien by Louis Malle
1975: Let Joy Reign Supreme (Que la fête commence) by Bertrand Tavernier
1976: The Story of Adele H. (L'histoire de Adèle H.) by François Truffaut
1977: Providence by Alain Resnais
1978: Le dossier 51 by Michel Deville
1979: Perceval le Gallois by Éric Rohmer

1980s

1980: My American Uncle (Mon oncle d'Amérique) by Alain Resnais
1981: Coup de Torchon by Bertrand Tavernier and Garde à Vue by Claude Miller
1982: A Room in Town (Une chambre en ville) by Jacques Demy
1983: Pauline at the Beach (Pauline à la plage) by Éric Rohmer
1984: Full Moon in Paris (Les nuits de la pleine lune) by Éric Rohmer
1985: Death in a French Garden (Péril en la demeure) à by Michel Deville and Sans toit ni loi by Agnès Varda
1986: Thérèse by Alain Cavalier
1987: Goodbye, Children (Au revoir les enfants) by Louis Malle
1988: The Little Thief (La petite voleuse) by Claude Miller
1989: Mr. Hire (Monsieur Hire) by Patrice Leconte

1990s

1990: La Discrète by Christian Vincent
1991: The Beautiful Troublemake (La belle noiseuse) by Jacques Rivette
1992: A Heart in Winter (Un cœur en hiver) by Claude Sautet
1993: Smoking/No Smoking by Alain Resnais
1994: Three Colors: Red (Trois couleurs: Rouge) by Krzysztof Kieślowski
1995: Nelly and Monsieur Arnaud (Nelly & Monsieur Arnaud) by Claude Sautet
1996: Capitaine Conan by Bertrand Tavernier
1997: Same Old Song (On connaît la chanson) by Alain Resnais
1998: The Dreamlife of Angels (La vie rêvée des anges) by Erick Zonca
1999: Sachs' Disease (La maladie de Sachs) by Michel Deville

2000s

2000: The Gleaners and I (Les glaneurs et la glaneuse) by Agnès Varda
2001: Amélie (Le fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain) by Jean-Pierre Jeunet
2002: To Be and to Have (Être et avoir) by Nicolas Philibert
2003: La trilogie Un couple épatant, Après la vie and Cavale by Lucas Belvaux
2004: Kings and Queen (Rois et reine) by Arnaud Desplechin
2005: The Beat That My Heart Skipped (De battre mon coeur s'est arrêté) by Jacques Audiard
2006: Private Fears in Public Places (Cœurs), by Alain Resnais
2007: The Secret of the Grain (La graine et le mulet) by Abdellatif Kechiche
2008: The Beaches of Agnès (Les Plages d'Agnès) by Agnès Varda
2009: A Prophet by Jacques Audiard

2010s

2010: Of Gods and Men by Xavier Beauvois
2011: The Minister by Pierre Schöller
2012: Amour by Michael Haneke
2013: Blue Is the Warmest Colour by Abdellatif Kechiche
2014: Timbuktu by Abderrahmane Sissako
2015: Fatima by Philippe Faucon
2016: Elle by Paul Verhoeven
2017: 120 Beats per Minute by Robin Campillo
2018: Mektoub, My Love: Canto Uno by Abdellatif Kechiche
2019: Les misérables by Ladj Ly

2020s

2020: Les choses qu'on dit, les choses qu'on fait by Emmanuel Mouret
2021: Onoda, 10 000 nuits dans la jungle by Arthur Harari
2022: Pacifiction – Tourment sur les îles by Albert Serra
2023: Anatomy of a Fall by Justine Triet

Best Foreign Film

1960s

1967: Blowup (Italy) by Michelangelo Antonioni
1968: The Red and the White (Hungary) by Miklós Jancsó
1969: Rosemary's Baby (USA) by Roman Polanski

