French Girl
{{Short description|Romantic comedy film}}
{{Infobox film
| image = French Girl poster.jpg
| caption = Poster
| director = {{plainlist|
}}
| producer = {{Plainlist|
- Valérie d'Auteuil
- André Rouleau
}}
| writer = {{plainlist|
- James A. Woods
- Nicolas Wright
}}
| starring = {{plainlist|
}}
| cinematography = Jean-François Lord
| editing = Yvann Thibaudeau
| music = Scott Price
| studio = {{Plainlist |
- Elevation Pictures
- Caramel Films
}}
| distributor = Republic Pictures
| released = {{Film date|2024|3|19}}
| runtime = 106 minutes
| country = {{Ubl| Canada
| United States}}
| language = English
}}
French Girl is a 2024 romantic comedy directed by James A. Woods and Nicolas Wright. It follows Gordon Kinski, a high school teacher from Brooklyn, who accompanies his girlfriend, chef Sophie Tremblay, to her hometown of Quebec City, where she is testing for a position at a Michelin 3-star restaurant run by super-chef Ruby Collins.{{Cite web |last=Kelly |first=Brendan |date=March 18, 2024 |title=Zach Braff rom-com features Quebec fine dining and a big fat wrinkle |url=https://www.montrealgazette.com/entertainment-life/movies-tv/article130348.html}}
Plot
Gordon Kinski, an English teacher in Brooklyn, plans to propose to his girlfriend, Sophie Tremblay, a talented chef. Sophie is invited to Quebec City for a trial as head chef at a prestigious restaurant owned by her ex-girlfriend, Ruby Collins. Gordon joins Sophie on the trip, meeting her family, who are skeptical of him. Tensions rise as Gordon navigates cultural differences and Sophie’s past relationship with Ruby. After a series of comedic and heartfelt events, including a car accident and a family funeral, Gordon and Sophie reconcile, leading to a proposal accepted with her family’s blessing.{{Cite web |last=Kennedy |first=Lisa |date=2024-03-14 |title=‘French Girl’ Review: Zach Braff Finds Himself Pitted Against Vanessa Hudgens in a Clumsy Love Triangle Rom-Com |url=https://variety.com/2024/film/reviews/french-girl-review-vanessa-hudgens-zach-braff-1235940123/ |access-date=2025-02-21 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}
Cast
- Zach Braff as Gordon Kinski
- Evelyne Brochu as Sophie Tremblay
- Vanessa Hudgens as Ruby Collins
Production
Produced by Caramel Films, the film was shot in Quebec City and Montreal. Jean-François Lord served as the cinematographer, with music composed by Scott Price. The film’s production design was handled by Jean-André Carrière, and costumes were designed by Mariane Carter.{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt23319892/fullcredits |title=French Girl (2024) - IMDb |access-date=2025-02-21 |via=www.imdb.com}}
Release
Critical response
The film received generally negative reviews.
Amy Nicholson wrote in the New York Times: "The filmmakers James A. Woods and Nicolas Wright push their script dangerously close to parody. But there are at least a dozen good zingers in here, particularly a three-part punchline from Ed Weeks as a snobbish food critic that kicks off with, “Have you ever seen an emaciated dolphin?” The trouble is, none of the performances are on the same wavelength: Hudgens is an outrageously hilarious monster; Brochu, an earnest heroine; and the increasingly unhinged Braff tries too hard to be empathetic. The more he wants us to sympathize with his hapless character, the more unforgivable Gordon’s actions feel."{{Cite news |last=Nicholson |first=Amy |date=2024-03-14 |title=‘French Girl’ Review: Cuckold au Vin |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/14/movies/french-girl-review.html |access-date=2025-02-21 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}
In Variety, Lisa Kennedy wrote: "For every inventive or simply satisfying rom-com, there are dozens of clumsy, rote ones — French Girl falls among the latter."{{Cite web |last=Kennedy |first=Lisa |date=2024-03-14 |title=‘French Girl’ Review: Zach Braff Finds Himself Pitted Against Vanessa Hudgens in a Clumsy Love Triangle Rom-Com |url=https://variety.com/2024/film/reviews/french-girl-review-vanessa-hudgens-zach-braff-1235940123/ |access-date=2025-02-21 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}
Radheyan Simonpillai in The Globe and Mail wrote: "It just makes me crave a CanCon rom-com where divisive cultural gaps are explored in a way that doesn’t feel so detached from reality, and this country’s history."{{Cite news |date=2024-03-14 |title=Review: Eager-to-please rom-com French Girl has flashes of wit, but leaves the women thinly sketched |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/film/reviews/article-french-girls-very-male-point-of-view-leaves-the-women-thinly-sketched/ |access-date=2025-02-21 |work=The Globe and Mail |language=en-CA}}
On Rotten Tomatoes, it holds an approval rating of 25% based on 24 reviews.{{Cite web |title=French Girl {{!}} Rotten Tomatoes |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/french_girl |access-date=2025-02-21 |website=www.rottentomatoes.com |language=en}}
Awards
At the 2024 Mammoth Film Festival, French Girl was nominated for Best Genre Film Feature and Best Actor in a Feature (Zach Braff), and won for "Achievement in Filmmaking – International".{{Cite web |date=2024-03-27 |title=How Mammoth Film Festival still feels like an 'underground secret,' with impressive talent |url=https://ca.news.yahoo.com/how-mammoth-film-festival-still-feels-like-an-underground-secret-with-impressive-talent-035513823.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAA_ogqeCkBixf1na1lQzzlIm0C6EZopUq9-IQco3XNVanLWWdBbNiE3kBIR0DlnRG6IxkB1bXJA7gHu5CGHlpYtkDucWWv2YBOvVILBQkfpueNOO-Tk05zkknFiSxpfqk_Ad147XmnKOV-pGTKNki65cgJgHhTIZjqALkmk5zg5w |access-date=2025-02-21 |website=Yahoo News |language=en-CA}}