Meanings
- uncountablebroadcastingA French film movement of the 1980s and 1990s, characterized by its spectacular visual style (“le look”).
Ginette Vincendeau describes the cinéma du look as a typical example of ‘mainstream co-optation’ of ‘avant-garde, artisanal, or auteur’ cinema (1996: 14).
2008, Rosanna Maule, Beyond Auteurism: New Directions in Authorial Film Practices in France, Italy and Spain Since the 1980s, Intellect Books, →ISBN, page 901 more example
However, the 1980s also saw the development of cinéma du look, a “hip” movement in French film that features “cool,” sometimes surreal, cinematography, a high-speed montage style, and visual effects influenced by the technical virtuosity of advertising.
2011, Martha P. Nochimson, World on Film: An Introduction, John Wiley & Sons, →ISBN
Origin
- Frenchcinéma du look
- Englishcinéma du look
From French cinéma du look, coined by French film critic Raphaël Bassan.
More words from French
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
cinéma du look. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cin%C3%A9ma%20du%20look
“cinéma du look.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cin%C3%A9ma%20du%20look. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “cinéma du look,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cin%C3%A9ma%20du%20look.
Source: cinéma du look on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.