Lets dig up some non English language gems. I love world cinema because every culture has different ways of telling a story. Sometimes the most unlikely of places deliver the most powerful movies. Here’s my top 5 in no particular order, lets see yours.
[B]Incendes (2010 French Canadian) [/B] [url]http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1255953/?ref_=sr_1[/url]
Dennis Villeneuve delivers a fascinating story that starts with 2 twins hearing their mother's will being read. The catch that is their mother has left them a quest which will be an adventure into the past that will reveal their past as well as one of their mothers. The story switches between past and present and shows the futility of war, religious conflict whilst giving little snippets of info that allow you, the viewer to piece things together. Fans of Villeneuve will be glad to hear he's now making a film in Hollywood called 'Prisoners' with some a-list actors, lets hope it doesn't kill his story telling skills.
[img]http://sadpanda.us/images/1400918-AH2DK6R.jpg[/img]
[b]Cyrano de Bergerac (1990 French)[/b] [url]http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0099334/?ref_=sr_1[/url]
Gerrard Depardieu leads in this story of love withheld. Can a man with a huge nose court a beautiful woman? The story is simple but touching because looks can get you the girl but love runs much deeper than what the eyes behold. The sets are delicious because they are set in the frilly period of the musketeers and the language of love in its native French tongue sounds wonderful. Overall its a great bit of fun and moving at the same time.
[img]http://sadpanda.us/images/1657555-MPWYDWX.jpg[/img]
[B]Goodbye Lenin (2003 Germany)[/B] [url]http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0301357/?ref_=sr_1[/url]
When the Berlin wall fell it completely changed Eastern Germany. Their eyes were opened to the capitalist economy and the propaganda machine was gone. The only problem was, some were clinging on to the old way and found it hard to change. That’s the dilemma the characters in this film are faced with but the circumstances are not so simple as they were for most. This film is funny, touching and really hits on those small details that make the pre wall era so real without dramatising it. Fans of this will enjoy 'Lives of others' and other films the lead actor Daniel Bruhl stars in.
[img]http://sadpanda.us/images/1657879-AEPIEPW.jpg[/img]
[B]City of God (2002 Brazil)[/B] [url]http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0317248/?ref_=sr_1[/url]
The energy of the Brazilian favellas in Rio couldn't have been easy to capture. This isn't filmed like a documentary but you really get into the guts of the community and the characters it follows. You understand how cheap and throw away life is in these places when somebody will get snuffed just for being in the wrong place or saying the wrong thing. The performances are honest and very fly on the wall in the way they seem oblivious to the camera, no fancy posturing, just a nice, warm sepia tone to add to the aged feel of the experience. Fans of this should try the sequel and the two 'Elite Squad' films.
[img]http://sadpanda.us/images/1657872-A3FWUDT.jpg[/img]
[B]Dersu Uzala (1975 Japan/Russia)[/B] [url]http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0071411/?ref_=sr_1[/url]
Anyone claiming director Akira Kurosawa is a one trick, samurai pony will think again after this one. Its about a Russian army explorer going into Siberia with a mongol looking guide and the friendship that follows. Both men come from very different worlds but Kurosawa crafts a human connection that spans these social gaps so that you give a shit about them both. The cinematography of the area is breathtaking and natural. There won't be another film-maker like this man.
[img]http://sadpanda.us/images/1657875-VJT8HI9.jpg[/img]
Did I say top 5? I could have dumped another 50 films just as good as these. Hit me back, I want something I've not seen, filmpunch always delivers good shit.
i'll have to think about it a little but a few contenders for my list probably includes:
Ugetsu - very beautiful film, simple fable-like story yet deep feels all the way round
Amarcord - has some of the biggest tits in cinema history
The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie - just plain fun
and something by Werner Herzog and Ozu, I guess. I'm also fond of The Killer, Persona, and Chungking Express.
pretty generic choices, but i'm a big dumb babby, so please excuse me.
