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great film.

Search 713 spoiler-free recommendations from 1916 to 2026. Filter by the night you want—not the list you’re supposed to finish.

Direct film viewShowing master rank #622 on its own—not above the ranking.
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Artwork
DirectorAll directors

Most represented · 6+ films

More recurring directors · 3–5 films54
All directors · surname A–Z438
ActorAll actors

Most represented actors

Big Three membership
Major award winners

1 selected film

Master Rank balances Greatness, Engagement, and Ease. Sort by Greatness for the artistic-canon view.

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View Le Bonheur film page
Original poster artwork · Great Cinema Master List

Spoiler-free premise

François, a young carpenter, lives a happy, uncomplicated life with his wife Thérèse and their two small children.

Read expanded premiseLonger, still spoiler-free

Carpenter François lives with wife Thérèse and two young children in a bright suburban world of work and leisure. He begins an affair with postal worker Émilie and insists that the new love simply adds to his existing happiness.

Why it belongs

Le Bonheur deploys radiant color and Mozart to expose a man's selfish arithmetic of happiness, letting beauty sharpen rather than conceal cruelty.

Read expanded why it belongsThe fuller editorial case

Varda sets saturated pastoral color, floral patterns, family leisure, and Mozart against a chillingly composed account of male entitlement, creating an irony whose visual pleasure refuses to excuse its protagonist.

Major award record

Metadata only · zero points in 40/40/20
Berlin1 win1965 · official festival record ↗

Plus 1 additional win

No headline-category win to name

Totals include every recorded competitive win. Only Picture or top-film honors, Direction, Screenplay, and lead or supporting performances are named.

Good for
Film Club
Descriptive guidance derived from rating, genre, runtime, mood, and GCML scores.

Institutional reference ranks

Sight & Sound152IMDb Top 250—AFI 100—
Reference metadata only · not part of the 40/40/20 score

Great Cinema Master List scores

Greatness9.2
Engagement7.2
Ease6.0

French · Not Rated
Narrative Feature
Mood: Romantic & Reflective