Jean Reno

Hollywood funnyman Steve Martin returns to the role made famous by Peter Sellers in this high-concept sequel to the 2006 comedy hit The Pink Panther. Jean Reno and Emily Mortimer reprise their roles from the first film, with John Cleese taking over acting duties from Kevin Kline as Dreyfuss, Clouseau's hot-headed boss. Andy Garcia, Alfred Molina, and the Bollywood beauty Aishwarya Rai co-star in this Columbia Pictures production. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Dan Brown's controversial best-selling novel about a powerful secret that's been kept under wraps for thousands of years comes to the screen in this suspense thriller from director Ron Howard. The stately silence of Paris' Louvre museum is broken when one of the gallery's leading curators is found dead on the grounds, with strange symbols carved into his body and left around the spot where he died. Hoping to learn the significance of the symbols, police bring in Sophie Neveu (Audrey Tautou), a gifted cryptographer who is also the victim's granddaughter. Needing help, Sophie calls on Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks), a leading symbologist from the United States. As Sophie and Robert dig deeper into the case, they discover the victim's involvement in the Priory of Sion, a secret society whose members have been privy to forbidden knowledge dating back to the birth of Christianity. In their search, Sophie and Robert happen upon evidence that could lead to the final resting place of the Holy Grail, while members of the priory and an underground Catholic society known as Opus Dei give chase, determined to prevent them from sharing their greatest secrets with the world. Also starring Ian McKellen, Jean Reno, and Alfred Molina, The Da Vinci Code was shot on location in France and the United Kingdom; the Louvre allowed the producers to film at the famous museum, but scenes taking place at Westminster Abbey had to filmed elsewhere when church officials declined permission. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

A previously pampered society mouse must fight his way back to the comforts of Kensington after he is sent spiraling into an underground world filled with scavenger rats and villainous toads in a fun-filled family adventure produced by DreamWorks Animation and Aardman Features and featuring the voices of Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, Ian McKellen, and Jean Reno. Roddy (Jackman) was living the high life when he first met Sid the sewer rat (Shane Richie), but that's all about to change when Sid decides to send the hapless mouse down the pipes and stealthily take his place in the lap of luxury. Though the bustling sewer city of Ratropolis isn't without its fair share of kind citizens, it is certainly no place for a pampered mouse with a taste for life's finer things. Upon making the acquaintance of scavenger rat Rita (Winslet), Roddy is certain that the pair can navigate their way back to the surface in Rita's trusty boat, the Jammy Dodger, but Rita's help doesn't come cheap, and the nefarious Toad (McKellen) is determined to rid Ratropolis of all things rodent. When Toad's hapless hench-rats Spike (Andy Serkis) and Whitey (Bill Nighy) fail to achieve acceptable results, the green meanie is forced to call in the cavalry in the form of legendary French mercenary Le Frog (Reno) to get the job done. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