[url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1230385/]The Yellow Sea[/url] (South Korean)
[url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0266308/]Battle Royale[/url] (Japanese)
[url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0364569/]Oldboy[/url] (South Korean)
[url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0266075/]Memento Mori[/url] (South Korean)
[url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0881200/]Assembly[/url] (Chinese)
just read the imdb pages for them if you're interested in a description. Out of the 5, Battle Royale is my favorite and Oldboy and Assembly tie for second.
Oldboy is really great. Have you checked out the other "Vengeace trilogy" films? I've seen the Lady Vengeance one, and really liked it. The director has such a nice pitch black sense of humour without being too "cute" about it. It's great.
I found out that Quentin Tarantino rated Battle Royal as the best film from the beginning of the 90's, quite surprised me. Heres another rec>
[B]Salo, 120 days of Sodom (Italy 1975)[/B] [url]http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0073650/?ref_=sr_1[/url]
Based on the writings of the infamous Maquis de Sade it follows 4 Italian fascists who round up some borderline, young adults for a few days of sexual violence and torture. They have ritualistic practices that are preplanned and mechanisms to get them in the mood. Rarely is such evil so convincing, these 4 actors are firing on all cylinders. It's graphic, uncompromising and disgusting but thats the point of art and cinema, to feel something but the problem is this provokes disgust. It's good to be alive!
[img]http://sadpanda.us/images/1659197-FSZMN8T.jpg[/img]
very tough to make a top 5, but for this moment it'll be:
[img]http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_y_pNXOK-nmM/SOpBL89HUGI/AAAAAAAAAn8/F55FYNkDaT8/s320/2798684520084807748S600x600Q85.jpg[/img][img]http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_cudK8MwW64I/TEnQ67VzOxI/AAAAAAAAmNI/vAJvdEHKxrc/s320/pather-panchali.jpg[/img][img]http://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/wang/programs/Departures.jpg[/img][img]http://fest-film.ru/_ld/1/08655482.jpg[/img][img]http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VkAsLRzEnd4/Tl_QPMij7eI/AAAAAAAALrk/EgVXCoKYj1A/s1600/Flores+de+Xangai+%2528Flowers+of+Shanghai%2529+%25281998%2529.jpg[/img]
I have not seen any Wong-Kar Wai films yet so expect this to change :-)
[QUOTE=AK'z;40970882]
I have not seen any Wong-Kar Wai films yet so expect this to change :-)[/QUOTE]
Is that 4th one seven samurai? I see Toshiro Mifune on the cover there. Departures was one of the best I've seen in a long time. Yes, 5 is hard.
[QUOTE=judedozer;40970328]
[B]Salo, 120 days of Sodom (Italy 1975)[/B][/QUOTE]
I like how he also made a Jesus movie as well.
[editline]10th June 2013[/editline]
[url]http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0058715/?ref_=sr_1[/url]
intrigues me how successful foreign language films can be by English directors:
[img]http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uH_K-9IHmAA/Tpmdlq0V0JI/AAAAAAAAQww/SE9sN4mvcGQ/s400/Apocalypto.jpg[/img][img]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/8/87/Letters_from_Iwo_Jima.jpg/220px-Letters_from_Iwo_Jima.jpg[/img][img]http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41GC2FCBS1L.jpg[/img]
I really want to see these:
[img]http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o202/akayz_people/MV5BODY4MzcxOTAxNV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwOTY1MzMzMQ_V1_SY317_CR30214317_.jpg[/img][img]http://www.fotogramas.es/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/peliculas/soy-cuba/130796-1-esl-ES/Soy-Cuba1_cartel_peli.jpg[/img]
[QUOTE=AK'z;40991094]intrigues me how successful foreign language films can be by English directors:
I really want to see these:
[/QUOTE]
Funny you say that as I watched raid redemption a while back and found out the director was Welsh. Are there no directors in Indonesia up to the task?
