Hey guys, I am absolutely hooked on foreign films. Its like travelling! Here are some of the really good movies that I have seen lately: The Syrian Bride (takes place on the Gaza strip) Broken Wing (Israeli, the actors and actresses in this flick are totally gorgeous) Ponette (French film, about a five year old Catholic girl whose mother has died) Eve and the Fire Horse (about growing up Chinese in the '70s in Canada, in Chinese and English) The Taste of Cherry (Iranian) Baran (Iranian) Tsotsi (South African, won the academy award for best foreign film in 2005) tons of Bollywood stuff: Rang de Basanti (about corruption in India, changed the country, people came out in the streets to demonstrate support after watching this movie) Page Three (the secret life of high society Delhi, won a National Award in India) Khosla ka Ghosla (about people who have their property stolen by housing sharks in northern India, really cute and funny) Number 36, Chinatown (comedy/ murder mystery set at a casino in India, also really funny)
Anyway, I would LOVE some more suggestions on interesting foreign stuff to watch. Can be from anywhere.. thanks, ladies..
"Monsieur Ibrahim et les fleurs du Coran" a wonderful French film with Omar Shariff (who I adore) about an old Muslim man who befriends a little Jewish boy
Au Revoir, Les Enfants (heartwrenching!) In The Mood for Love Hard Boiled (I love me some Chow Yun Fat) I also love the films of Jean Renoir
My sister used to work for a dvd company and gave me tons of films from the Criterion Collection. I haven't watched all of them (thanks for reminding me, it's going to be bitterly cold this weekend and I'm planning to hunker down), but they have really good titles, both foreign and domestic. Check out their website: http://www.criterion.com/asp/
Pan's Labyrinth (Spanish. The director is Mexican.) Amores Perros (Mexican) Goodbye Lenin (German) La Jetee (French) City of God (Brazil, haven't seen it, but heard it's great) Run Lola Run (German) My Left Foot (Ireland) Little Voice (UK) And check out Wong Kar Wai, he's a Chinese director. I can't remember the titles of his movies, but he's an auteur and he got lots of recognition at Cannes a few years back. I think he does kind of bloody action movies.
He Loves Me He Loves Me Not - a French film with Audrey Tautou. It's an amazing movie show twice in two different characters perspectives that put's a HUGE twist on the story.
An American In Paris (when I watched this i told myself if i ever think im in love, i have to come back and watch this again, if the man doesnt treat me like the guy in this movie, dump him. lol) El norte
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Carrie Bradshaw: The fact is, sometimes it's really hard to walk in a single woman's shoes. That's why we need really special ones now and then to make the walk a little more fun.
I actually haven't seen, but two of the people I work with really like him and they have sophisticated tastes. Kind of dark.
If you haven't seen anime, you should definitely check out Miyazaki (Japanese). My favorite is Princess Mononoke, but Nausica, Howl's Moving Castle, and Spirited Away are all really good. So imaginative and dream like, but explores important themes.
Already recommended, but my roommates both like Delicatessan and Monsieur Ibrahim.
Godard (French)- Breathless, Bande a part, Masculin feminin
Persepolis (Iranian/French)- haven't seen the movie but the graphic novel is fabulous. A little girl growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution, funny and heartbreaking.
Tokyo Story (Japanese)- also haven't seen, not uplifting either, but my dad said it's one of the best movies he's ever seen, will make you think about your relationship with your parents: http://www.amazon.com/Tokyo-Story-Collection-Keiko-Kishi/dp/B00005JLV7/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1200839141&sr=8-1
Shall we dance (Japanese)- one of my mom's favorites, happy
The Up Series (British)- documentary, 14 kids from a variety of backgrounds are interviewed every 7 years, starting in 1963 at the age of 7. I think age 49 was the most recent. These kids are exactly my dads age (he was born in 1956), so it's fun to watch it with him. Really interesting study on society, upbringing, hardships, and why we turn out the way we do.
Great movie, but it's extremely violent and the subject matter is dogfighting, so be forewarned (I was not, and I wish I had been). "Y Tu Mama Tambien" is also a wonderful movie with a similar cast (same director too, I think) and it's not violent that I can remember.
Off the top of my head: -Almost anything by Werner Herzog, but I especially love Aguirre and Fitzcarraldo. -Almodovar movies are usually fun - Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, Volver, etc. -Wings of Desire -Umbrellas of Cherbourg -Eyes without a Face - if you want to see a foreign spooky/horror film, this is one of the eeriest movies -Diva - if you're in the mood for an action/thriller movie -The 400 Blows
lynnie - the uncut version of F&A is playing at the IFC Film Center through Thursday. It's in 2 parts though and you have to pay twice, which is part of the reason that I'm not going.
boobaby - a lot of Criterion dvds are out of print and go for crazy amounts of money on ebay. Or at least they used to. I sold a less popular one for a decent profit and figure if I want to see it again I'll get it from Netflix.
boobaby - a lot of Criterion dvds are out of print and go for crazy amounts of money on ebay. Or at least they used to. I sold a less popular one for a decent profit and figure if I want to see it again I'll get it from Netflix.
I know! My sister could make a killing but she is such a fan I doubt she would sell them. Most of mine are just in blank jewel cases, so therefore are probably not worth anything. The only ones I have in the original packaging are a couple of Jean Renoir films (and the french version of Three Men and a Baby-lol)