When the wife of a high-ranking government official begins experiencing chilling visions that are somehow tied to a series of murders around Paris, her fate becomes intricately tied with that of the two police officers investigating the gruesome crimes in this horror-flavored thriller from the producer of The Professional and starring Jean Reno. Anna Heymes' (Arly Jover) memory is failing, and her dreams are plagued by unspeakable images of murder. Meanwhile, in the Turkish district of Paris, upstanding police officer Nerteaux (Jocelyn Quivrin) and his questionably motivated partner, Schiffer (Reno), investigate the savage murder of three clandestine Turkish laborers. As the investigating officers uncover an important clue implicating the Turkish mafia in the crimes, Anna awakens to discover that her appearance has been drastically altered by a mysterious plastic surgeon. As the link between Anna and the Turkish murder victims slowly comes into focus, the truth about her nightmarish past sets into motion a terrifying sequence of events. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Les Visiteurs co-stars Jean Reno and Christian Clavier re-team for this comic book adaptation that follows a hip Parisian private eye on his quest to locate a Corsican "citizen" due to receive a large inheritance. Jack Palmer (Clavier) is a Paris-based detective whose swollen ego could cast a shadow over the Eiffel Tower. Ange Leoni (Reno) is a native of Corsica whose location can't be pinned down by even the most dogged of detectives. Approached by an obscure, small-time attorney and charged with the seemingly simple task of locating the missing Leoni, gifted gumshoe Palmer accepts the job under the false assumption that it will be the easiest money of his professional career. Soon after arriving on the island of Corsica, however, this superstar sleuth finds of just how mistaken he truly is. Not only are the locals suspiciously tight-lipped about the mysterious Corsican's whereabouts, but it quickly begins to appear as if the underworld has taken an ominous interest in Palmer's "open and shut" case as well. Later, after being brutalized by policemen, kidnapped by thugs, and having his car bombed, Palmer begins to comprehend the true futility of his search upon learning that his target is both the godfather of the Corsican mafia and France's most wanted. As the identities of the hunter and the hunted gradually become harder to distinguish, the detective is led on a wild goose chase around the picturesque island while finding the charms of Leoni's lovely wife Lea (Caterina Murino) increasingly difficult to resist. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Two of the biggest stars of the French cinema bring their contrasting styles together in this lively romantic comedy. Rose (Juliette Binoche) is an emotional makeup artist who is hoping to get out of a bad relationship with her boyfriend, Sergio (Sergi Lopez), by leaving him in Paris and heading off to Mexico for a holiday. After losing her cell phone, Rose borrows one from Felix (Jean Reno), a somewhat stiff salesman with an interest in gourmet cooking, who is en route toMunich to attend a funeral. When both Rose and Felix find themselves grounded due to changes in flight scheduling and a transportation strike strands them at the airport, they end up sharing a room at a nearby hotel, where their contrasting personalities make the evening rough sledding for them both. As their unexpected stay wears on, will these opposites begin to attract? ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Lots of people find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time, but this comic fantasy takes that notion to a whole new level. Count Thibault of Malfete (Jean Reno) is a brave warrior and respected nobleman in 12th century France. Count Thibault has won the heart of the lovely Princess Rosalind (Christina Applegate) and has a loyal servant in the loyal but half-bright Andre (Christian Clavier). But Thibault's world is turned upside down when an aging wizard demonstrates a new potion that can allow people to travel though time. The concoction works a bit too well, and Thibault and Andre find themselves transported to the year 2000, landing in a museum in Chicago where relics of Thibault's reign are on display. Julia, a museum employee who bears a striking resemblance to Princess Rosalind, finds the visitors and becomes their unofficial guide to life in the Windy City at the dawn of the 21st century. Thibault soon discovers that the young woman is actually descended from his family, and he realizes he has to get back to the 12th century before his absence prevents Julia from existing. Andre also discovers that indentured servitude is no longer common in the 21st century, and he and Thibault have to adjust to the American notion of freedom and equal rights for all. Just Visiting is based on the popular French comedy Les Visiteurs; Jean Reno and Christian Clavier reprise their roles from the earlier film, and the director of the original version, Jean-Marie Poire, also helmed this remake; Clavier and Poire collaborated on the script, as they did for Les Visiteurs. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Two very different policemen seeking the truth about separate crimes find a terrible common link in this thriller from France. Pierre Niemans (Jean Reno) is a noted French detective assigned to investigate a brutal murder at a prestigious college located high in the Alps; the victim was first disfigured and dismembered, then strangled to death. Niemans soon realizes the murder was not an isolated incident when several similarly mangled corpses are discovered. Meanwhile, in a town 150 miles away, a young police investigator, Max Kerkerian (Vincent Cassel), is called in to investigate when the grave of a ten-year-old girl is dug up and ransacked. While interviewing the mother (Dominique Sanda) of the young girl, he crosses paths with Niemans, whose investigation has led him to the same town, and the two men begin to realize a surprising and troubling link between the crimes. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Dedicated to Tomoyuki Tanaka (1910-1997), who produced the 1954 original and sequels, the Devlin/Emmerich interpretation displays a redesign of Godzilla, now a large lizard mutated after fallout from French nuclear tests. A blinding flash of white light fills the Eastern sky. Thousands of miles away, the Pacific Ocean churns, engulfing a freighter. On another part of the globe, giant footsteps plow a path through miles of Panamanian forests, Tahitian villages, and Jamaican beaches. In the Ukraine, biologist Dr. Niko Tatopoulos (Matthew Broderick), with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, is examining the impact of radiation on Chernobyl earthworms. Colonel Hicks (Kevin Dunn) and a military team escort Niko to check out giant claw marks on the beached freighter; they're joined by paleontologists Elsie Chapman (Vicki Lewis) and Mendel Craven (Malcolm Danare). Blood and giant-size footprints indicate "some sort of enormous reptile." French secret agent Philippe Roache talks to the freighter's only survivor, who keeps repeating, "Gojira...Gojira." Tatopoulos et al arrive in Manhattan's Fulton Fish Market where Godzilla surfaces, moving on to the NYC financial district where Mayor Ebert (Michael Lerner) is speaking. Ambitious Audrey Timmonds (Maria Pitillo), who works for TV news anchor Charles Caiman (Harry Shearer), is Niko's former girlfriend, and she uses this to her professional advantage. As the wave of destruction continues, Niko and Roache track the creature through the evacuated city and discover Godzilla's eggs about to hatch in Madison Square Garden. They are followed by Audrey and TV cameraman Victor "Animal" Palotti (Hank Azaria), and soon the hatching Godzilla offspring prowl the Garden corridors, leading to a final showdown. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

