Overview
Named the best French film of 2000 by the French Union of Film Critics, The Gleaners and I observes present-day gleaners in urban and rural France – harvesters, scavengers, artists – while looking back at the traditional ‘glaneurs’, famously represented in Jean- François Millet’s classical French painting. A social documentary and study of those living on the margins of French society, Agnès Varda described her film as a ‘wandering road movie’. It’s that and more – a fascinating self-portrait of one the most influential filmmakers of the French New Wave.
Ranked joint 67th in the 2022 Sight and Sound Great Films of All Time poll.
Related
![](/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_32x18/public/hero-images/powell.jpg?itok=kEpa0KYh)
Vision, Dreams and Magic: The Unmade Films of Michael Powell Vision, Dreams and Magic: The Unmade Films of Michael Powell
Short documentary 2024 41 mins Director: Nic Wassell
Discover the unrealised visions and passion projects of revered British filmmaker Michael Powell, in this fascinating documentary featuring Oscar-winning editor Thelma Schoonmaker.
![](/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_32x18/public/hero-images/Anselm-02_1920.jpg?itok=IumdrCkA)
Anselm Anselm
Biopic 2023 94 mins Director: Wim Wenders
Wim Wenders' stately and beautifully scored study of Anselm Kiefer.
![](/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_32x18/public/hero-images/Flavio-03.jpg?itok=ya-CdsJe)
Flavio Flavio
Documentary 1964 11 mins Director: Gordon Parks
Photographer Gordon Parks’ remarkable film depicts a day in the life of an industrious 12-year-old boy living in the impoverished favela slums of Rio de Janeiro.
![](/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_32x18/public/hero-images/Everything-at-Once_01.jpg?itok=AlL8KHwm)
Everything at Once Everything at Once
Documentary 2021 103 mins Director: Alberto Fuguet
A peek behind the scenes at the homoerotic photography zine Kink, which has cultivated an intimate style employing non-professional models.
![](/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_32x18/public/hero-images/otatc-1920.jpg?itok=tXKJQsiJ)
Of Time and the City Of Time and the City
Documentary 2008 74 mins Director: Terence Davies
Brilliantly mixing archive film and music, Liverpool-born director Terence Davies reflects with wit and wisdom on a times of change, for good or ill
![](/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_32x18/public/hero-images/Cymande-07.jpg?itok=iFSBFMpj)
Getting It Back: The Story of Cymande Getting It Back: The Story of Cymande
Documentary 2022 90 mins Director: Tim MacKenzie-Smith
The incredible story of a band you may never have heard of but whose sound has influenced generations with their irresistible rhythms and message of peace.
![](/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_32x18/public/hero-images/betty2.jpg?itok=vLR5mxKZ)
Betty Blue Betty Blue
Drama 1986 185 mins Director: Jean-Jacques Beineix
Jean-Jacques Beineix’s story of a volatile, highly sexual relationship was one of the most successful French films of the 1980s.
![](/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_32x18/public/hero-images/9b71155b2e478828767121927fb1c8b1.jpg?itok=T3mIS3MS)
La Belle et la Bête La Belle et la Bête
Fantasy 1946 95 mins Director: Jean Cocteau
Jean Cocteau’s ravishingly restored 1946 film is a cinematic classic. “Five stars. [This] magical exploration of the fairytale is a compelling and bizarre masterpiece” – Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian
![](/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_32x18/public/hero-images/20160116-bande-a-parte-qa-with-anna-karina-1920x1080.jpg?itok=6aBh6Efb)
Bande à part Bande à part
Crime 1964 95 mins Director: Jean-Luc Godard
Godard's playful tribute to the Hollywood pulp crime movies of the 1940s, executed with typically Gallic cool.
The 400 Blows The 400 Blows
Drama 1959 100 mins Director: François Truffaut
François Truffaut’s French New Wave landmark is one of the greatest movies about adolescence.
![](/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_32x18/public/hero-images/PICKPOCKETSTILL2.jpg?itok=aw9maWgJ)
Pickpocket Pickpocket
Drama 1959 76 mins Director: Robert Bresson
Bresson’s hugely influential study of a petty thief in late 50s Paris is one of his most widely acclaimed films.
![](/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_32x18/public/hero-images/ama-gloria-01.jpg?itok=SeT-WRGY)
Àma Gloria Àma Gloria
Drama 2023 84 mins Director: Marie Amachoukeli
Six-year-old Cléo spends a final summer with her beloved nanny Gloria, in this profoundly moving story of chosen family, duty and innocence lost.
![](/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_32x18/public/hero-images/CLEO-FROM-5-TO-7_1.jpg?itok=aGUjJy9m)
Cléo from 5 to 7 Cléo from 5 to 7
Drama 1962 91 mins Director: Agnès Varda
Agnes Varda’s classic character study follows a successful pop singer as she wanders around Paris while awaiting the results of serious medical tests.
![](/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_32x18/public/hero-images/After-Love-headroom.jpg?itok=mdXkugIU)
After Love After Love
Drama 2021 90 mins Director: Aleem Khan
In this knockout feature debut from Aleem Khan, Bafta-winner Joanna Scanlan is the woman who discovers her late husband’s secrets.
![](/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_32x18/public/hero-images/Damsels-in-Distress_04.jpg?itok=itoCZrvO)
Damsels in Distress Damsels in Distress
Comedy 2011 99 mins Director: Whit Stillman
Greta Gerwig shines as a college student challenging the male dominated culture on campus, in Whit Stillman’s sweet, eccentric and frequently hilarious comedy.
![](/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_32x18/public/hero-images/Sex-lies-and-videotape_05.jpg?itok=7oRHapOi)
sex, lies, and videotape sex, lies, and videotape
Drama 1989 100 mins Director: Steven Soderbergh
Steven Soderberg’s audacious debut, starring James Spader and Andie Macdowell, is an intimate exploration of sexual desire, and a landmark of 90’s American independent filmmaking.
![](/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_32x18/public/hero-images/Bottle-Rocket-01.jpg?itok=3v6BuE4i)
Bottle Rocket Bottle Rocket
Comedy 1995 91 mins Director: Wes Anderson
Wes Anderson's rarely screened debut ditches the kitsch in favour of surprisingly subtle comedy, in this tale of a criminally inept gang led by Owen Wilson.
![](/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_32x18/public/hero-images/ama-gloria-01.jpg?itok=SeT-WRGY)
Àma Gloria Àma Gloria
Drama 2023 84 mins Director: Marie Amachoukeli
Six-year-old Cléo spends a final summer with her beloved nanny Gloria, in this profoundly moving story of chosen family, duty and innocence lost.
![](/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_32x18/public/hero-images/Morgiana-01.jpg?itok=NwFN0AiD)
Morgiana Morgiana
Crime 1972 97 mins Director: Juraj Herz
Delirious gothic tale of terror from Czech New Wave master Juraj Herz, about a jealous sister with dark desires and splintered minds.