I want to expand my foreign film repertoire. Any recommendations?

[librarycard]

I have Jean de Florette, Manon of the Spring, Babette's Feast, My Life as a Dog, Il Postino, Cinema Paradiso, Le Gran Chemin, Ju-Dou, and Wish You Were Here

What do you suggest?

[Beware the Beast Man]

1. William Shatner was the premier Esperanto actor of his day.

:hi:

[Ruby Romaine]

12. Do you mean

one of the worst movies ever- entirely in Esperanto -Incubus.
I saw it recently it was really bad.

[villager]

2. Bunuel films. Costa-Gavras...

especially "Z" and "State of Siege," directed by the latter...

[AllegroRondo]

3. Amelie

wonderful film. Audrey Tatou is amazing.

[Richardo]

7. I second 'Amelie', and also suggest 'Triplets of Belleville'

:thumbsup:

[gardenista]

52. Not so hot on Amelie, but Triplets of Belleville, I loved! nt

[gardenista]

55. Self delete

[jakpalmer]

98. You might like "Delicatessen"

It's my favorite Jeunet's movie.

[democracyindanger]

4. Tampopo

[skypilot]

5. "Toto le Hero"

Saw it years ago and have forgotten alot of it but I do remember thinking at the time that it was really wonderful.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0103105/?fr=c2l0ZT1kZnxteD0yMHxzZz0xfGxtPTIwMHx0dD1vbnxwbj0wfHE9dG90byBsZSBoZXJvfGh0bWw9MXxubT1vbg__;fc=1;ft=1

[stellanoir]

6. "Diva"

[ursacorwin]

8. queen morgot

8 1/2
raise the red lantern
to live

[Patiod]

76. Raise the Red Lantern is absolutely haunting

Not a good movie to see if you're depressed (but what on this list is?) It's one of those movies that stays with you for years.

[AlCzervik]

9. "Secrets and Lies" i love that one

[RUDUing2]

10. I really like "Purple Noon"...

http://movie-reviews.colossus.net/movies/p/purple.html

[Patsy Stone]

11. Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown

Delicatessen
City of Lost Children -- Hell, all Jeune et Caro.

[AlCzervik]

13. The triplets of Belville

i forgot about that one.

[Kathy in Cambridge]

14. "Au Revoir Les Enfants", "Breathless", "All About My Mother"

Two Fellini movies: "La Strada" and "La Dolce Vita"

An old Fritz Lang movie: "M"

A Fassbinder movie: "The Marriage of Maria Braun"

"Mephisto" (if you can find it)

A Kurosawa Movie: "Seven Samurai"

Jean Renoir: "Grand Illusion"

"The Bicycle Thief"

"the Return of Martin Guerre"

[librarycard]

15. Au Revoir Les Enfants

I do have that one--amazing story

[Kathy in Cambridge]

24. Amazing TRUE Story

makes me :cry: every time!

[librarycard]

25. the perfect arian face

turns out to be Jewish

I usually can't watch WWII movies, but that one I can.

[u4ic]

27. M is a great one

[mistertrickster]

16. IL Postino (Italian, Massimo Troisi) may be one of the best films ever

made, IMHO. "Good bye, Lenin," (German) is also very cute.

For slapstick comedy, you cannot beat "The Visitors" (the original French movie).

I didn't see the re-make in English, but the trailers looked bad.

Also, the original "Shall We Dance" (Japanese) is great.

[librarycard]

18. Shall we dance

I have that one as well--I agree, it's a good one.

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

17. Any Kurosawa, Miyazaki, Bergman - see Kwaidan by Kobiyashi

[Nosmo King]

26. If you go Kurosawa, go Criterion

The Criterion Collection on DVD, particularly RAN and RASHOMON are well worth a look! They are presented in the original Japanese and subtitled in English, so listening to the accompanying commentary is easy and informative.

[auburngrad82]

29. The Seven Samurai is a lot of fun eom

[Squatch]

19. Die Brucke

[BrklynLiberal]

20. Hiroshima, mon amour

[TlalocW]

21. Como Aqua Para Chocolate

(Like Water for Chocolate)
and
Close to Eden

TlalocW

[librarycard]

23. I have that one, too. Love it

:)

[Jesus H. Christ]

22. "City of God"

Very good, but you'll need a high tolerance for violence.

[mark414]

45. second that

outrageously powerful, and based on true events

[BurtWorm]

28. Go back in history

Classic silents:

Un chien andalou (Luis Bunuel and Salvador Dali)
Pandora's Box (with Louise Brooks)
Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (German horror classic)
M (Fritz Lang, might be a talkie now that I think of it)
Nosferatu (German)
Battleship Potemkin (Eisenstein, Soviet)

Early talkies
Boudu sauve des eaux (Boudu saved from drowning) (Renoir, remade as Down and Out in Beverly Hills)
Les regles des jeux (Rules of the Game, great Renoir film)
The Three-Penny Opera (Great German movie)
Pepe le Moko (later remade as Algiers)

Great films of the 1950s and 1960s
Smiles of a Summer Night (rare Bergman comedy, was the basis for A Little Night Music)
Wild Strawberries (characteristic Bergman drama from the 1960s, a beautiful film)
La Dolce Vita (great Fellini movie)
Rashomon (must-see Kurasawa)
Apu Trilogy (beautiful films by Satyajit Ray of India)
Diabolique (by France's Hitchcock, Georges Clouzot)
Jeux Inderdit (Forbidden Games, poignant anti-war film from France)
400 Blows (Truffaut's first movie, autobiographical)
Breathless (A bout de souffle) (Godard's debut, classic nouvelle vague)


Great films of the 1970s
Murmurs of the Heart (Louis Malle, a great, funny movie about incest!)
Aguirre, the Wrath of God (Werner Herzog, breathtaking example of German New Wave)
Ran (A gorgeous masterpiece by Kurosawa)
The Magic Flute (Bergman's version of Mozart, sung in Swedish)
The Marriage of Maria Braun (Fassbinder, with the beautiful, sexy Hannah Schygulla)

Enjoy your research!

[librarycard]

34. Werner Herzog

I remember that one from my days dating a PhD physicist, who rivaled Klaus Kinsky in intensity. That film personifies my 1980's.

[Must_B_Free]

61. werner herzog eats a shoe

[u4ic]

30. Zentropa

Insomnia
Johnny Stecchino
Pelle the Conqueror
The Best Intentions
Emma's Shadow
The Kingdom (mini series, but a great one nonetheless)
Fanny & Alexander
Das Boot
Colonel Redl
Mephisto
Nosferatu
Lilies (ok, it's Canadian)

[librarycard]

32. I remember Das Boot

Excellent. Don't own it, but loved it.

[Joe Power]

31. The Seven Samarai, Dreams, Roshomon

[Patiod]

33. Wow - you have a lot of my favorites already!

"Lost in Transit" is wonderful - (Tombés du ciel" is the French title). It's much the same movie as the recent Tom Hanks "The Terminal" about a guy stuck in an airport, but more magical/realist.

Also, "Children of Paradise" ("Les enfants du paradis") long, but stunning. The folks on imdb do a much better job summing it up than I could hope to do -- http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0037674/usercomments

[bettyellen]

35. Yep "Children of Paradise" is epic, so beautifully written and

the costumes and sets are gorgeous too! The characters are unforgettable. It's referred to as the French Gone With the Wind. But it's a much better story than GWTW, IMHO.
The characters are unforgettable.

[BurtWorm]

36. Great movie!

I was in love with Arletty after I saw it.

Another great one is La belle et la bete, by Jean Cocteau.

[bettyellen]

38. Another must see: L. Starewicz's Amazing Old Animations

beautiful, crazy animation, his imagery  was ripped off by
spielberg, tim burton, jean renoir -- all of them were so
inspired. disney tried to get him to go to hollywood in the
30's, but he stayed in paris, thank god and made the quirkiest
short films ever. 

he made gorgeous stop action animation (i am not usually into
animation at all) with crazy adult themes, adultry,
drunkeness, and  gambling, lots of freaky demons and very
amusing stories. he did one using real insects for the adultry
story (camerman's revenge).. there's an exotic dancer- a
writhing dragonfly on stage at a club!! 
go take a look- it's awesome!! 

http://www.awn.com/heaven_and_hell/STARE/stare6.htm

[BurtWorm]

39. He sounds very interesting.

Never heard of him. Thanks for the tip! :toast:

[bettyellen]

50. so amazing to look at and you get some deja vu, because he's been so

ripped off. i saw some old stuff at a show and since it's silent, people were yelling out the names of movies that had ripped off the scenes as they were shown. actually there is something from la belle et la bete in there- you made me remember Starewicz. i wish i had a good memory for that stuff. it was pretty wild how influencial he was.
from your own list i can say i think you will appreciate him.
anyway, i hope so, and you are welcome!

[C_eh_N_eh_D_eh]

37. Attanarjuat, the Fast Runner (Inuit)

Just for something beyond the obvious.

[Az]

60. Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaggggggggggghhhhhh

Damn near chewed my own leg off in that movie. I will allow for taste but for me that movie was shear torture.

[warrens]

40. Betty Blue

Thank me later

[VOX]

41. Jacques Tati's comedies: Jour de Fete, Mr. Hulot's Holiday, Mon Oncle and

Playtime.

These are absolutely delightful films: skewed, surreal, gentle, and sweet in a non-cloying way.

[gardenista]

51. I second that! Start with Mr. Hulot's Holiday and then move your way

through to finish with Playtime.

[chaska]

92. Mon Oncle is brilliant. Holiday didn't do it for me.

[mattclearing]

42. There is a movie available through Netflix/Film Movement called "Hop"

I highly recommend it.

And pretty much anything else from Film Movement.

[ET Awful]

43. Life is Beautiful / La Vita è bella - Roberto Benigni n/t

[non sociopath skin]

63. Read about it first - it was pretty controversial.

I was one of those who did not think that a sub-Chaplinesque sentimental comedy set in a nazi concentration camp was a fun idea.

The Skin

[ET Awful]

73. Perhaps you, as many, missed the underlying meaning and story

of making the ultimate sacrifice for those you love?

[Zenlitened]

44. Ma Vie En Rose

http://video.barnesandnoble.com/search/product.asp?ean=43396039513&userid=gu5fpeLAht&frm=0&itm=1

[Dzimbowicz]

46. Some suggestions...

Good-bye Lenin! (German)
Europa Europa (Hebrew, German, Polish and Russian)
Anatomy (German)
Run Lola Run (German)
Medeterraneo (Italian and Greek)
Heaven (Italian and English)
Erendita (Spanish)
Somewhere in Africa (German)

[Lydia Leftcoast]

48. That's "Nowhere in Africa"

and it's a superb film about German Jewish refugees in Kenya. It richly deserved its Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film a couple of years ago.

I like some of these obscurities:

The Other Side of Sunday (Norway) about a girl growing up in a fundamentalist family

Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors (Ukrainian) visually and musically stunning story of a man who cannot come to terms with the death of his first love

Peking Opera Blues (Hong Kong) This is an absolutely hilarious (except for one icky scene) slapstick comedy, featuring sight gags that you've never seen before, plus amusingly awkward subtitles

The Vanishing (Netherlands) This is NOT the copout Hollywood version but the understated and chilling European original

Hamsun (Norway) Max von Sydow is excellent as writer Knut Hamsun, Norway's Nobel Prize winner for literature and an utterly despicable human being

Burnt by the Sun (Russia) A genial Old Bolshevik is spending a pleasant summer in the country with his young wife and their little daughter when his wife's ex-lover shows up, bringing several kinds of trouble. Another Best Foreign Language Film Oscar winner.

Home Village (Japan) A rural Japanese family doesn't know what to do with Grandpa, who is in the early stages of Alzheimer's. A touching film with a superb performance by the actor playing the grandfather

Peppermint Candy (Korea) A man commits suicide at his twentieth high school reunion. The film goes backward in time (not like Memento, but in longer segments) to trace the reasons for his despair.

Honey for Oshun (Cuba) Cuba has been the subject of many flame wars on DU, but this film, built around the story of a Cuban-American man who goes to the island to look for his mother, shows both the good and the bad as the main character and his cousin travel around the country following up on clues.

Clockwise (U.K.) I don't know why this particular British comedy never made it big in the States, especially with John Cleese in the lead role, but it's hilarious. Cleese plays (what else?) a pompous ass of a school headmaster whose life falls apart in every possible way after he takes a wrong turn in a train station.

[Dzimbowicz]

74. That's correct

My mistake.

[yellowdogintexas]

47. "Cousin, Cousine", "Belle Epoche"

are two that I liked which have not already been mentioned here.

[Bullwinkle925]

49. Il Mostro, Malena, Xiu Xiu (The Sent Down Girl) .......

Motorycycle Diaries, Eat Drink Man Woman, - and whenever they come out on dvd - Shirley Valentine, Raise the Red Lantern, Mediterraneo.


Just to name a few.

Have fun!

[Kenneth ken]

53. Walkabout

& Rabbit-Proof Fence.

Not all foreign films have to be foreign language films :D

[Patiod]

77. In that case, I'll add "The Dish" and "The Castle"

Our local art video store (TLA) displays films by country, so one summer S.O. and I had an "Australian Film Festival" (90% of the films featured Sam Neill).

"The Castle" is a wonderful dark comedy.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

81. Two more politically-tinged Aussie films:

The Bank: A cut-throat group of bankers is approached by a young computer genius who shows convincingly that he can predict the stock market. He makes piles of money for the bank and does something really despicable to keep his job. But that's not the end of the story...

The Fringe Dwellers: This drama aboutf racism against Aborigines in Australia contains incidents and attitudes uncomfortably familiar to anyone who knows about the circumstances of African-Americans and Native Americans here. Within a single family, we see the range of reactions to being the object of racism: depression, living down to the stereotype, trying to assimilate, a "chip on the shoulder" attitude, rediscovery of ancestral traditions, and political activism.

[miss_kitty]

54. Orphee, La Belle et la Bete

both by Cocteau, and Wings of Desire.

[ulysses]

99. glad someone said Wings of Desire.

Beautiful film.

[gardenista]

56. Check out the films in the Criterion Collection

Some of my favorites are:

Pepe le Moko

Bob le Flambeur

Coup de torchon

Good Morning


http://criterioncollection.com/asp/

WARNING: You may get addicted to the collection. My husband is. He has most of them. It's his only folly.

[Az]

57. Akira Kurosawa and others

Probably the greatest director to ever live. Notable Films: Ran, Seven Samurai, Roshamon, Sanjuro, Yojimbo, and Dreams.

The big question here is are you looking for Master Peace Theater quality or are you open to more adventurous ideas.

In the adventerous territory may I suggest:

Hero (Stunning visuals)
Price of Milk
Tuvalu
Run Lola Run
Akira
Ghost in the Shell
Lagaan (This movie is a commitment (4hrs) but worth it)
Autumn Spring
Princess Mononoke
Spirited Away
My Friend Totoro
Azumi
Sky High
Iron Ladies
Road Home
Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon
Raise the Red Latern
Audition
Brotherhood of the Wolf
Iron Monkey
Life is Beautiful
Delicatesen
Whale Rider
Tampopo
Bend it Like Backham
Monsoon Wedding
Amelie

If you get through that list of movies you will have taken a tour across most of the major film studios of the world.

[CanuckAmok]

58. Some new French pseudo-realism: "La Haine" ("Hate"), and "Man Bites Dog"

"Man Bites Dog" is one of my favourite films, and it's spooky in its timliness... it's about a reality show being made about a serial killer, while he's on the loose. Brilliant.

A few other excellent films: "The Vanishing" (not the lame US remake, but the original European version)...

"Wings of Desire", one of the best films ever made, IMO.

"City of Lost Children" and/or "Delicatessen"...

"The Celebration", or anything else by Lars von Trier. Notice, by the way, that von Trier's films are almost entirely shot using available natural light sources...very little studio lighting is used.

"La Jette", an short film which is a series of still photographs which tell a story... It was the basis for the story which eventually became "12 Monkeys".

I can't think of any more off-hand...I will sleep in it, though.

I say avoid Fellini, though... I think he's always been over-rated, and he's undeniably dated, in any event.

[Az]

59. Don't get me started on the remake

of Vanishing. Good grief.

I took a friend of mine raised on uberviolent flicks to see the original vanishing and he walked out of the film shaking. It really got to him.

In the same vein as Vanishing another great work from Europe was The Comfort of Strangers. Christopher Walken did some of his best in this movie. I still get his intro speech in my head sometimes.

[Must_B_Free]

62. The Gods Must Be Crazy

[non sociopath skin]

64. Some great suggestions here, LC ... but no collection is complete without

... something by the great Federico Fellini. My personal favourite is Amacord although Dolce Vita was his most popular movie.

The Skin

[Calliope]

65. The Barbarian Invasion

[Undercover Owl]

66. Run Lola Run n/t

[Lilith Velkor]

67. Y Tu Mama Tambien

dir. Alfonso Cuaron, who did the 3rd Harry Potter flick. Lotsa fucking in it.

[bettyellen]

68. all about my mother and tie me up tie me down (aldomavar)

[jonnyblitz]

90. anything by aldomaver!