The good witch Morgane bears a son and finds herself faced with a painful choice. Tradition requires that she select a godfather for the child at the exact moment of its birth. The moral alignment of the godfather will determine that of the child. The trouble is that there are only six witches left on the earth and the only eligible magical godfather, Molok, is a wicked warlock. If she refuses him, her only option is to select a mortal man who was born on the same day and time. Unfortunately if a mortal were to undergo the ceremony her son would lose his magic and the volunteer would literally lose his mind and become a living vegetable. This romantic French tale tells what happens when Morgane chooses the latter option. After much searching she and her remaining cronies narrow the eligible list down to three men. Unfortunately, Molok finds out and kills two of them, leaving only Michael, a handsome young New York inventor to fill the bill. Michael hates flying, but his business colleague Joel manages to convince him to go to Paris. There he meets Morgane who takes him to her grandmother's home. En route they pause to take magical potions and make love in the forest. Trouble brews when afterward Morgane finds herself falling in love with Michael and thinking twice about taking away his extraordinary intelligence. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

After he is framed for the death of several colleagues and falsely branded a traitor, a secret agent embarks on a daring scheme to clear his name in this spy adventure. Though it drew its name from the familiar television series, director Brian DePalma's big-budget adaptation shares little more with the original show than the occasional self-destructing message and the name of team leader Jim Phelps (Jon Voight). The film focuses not on Phelps but his protégé, Ethan Hunt (a reserved Tom Cruise), who becomes a fugitive after taking the blame for a botched operation. He responds by banding together with a group of fellow renegades, and he is soon maneuvering his way through a twisted series of double crosses that mainly serve as excuses for spectacular high-tech action sequences. Much of the activity revolves around a missing computer disk, with the film's most famous scene depicting Hunt's delicate efforts to retrieve the disk from a secure, well-alarmed room in CIA headquarters. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide

An American woman discovers that Paris truly is the city of love -- though not in the manner she expected -- in this romantic comedy. Kate (Meg Ryan) is desperately afraid of flying, so when her fiancée Charlie (Timothy Hutton) flies to Paris on business, she must stay behind. Kate has been having second thoughts about her impending marriage, but that changes when Charlie calls her to say that the engagement is off -- he's met a beautiful French woman named Juliette (Susan Anbeh), and he's fallen in love. Determined to win Charlie back, Kate confronts her fears and hops on board the next flight to Paris, where she finds herself seated next to Luc Teyssier (Kevin Kline), a French thief who stashes some valuable jewelry in her baggage hoping to avoid capture. While Luc simply wants to get his jewels back, he pretends to be willing to help Kate find Charlie and win him back in order to keep her luggage out of harm's way, but to his surprise (as well as Kate's), the two become infatuated as they make their way through the City of Lights. Leading lady Meg Ryan also served as co-producer for this film. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide