French films post somewhat lackluster results for the first quarter of 2013.
| Rank | Title | Admissions | B. O. Revenues | No. of Prints | No. of Countries | Total Admissions |
| 1 | On The Other Side of The Tracks | 369,595 | 2,671,920 | 514 | 4 | 402,629 |
| 2 | Love | 345,009 | 2,143,225 | 788 | 18 | 3,203,074 |
| 3 | Fly me to the moon | 228,391 | 1,677,258 | 320 | 4 | 510,906 |
| 4 | Haute Cuisine | 140,997 | 900,061 | 163 | 5 | 289,660 |
| 5 | Asterix and Obelix: God Save Britannia | 117,478 | 754,371 | 79 | 2 | 3,689,544 |
| 6 | In the House | 104,240 | 689,699 | 93 | 4 | 595,635 |
| 7 | The Intouchables | 76,716 | 502,466 | 157 | 7 | 31,042,614 |
| 8 | Mobius | 73,281 | 508,375 | 217 | 3 | 86,570 |
| 9 | Billy and Buddy | 64,491 | 535,516 | 50 | 2 | 96,204 |
| 10 | The Man Who Laughs | 60,614 | 315,408 | 179 | 3 | 72,734 |
| 11 | The Other Son | 58,480 | 333,504 | 55 | 3 | 253,053 |
| 12 | Rust & Bone | 55,604 | 304,118 | 155 | 8 | 1,102,310 |
| 13 | Renoir | 52,926 | 314,088 | 101 | 3 | 162,784 |
| 14 | On the Road | 48,789 | 275,157 | 85 | 4 | 926,135 |
| 15 | Jappeloup | 46,068 | 403,108 | 32 | 2 | 46,231 |
| 16 | Ernest & Celestine | 35,751 | 222,676 | 146 | 6 | 176,889 |
| 17 | The Chef | 26,087 | 94,192 | 28 | 1 | 786,512 |
| 18 | The Patience Stone | 21,680 | 141,163 | 39 | 3 | 24,136 |
| 19 | Vive la France | 17,496 | 147,329 | 34 | 2 | 65,132 |
| 20 | Under the Rainbow | 15,730 | 197,537 | 10 | 1 | 15,856 |
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With just 10 million admissions registered in around thirty countries since the start of the year, the supply of French films appears at first glance to have been snubbed by the major international markets. The top 10 French films to date in 2013 account for a comparatively low 70% of total admissions. Results are consequently more fragmented than we have been accustomed to seeing in this context, with 14 titles registering between 100,000 and 500,000 admissions. So far this year, Love has attracted the highest number of spectators outside France, currently credited with 2.1 million admissions abroad in 2013. This Oscar winner from last February has now topped 3 million admissions abroad, and is still showing in around twenty markets.
The month of March nonetheless showed some encouraging prospects. The launch of On The Other Side of The Tracks has demonstrated the high popularity of the actor Omar Sy in Germany and Italy. Two years after Potiche, the latest offering from François Ozon, In the House, has won over British audiences. On the other side of the planet, the screen adaptation of a novel by Victor Hugo directed by Jean-Pierre Améris, The Man Who Laughs, has edged its way into the top 10 at the South Korean box office. Additionally, The Patience Stone, an adaptation of the Goncourt Prize winning novel of the same name, directed by Atiq Rahim, took out the 18th spot in our monthly French film ranking thanks to a successful debut in Italy (18,000 admissions in its opening week).
On The Other Side of The Tracks (Senator) has made its mark on the German box office, attracting 231,000 spectators after three weeks. This is a triumphant performance, which is primarily bolstered by the popularity of Omar Sy across the Rhine following the spectacular success of The Intouchables (Senator), which now boasts a total of 9 million admission in this market after 65 uninterrupted weeks in theaters.
