French cinema – EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog https://www.eurocheapo.com/blog EuroCheapo editors take on the world of budget travel. Tue, 18 Nov 2025 18:54:17 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=4.8.3 Two Paris Hot Spots Film Buffs Shouldn’t Miss https://www.eurocheapo.com/blog/french-film-buff-two-spots-in-paris-you-shouldnt-miss.html https://www.eurocheapo.com/blog/french-film-buff-two-spots-in-paris-you-shouldnt-miss.html#comments Mon, 22 Jul 2013 16:09:32 +0000 http://www.eurocheapo.com/blog/?p=30153 This film-loving city in the land where cinema was invented is home to a handful of state-subsidized cultural institutions dedicated to preserving the history of French film and document the city’s past and present. Open to the public, these collections offer an inexpensive, entertaining way to revisit classic films and get some perspective on Paris » Read more

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]]> This film-loving city in the land where cinema was invented is home to a handful of state-subsidized cultural institutions dedicated to preserving the history of French film and document the city’s past and present. Open to the public, these collections offer an inexpensive, entertaining way to revisit classic films and get some perspective on Paris from filmmakers around the world.

Cinémathèque Française 

Founded in 1901 and relocated in recent years to a building in the 12th arrondissement by Frank Gehry that was once an American center in Paris, the legendary Cinémathèque Française Film Center and Museum is a national monument dedicated to preserving, restoring and promoting cinema. The Cinémathèque offers a permanent film history exhibit, temporary film-related exhibitions and film screenings, and also has a film library open to scholars and students.

A ticket that allows you to see the museum, temporary exhibitions and a film is only €7. A free mini history of cinema audio guide is available to download in English here.

Forum des Images

The Forum des Images is located in the center of Paris. Photo: Javier Peláez

Forum des Images

Founded in 1988, the Forum des Images is a self-described audiovisual memory bank of Paris. Housing a library of more than 8,000 feature films, documentaries, animated films, television series, short films, advertising films and more, this temple of cinema also offers some 2,000 screenings every year on its five screens. Tickets are a bargain at €3.50 to €5, and the Forum also offers an ongoing series of master classes with noted filmmakers, conferences, film festivals and more.

A €5 ticket will also buy you two hours in the comfortable collection room where you can watch just about any piece of video ever made about Paris. An all-day pass offering free access to any movie showing that day plus two hours in the collection room and a complimentary coffee in the bar is a wallet-friendly way to while away a rainy afternoon at €9.

Film buffs will also want to check out:

Centre Pompidou

Not just an art museum, the Centre Pompidou is a popular French cultural institution that also houses two movie screens that show an eclectic selection of art, experimental and documentary films throughout the year. Full price tickets are €6. Closed Tuesdays.

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]]> https://www.eurocheapo.com/blog/french-film-buff-two-spots-in-paris-you-shouldnt-miss.html/feed 1 1 30153 92 How to score discount movie tickets in Paris https://www.eurocheapo.com/blog/movie-passes-and-discounts-in-paris.html https://www.eurocheapo.com/blog/movie-passes-and-discounts-in-paris.html#respond Wed, 10 Jul 2013 17:16:06 +0000 http://www.eurocheapo.com/blog/?p=30147 Going to the movies is a no-brainer of a cheap date pretty much anywhere in the world. But France is the birthplace of cinema, and the Lumière brothers invented the concept when they held their first paid public film screening in Paris in 1895. Today the French are Europe’s number one movie-going population (and in » Read more

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]]> Going to the movies is a no-brainer of a cheap date pretty much anywhere in the world. But France is the birthplace of cinema, and the Lumière brothers invented the concept when they held their first paid public film screening in Paris in 1895.

Today the French are Europe’s number one movie-going population (and in the world’s top five), and the number of movie screens in Paris (some 376) rivals the number of French cheeses (an estimated 365).

American movies might make up 43% of the French market, but the French are the fifth largest producers of movies in the world, and Paris cinemas offer everything from obscure art house fare to classic films to new releases from around the world. If you’re in the mood for a complimentary French lesson, go see a French film, or an American movie with French subtitles (be sure to check that your film is “V.O.”, or original version; otherwise it will be dubbed).

Cinema discounts for locals

An average full-price ticket to a Paris movie theater is about €10. But Paris residents who want unbridled movie-going access can sign up for monthly unlimited passes with mega-chains Gaumont/Pathé or UGC/MK2 for around €20 per month. French cinemas offer discounts to card-carrying students, seniors, the unemployed, the handicapped and large families with three or more children.

But there are plenty of everyday tricks to save on admission for the rest of the movie-going masses, visitors included.

Movie Passes

MK2 cinemas, with locations all over the city (including a romance-friendly theater with two-person love seats at their MK2 Bibliotheque location in the 13th arrondissement) offer a 5-ticket pre-paid movie passes for €34.50 that are valid for two months, and can be used for up to three entries at a time if your Paris love affair is of the “Jules et Jim” variety. That comes out to €6.90 per person for new releases.

Morning Showings

Some theaters offer reduced prices of €6 for the first showing before noon (and if you’re on vacation, there’s nothing wrong with seeing a movie in the morning and having breakfast in bed after dark). Check out Allociné for more information on individual theater prices and showtimes.

Wednesday Screenings

Movies open on Wednesdays in France. At cinemas like La Bastille in the 11th arrondissement, tickets are €5 all day every Wednesday.

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