[Az]

69. Technically Lord of the Rings is a foreign film

:D

[neweurope]

70. Eisenstein and Tarkowskij:

Everything by Andrej Tarkowskij - especially
Ivan's childhood
Solaris
Stalker
Andrej Rubljow
Nostalghia

A MUST is "Bronenosez Potemkin" by Sergej Eisenstein (1925). I wouldn't know the English title. "Bronenosez" means "armoured cruiser".

Also everything by Kurosawa.

[Gardeaux08]

71. Camille Claudel n/t

[Pert_UK]

72. Tears of the Black Tiger - a tragic Thai love-story Western comedy.....

with a dwarf on a Shetland pony.

BEAUTIFULLY shot (coloured like The Wizard of Oz) and a tragic love story, featuring explosions and gunfights.

A great film.

[Tikki]

75. "Central Station" (1998).....Brazilian.

n/t

[Patiod]

78. Can you imagine this thread on Free Republic?

I picture recommendations for "Birth of a Nation" and some Leni Riefenstahl favorites maybe

[Az]

79. Their idea of foreign films would include the McKenzy Brothers flicks

[librarycard]

96. I picture Roy Rogers and "Hoppie" recommendations from Freeperville

The irony of that genre was that the actors mixed a melancholy romance through their music with an otherwise violent "shoot-em-up" theme. Reminds me of the US in Iraq today, as we mix the romantic fantasy of liberty with death and destruction.

[Krupskaya]

80. Russian/Soviet films that rock include

"Burned by the Sun," the original "Solaris," and anything by Eisenstein, but my favorite is "Ivan the Terrible," which we watch every winter, usually around Christmas or New Years.

[WMliberal]

86. a great Glasnost era one is

Council for the Defense Sidov.

Takes place during the purges of the 1930's. A lawyer finds a guy who is arrested on trumped up charges and tries to clear his name. He feels better when he finds out that he has saved a life, but the party turns around and arrests 12 men for the same crime.

[Bitter Betty]

82. Anything by Ingmar Bergman

My favorite is Persona, but I'm still making my way through them. They are in Swedish w/subtitles & are usually rather depressing. But they are kind of addicting (I guess if you are a morbidly depressed kind of person).

[SKKY]

83. I can only speak to what I've seen personally...

...But "Talk to Her (Hable con ella)" by Pedro Almodovar is absolutely freakin' phenominal. Some others I really liked enough to buy were:

"Y tu mama tambien (And your mother too)" by Alfonso Cuaron
"Malena" by Giuseppe Tornatore
"La vita e bella (Life is Beautiful)" by Roberto Benigni
"Il Postino (The Postman)" by Michael Radford

[LDS Jock]

84. "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" and "Murriel's Wedding"

OK, not exactly heavy drama, but both enjoyable. :P

[librarycard]

95. Muriel's Wedding did caricature well

The facial expressions on the actors were right out of Mad Magazine--great stuff.

I'm glad Abba finally agreed to allow their music to be used in that film.

[Zomby Woof]

85. Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown

[LynzM]

87. Lola Rennt

Fun and silly and weird :)

Also, der Krieger und die Kaiserin

Lots of other great suggestions on this thread, too!

[davis_islander]

88. Montenegro!

With Susan Anspach. It is surreal! An amazing film!

[timtom]

89. I didn't read all the replies first,

so here goes:

The Italians! Always the Italians! (from "Amadeus).

The original "Swept Away" dir. Lina Wertmuller
"Seven Beauties" dir. Lina Wertmuller

"Seduced and Abandoned" dir. Pietri Germi

"Bread and Chocolate" (Can't remember the director)

A good French one

"The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoise" dir. Bunuel

And the Japanese....

"The 'Samurai' Trilogy"

Just a few of my faves off the top of my head.

Good hunting!

[Kurovski]

91. La Dolce Vita

Media as whores, stalkers.

Religion used to make a buck.

Intelligence, wealth, fame no guarantee of the good life.

Maybe the girl on the beach knows?

Visually stunning from beggining to end.

It's out on DVD now.

[chaska]

93. Delicatessen, All the Mornings of the World - both French.

[chaska]

94. Black Robe - Canadian.

[terrya]

97. Truffaut. "The 400 Blows" is a good starter.

[jakpalmer]

100. The Dinner Game

A French comedy by Francis Veber (original title: "Le diner de cons").
See the comments http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119038/">here.

[liberalitch]

101. The Advocate

It's french
apparently in the middle ages animals could be tried for crimes and the story centers around an event in a "animal defense" attorney's life.
... something about jewish gypsies and the plague
It's a black comedy