Film

French Kiss

Name: French Kiss
Genre: Comedy, Romance, Drama
Released: 1995
Cast: Meg Ryan, Kevin Kline, Timothy Hutton, Jean Reno, François Cluzet

Romantic comedy
Light-hearted

A screwball romance about an anxious woman who flies to Paris (terrified the whole way) to win back her cheating fiancé, only to get tangled up with a charming French thief and discover what she actually wants. It's fizzy, silly, and genuinely warm—the kind of film that knows exactly what it is and commits to the bit without apology.

TMDb rating

3.3

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you enjoy a love story built on sparring personalities, where a prickly heroine and a roguish charmer bicker their way across the French countryside and the chemistry does most of the work.

Skip it if you find Meg Ryan's flustered heroine wearing thin, or you want your comedies light and fast, since this one is busy, sentimental and happy to linger on its scenery.

What it asks of you: Settle in for just under two hours of brisk, sunny, slightly silly detours, with plenty of talk and little that stays heavy for long.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Notting Hill1999

Same director, same energy: a romantic comedy that's genuinely funny, swoons without embarrassment, and finds real feeling in absurdity. Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts have the kind of chemistry that makes you believe in the whole premise.

But If you hate the rom-com formula or find whimsy exhausting, this will feel calculated and thin. It's not trying to surprise you.

Amélie2001

A film about falling in love in Paris that's quirky and visual rather than cynical. It has the same playful tone but more personality—a love letter to France that doesn't pretend to be serious about it.

But The whimsy can feel precious if you're not in the mood for it. Some find the saccharine sweetness cloying rather than charming.

Sabrina1995

Another '90s romantic comedy about an American woman discovering herself through a Frenchman's influence. It's got class, style, and Julia Ormond is luminous. Harrison Ford is gruff and excellent.

But It's less funny than French Kiss and more focused on fashion and elegance, which can feel dated or shallow depending on your tolerance for romance-as-makeover.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from French Kiss

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

A Summer's Tale1996

Both films pivot on the same moment: a character realizing they've been chasing the wrong person. *Rohmer* does it through conversation and self-awareness; *French Kiss* does it through chaos and slapstick. Same truth, radically different registers.

Éric Rohmer's film about a young man spending a summer in a coastal town trying to choose between two women. It's essentially *French Kiss* inverted: a man chasing what he thinks he wants while real love walks beside him. Quietly funny, deeply observant about how we lie to ourselves about romance.

But It's dialogue-heavy, moves at a contemplative pace, and the plot is deliberately thin. There's no slapstick or clear resolution—if you need clear stakes and external conflict, this will feel slow and minor.

Overboard1987

A screwball romance where a working-class guy convinces a snobbish rich woman she's his wife. It's got the same DNA—class clash, deception, genuine warmth underneath the chaos. Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn are a blast.

But The central conceit (tricking someone into forgetting who they are) is ethically dodgy in ways the film doesn't examine. It plays it for laughs, but some find it uncomfortable.

Splash1984

Tom Hanks and Daryl Hannah in a romantic fantasy-comedy where a mermaid falls for a New York businessman. It's got heart, humor, and the same sense that love makes you do ridiculous things.

But The fish-out-of-water premise is silly even by rom-com standards, and the fish pun territory gets heavy. If you need grounding in reality, this floats right past it.

While You Were Sleeping1995

Sandra Bullock as a lonely woman who falls in love with a comatose stranger through his family. Sounds mawkish; it's actually funny, touching, and surprisingly smart about loneliness and connection.

But The central lie (pretending to be engaged to someone unconscious) takes a long time to resolve, and the magical thinking about love might feel manipulative rather than charming.

Breakfast at Tiffany's1961

Audrey Hepburn in a romance about a woman who doesn't know who she really is, chased across a city by men who love her for different reasons. It's the template for nearly every film on this list.

But It's slower and more elegiac than modern comedies, with dated attitudes. The ending is polarizing, and some find it manipulative rather than romantic.

Much Ado About Nothing1993

Kenneth Branagh's Shakespeare adaptation is witty, physical, and genuinely romantic under all the banter. It's about two people verbally sparring their way into love—charming and clever without being forced.

But If you're not comfortable with Shakespearean language or prefer straightforward dialogue, it can feel arch and difficult. The humor is very dependent on delivery.

Beetlejuice1988

A screwball comedy about the newly dead trying to get a couple together, full of absurd energy and genuine sweetness. Michael Keaton and the Maitlands have real chemistry despite the chaos around them.

But It's weird and visually cluttered, with a 1980s aesthetic that hasn't aged evenly. If you need a clean plot and tonal consistency, the chaos will annoy you.

The Umbrellas of Cherbourg1964

Both are about someone traveling to find love in France and discovering that geography matters less than knowing yourself. But where *French Kiss* lands in comedy and hope, this one lands in melancholy and acceptance. It's what happens when you choose wrong.

A musical romance set in France about two people who love each other but want different things from life. Catherine Deneuve is incandescent. It's heartbreaking and beautiful in a way that earns every tear.

But It's a 1960s musical—if you don't like dubbed voices, stylized movement, or bittersweet endings that don't resolve neatly, this will feel precious and slow.