Also in this market, Fly Me to the Moon, which was released the same day as On The Other Side of The Tracks, also posts a fine performance, garnering 178,000 admissions. Since the film hit the screens three weeks ago, its German distributor has maintained a high number of around 250 prints in circulation, despite relatively low average attendance figures per print. The German media capitalized on the role played by Quad Productions in the success of The Intouchables, as well as the presence of the German star Diane Kruger, who here excels in the comedy genre. For the record, it is worth noting that its director Pascal Chaumeil's previous film, Heartbreaker, clocked up 232,000 spectators in Germany back in 2011, and a total of 1.8 million in international theaters.
Both these films have outscored Rust & Bone (Wild Bunch - 160,000 admissions) and thus feature among the most successful French films in Germany in 2013.
Love continues its successful international run. In the wake of the Oscars ceremony in February and its triumph in the Best Foreign-Language Film category, the month of March saw its results drop back significantly in the USA/English-speaking Canada, with the number of prints cut down from 333 to 49. After its 16th week in theaters, its results in North America have reached $6.7 million (around 887,000 admissions). By comparison, Love had outstripped the performance of Coco Before Chanel (Sony Classics), which attracted 873,000 American moviegoers back in 2009.
Audiences in the Netherlands (Cinéart) have been charmed by the film, which remained in the national top 20 for 18 weeks. With over 234,000 admissions in this market, Love is the 6th most successful French film of all time in the Netherlands according to uniFrance Films records. It has also won over spectators in Latin America, registering 168,000 spectators in Mexico and a high 215,000 in Brazil. In the Pacific region, it has notably racked up 85,000 admissions in Japan, 78,000 in South Korea, and 32,000 in New Zealand.
Les Saveurs du palais has hit theaters in Quebec, where it has put in a good performance, with 35,000 admissions registered after 5 weeks, ranking as the 3rd best performance for a French film released in 2013, behind Asterix & Obelix: God Save Britannia (163,000 admissions) and Love (56,000). Spanish audiences have also shown their enthusiasm for the film, with attendance rising by 53% in its second week, to reach 39,000 admissions all up. The opposite scenario applies in Italy, where, following a promising opening week with 37,000 admissions registered from 82 prints, the film did not live up to expectations, with just 65,000 tickets sold after four weeks in theaters.
Since its launch on the international circuit, Les Saveurs du palais has posted mixed results. While it managed to garner 73,000 spectators in Germany and 22,000 in Switzerland, it only registered 23,000 in Belgium and 9,000 in Poland. Currently with a total of 290,000 admissions to its credit outside France, it is scheduled for release in numerous markets in 2013, including Brazil, Mexico, Australia, Israel, and Japan.
The Man Who Laughs ranked in 8th position at the South Korean box office on its opening weekend, pulling in 37,000 admissions in four days from 157 prints. This is an outstanding debut for a French-language film in this market, which can be attributed to the local audiences' appreciation of the film's dramatic modern take on the film noir genre. Its results slipped back significantly in its second week, however, with a meager 18,000 spectators added to its score.
This is nonetheless an encouraging achievement by this screen adaptation of the Victor Hugo novel after a highly disappointing international career to date, with 14,000 admissions registered in three territories (Belgium, French-speaking Switzerland, and Greece). Its director Jean-Pierre Améris's previous film, Romantics Anonymous, registered 651,000 admissions abroad.
Following its successful career in North America in 2012 (taking $1.3 million and attracting 157,000 spectators), Le Fils de l’autre is currently lighting the screens in Italy, with 58,000 admissions registered after three weeks. Its distributor Teodora Film led a campaign of preview screenings over four weeks in the lead-up to the film's release, a strategy which has proved successful in past years. In this way, Teodora has achieved in Italy the best performances outside France for auteur films such as 17 Filles (35,000 admissions), Tomboy (93,000), Sister (63,000), Goodbye First Love! (20,000), and The Father of My Children (38,000).
Le Fils de l’autre currently posts a running total of 253,000 admissions in international theaters.
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