Famous French Sayings Translated from Classic Hollywood Movies

Over the years, as Hollywood movies became more popular and more global, a selection of classic films have been translated and distributed to various countries. Watching some of your favorite movies that have been dubbed in the language that you’re studying  can be an interesting way to pick up new sayings. Today, I’ll take a look at some of Hollywood’s biggest films that have been translated into French and teach you a few famous French sayings that originate from English scripts.
Since the movies I’ve listed are universally renowned, some of their lines are known by almost everyone around the world, making them an excellent addition to your French vocabulary if you’re trying to learn the language.
Let’s take a look at 5 famous French sayings taken from a few popular movies.

Famous French Sayings Translated

• « Je vais lui faire une offre qu’il ne pourra pas refuser. » – The Godfather

This line is from the famous movie, The Godfather. In the movie, after being rejected by a producer, Johnny Fontane asks his godfather, Don Vito (played by Marlon Brando), for help in getting a part in a movie.
Vito famously replies, “I’ll make him an offer that he can’t refuse.” Next, the movie cuts to a scene with the producer waking with a horse’s head in his bed. Sure enough, Johnny ends up getting the part.

• « Que la Force soit avec toi. » – Star Wars Episode IV : A New Hope

There aren’t many people out there who haven’t seen any of the Star Wars movies. In the very least, they’ve heard this famous line at some point before.
First uttered in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, this quote is translated from the original, “May the Force be with you.”.

• « C’est à moi que tu parles ? »  – Taxi Driver

In the cult classic, Taxi Driver, Robert De Niro famously speaks the line, “You talkin’ to me?”.
Not only has this line become famous around the world, De Niro’s character went on the inspire many other characters such as Vinz in the French movie, “La Haine”, released in 1995.

• « Franchement, ma chère, c’est le cadet de mes soucis. » – Gone with the Wind

When the classic, Gone with the Wind, was released in French, the famous saying, “Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn.” Became, « Franchement, ma chère, c’est le cadet de mes soucis. ».
By adding this into your French vocabulary, you’ll now be able to tell people how you truly feel.

• « Nous ne devons plus être au Kansas, qu’en penses-tu ? » – The Wizard of Oz

Our final famous French saying comes from the famous movie, The Wizard of Oz. When Dorothy realizes that she is no longer in a familiar place, she says to Toto, her dog, “I’ve got a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore.”, which has become one of the most recognizable quotes from the movie.

Supplement Your French Studies by Using LingQ

By memorizing and using these lines as part of your newfound French vocabulary, you’ll be able to impress the people around with your knowledge of famous sayings that are recognizable almost anywhere in the world.

LingQ is the best way to learn French online because it lets you learn from content you enjoy! Using LingQ, you can import your favorite French content and create lessons to help you with your studying. For example, why not try and learn some new phrases from famous French flicks? LingQ makes it easy, all you need is the transcript in text and audio (optional). For more information on how this works, you can check out the post on how to import anime into LingQ which gives a good overview on how you’ll be able to create LingQ lessons using video content.
Also, you can find a ton of French subtitles here. Happy LingQ’ing.

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Joel is an ex-construction worker turned online content writer. He writes mostly about topics related to finance, health, wealth and wellness. When he’s not writing, Joel is usually out exploring new hiking trails with his dog, Baxter.

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