1970s

1970: Andrey Rublyov (Soviet Union) by Andrei Tarkovsky
1971: Death in Venice (Italy) by Luchino Visconti
1972: Roma (Italy) by Federico Fellini
1973: Family Life (UK) by Ken Loach
1974: Amarcord (Italy) by Federico Fellini
1975: Aguirre, the Wrath of God (West Germany) by Werner Herzog
1976: Cría cuervos (Spain) by Carlos Saura
1977: Dersu Uzala (Soviet Union) by Akira Kurosawa
1978: The Tree of Wooden Clogs (Italy) by Ermanno Olmi
1979: Not awarded

1980s

1980: Christ Stopped at Eboli (Italy) by Francesco Rosi
1981: The Elephant Man (USA) by David Lynch
1982: The Night of the Shooting Stars (Italy) by Paolo and Vittorio Taviani and Yol (Turkey) by Yılmaz Güney and Serif Gören
1983: Fanny and Alexander (Sweden) by Ingmar Bergman
1984: Paris, Texas (West Germany) by Wim Wenders
1985: The Purple Rose of Cairo (USA) by Woody Allen
1986: Hannah and Her Sisters (USA) by Woody Allen
1987: Wings of Desire (West Germany) by Wim Wenders
1988: The Dead (USA) by John Huston and Bagdad Café (West Germany) by Percy Adlon
1989: A Short Film About Killing (Poland) by Krzysztof Kieślowski

1990s

1990: Dekalog (Poland) by Krzysztof Kieślowski
1991: The Double Life of Véronique (Poland) by Krzysztof Kieślowski
1992: Man Bites Dog (Belgium) by Rémy Belvaux, André Bonzel and Benoît Poelvoorde and The Story of Qiu Ju (China) by Zhang Yimou
1993: Raining Stones (UK) by Ken Loach
1994: Exotica (Canada) by Atom Egoyan
1995: Land and Freedom (UK) by Ken Loach and Ulysses' Gaze (Greece) by Theodoros Angelopoulos
1996: Secrets & Lies (UK) by Mike Leigh
1997: Hana-bi (Japan) by Takeshi Kitano
1998: Life Is Beautiful (Italy) by Roberto Benigni
1999: Eyes Wide Shut (UK/USA) by Stanley Kubrick

2000s

2000: Yi Yi (Taiwan) by Edward Yang
2001: No Man's Land (Bosnia-Herzegovina) by Danis Tanović
2002: Talk to Her (Spain) by Pedro Almodóvar
2003: Elephant (USA) by Gus Van Sant
2004: Lost in Translation (USA) by Sofia Coppola
2005: A History of Violence (USA) by David Cronenberg
2006: Volver (Spain) by Pedro Almodóvar
2007: The Lives of Others (Germany) by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck
2008: There Will Be Blood (USA) by Paul Thomas Anderson
2009: The White Ribbon (Austria) by Michael Haneke

2010s

2010: Another Year (UK) by Mike Leigh
2011: Melancholia (Denmark) by Lars von Trier
2012: Tabu (Portugal, Germany, Brazil, France) by Miguel Gomes
2013: A Touch of Sin (China) by Jia Zhangke
2014: Winter Sleep (Turkey) by Nuri Bilge Ceylan
2015: Son of Saul (Hungary) by László Nemes
2016: Aquarius (Brazil) by Kleber Mendonça Filho
2017: Faute d'amour (Russia, France, Belgium, Germany) by Andreï Zviaguintsev
2018: Phantom Thread (United States) by Paul Thomas Anderson
2019: Parasite (South Korea) by Bong Joon-ho

2020s

2020: Drunk (Denmark, Sweden, Netherlands) by Thomas Vinterberg
2021: Drive My Car (Japan) by Ryusuke Hamaguchi
2022: Licorice Pizza (United States) by Paul Thomas Anderson
2023: The Fabelmans (United States) by Steven Spielberg

Best First French Film

2000s

2000: Human Resources by Laurent Cantet
2001: De l'histoire ancienne by Orso Miret
2002: Beautiful Memories by Zabou Breitman
2003: Since Otar Left by Julie Bertucelli
2004: A Common Thread by Éléonore Faucher
2005: Little Jerusalem by Karin Albou
2006: Premonition by Jean-Pierre Darroussin
2007: Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud
2008: Her Name Is Sabine by Sandrine Bonnaire
2009: Adieu Gary by Nassim Amaouche

2010s

2010: Dear Prudence by Rebecca Zlotowski
2011: Angel & Tony by Alix Delaporte
2012: Louise Wimmer by Cyril Mennegun
2013: Me, Myself and Mum by Guillaume Gallienne
2014: Love at First Fight by Thomas Cailley
2015: The Wakhan Front by Clément Cogitore
2016: Dark Inclusion by Arthur Harari
2017: Raw by Julia Ducournau
2018: Custody by Xavier Legrand
2019: Young and Alive by Matthieu Bareyre

2020s

2020: Josep by Aurel
2021: Skies of Lebanon by Chloé Mazlo
2022: Bruno Reidal, Confession d'un meurtrier by Vincent Le Port
2023: The Rapture by Iris Kaltenbäck

Best First Foreign Film

2010s

2014: Harmony Lessons (Kazakhstan & Germany) by Emir Baigazin
2015: Titli (India) by Kanu Behl
2016: Dogs (Romania) by Bogdan Mirică
2017: I Am Not a Witch (United Kingdom, France, Germany, Zambia) by Rungano Nyoni
2018: Girl (Belgium) by Lukas Dhont
2019: An Elephant Sitting Still (China) by Hu Bo

2020s

2020: Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains (China) by Gu Xiaogang
2021: Freda (Haiti) by Gessica Généus
2022: Joyland (Pakistan) by Saim Sadiq
2023: 1976 (Chile, Argentina) by Manuela Martelli

Best French TV Series

2010s

2011: Mysteries of Lisbon by Raoul Ruiz (broadcast by Arte)
2012: Un village français by Frédéric Krivine, Philippe Triboit et Emmanuel Daucé (broadcast by France 3)
2013: The Returned by Fabrice Gobert et Frédéric Mermoud (broadcast by Canal+)
2014: Three Times Manon by Jean-Xavier de Lestrade (broadcast by Arte)
2015: The Bureau by Eric Rochant (broadcast by Canal+)
2016: The Bureau, series 2, by Eric Rochant (broadcast by Canal+)
2017: Manon, 20 Years by Jean-Xavier de Lestrade (broadcast by Arte)
2018: Hippocrate by Thomas Lilti (broadcast by Canal+)
2019: Savages by Rebecca Zlotowski & Sabri Louatah (broadcast by Canal+)

2020s

2020: Possessions by Shachar Magen, directed by Thomas Vincent (broadcast by Canal+)
2021: Nona et ses filles by Valérie Donzelli (broadcast by Arte)
2022: Le Monde de demain by Quillévéré et Hélier Cisterne, Vincent Poymiro, David Elkaïm with collaboration of Laurent Rigoulet (broadcast by Arte)
2023: Sambre by Alice Géraud, Marc Herpoux, directed by Jean-Xavier de Lestrade (broadcast by France 2)

Best Short Film

1984 : Coup de feu by Magali Clément
1999 : Les Aveugles by Jean-Luc Perréard
2000 : Ressources humaines by Laurent Cantet
2001 : Soufflé by Delphine Coulin
2002 : Intimisto by Licia Eminenti
2003 : Nosferatu Tango by Zoltán Horváth
2004 : Anna, 3 kilos 2 by Laurette Polmanss
2005 : Sous mon lit by Jihane Chouaib
2006 : Stricteternum by Julien Legrand

External links

French Syndicate of Cinema Critics at IMDb
[1] Official Website