Great thread, I hope it gets many replies.Beyond the popular foreign movies of kurosawa,bergman,revenge trilogy,apocalypto,cidade deus that have been posted i would also add those lesser known gems:
[IMG]http://media-cache-ak1.pinimg.com/550x/b0/59/60/b059604029d0283325f8d03a34ab902e.jpg[/IMG]
Two Soviet partisans depart their starving band on a short march to a nearby farm to get supplies. The Germans have reached the farm first, so the pair must go on a journey deep into occupied territory, a voyage that will also take them deep into their souls.
[IMG]http://media-cache-ec4.pinimg.com/550x/ca/bc/83/cabc83bc2c9c0747e875adf75c5fb3d7.jpg[/IMG]
A group of juvenile delinquents live a violent and crime-filled life in the festering slums of Mexico City, and the morals of young Pedro are gradually corrupted and destroyed by the others...
[IMG]https://fbcdn-sphotos-c-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/58014_438691009553058_975055547_n.jpg[/IMG]
Intensely touching story of a misunderstood young adolescent who left without attention, delves into a life of petty crime.
[IMG]http://static.rateyourmusic.com/lk/l/F/40cfa21911292cbc945a6bbdcfd6bbcf/4699857.jpg[/IMG]
A guide leads two men through an area known as the Zone to find a room that grants wishes.
[IMG]http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/550x/15/cb/fc/15cbfc774332f048730d84e719e13382.jpg[/IMG]
In a decrepit South American village, men are hired to transport an urgent nitroglycerine shipment without the equipment that would make it safe.
[IMG]http://media-cache-ak2.pinimg.com/550x/42/3e/60/423e6063762ef91a0ba1e9e8def7b20a.jpg[/IMG]
In the closing days of WWII remnants of the Japanese army in Leyte are abandoned by their command and face certain starvation.
[IMG]http://media-cache-ec4.pinimg.com/550x/83/61/05/8361054bc546baa48e239b88822225e8.jpg[/IMG]
After finding an old rifle, a young boy joins the Soviet Army and experiences the horrors of World War II.
[IMG]http://media-cache-ec2.pinimg.com/550x/40/a2/61/40a2613df9d0e30c9d0ccec6579ddabd.jpg[/IMG]
In the 16th century, the ruthless and insane Aguirre leads a Spanish expedition in search of El Dorado.
[IMG]http://s3.amazonaws.com/criterion-production/release_images/2428/491_box_348x490.jpg?1328128339[/IMG]
Following the murder of a prominent leftist, an investigator tries to uncover the truth while government officials attempt to cover up their roles.
This fills up all 5 of my slots
[img]http://goninmovieblog.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/dead_snow_poster_nw1.jpg[/img]
A+ movies I've just seen
[IMG]http://media-cache-ak1.pinimg.com/550x/9f/52/fe/9f52fe9e82f610f1a3c9b7304be09347.jpg[/IMG]
Two con artists try to swindle a stamp collector by selling him a sheet of counterfeit rare stamps (the "nine queens").
I can recommend you some Polish best films:
Kieślowski tier:
[img]http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7EvvPM9OrfA/UOa_Q4whErI/AAAAAAAABvc/K2BeoJxX2Vw/s1600/Three+Colours+Trilogy.jpg[/img]
Considered by me and many people to be one of the best trilogies of all time, Three Colours trilogy is loosely based on political ideals from French revolution: liberté, égalité, fraternité. Some people also interpretate it as an anti-tragedy, an anti-comedy, and an anti-romance.
[img]http://www.facets.org/decalogue/decalogue_cover3.jpg[/img]
Not a film, but must be mentioned every time with Kieślowski. TV series with 10 episodes, with independent stories inspired by Ten Commandments. Two of the episodes had become a fully featured movie - A Short Story about Killing, and A Short Story about Love. I found it similar to Three Colours.
[img]http://www.polish-posters.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/catablog/fullsize/amator.jpg[/img]
My favourite of his movies. Tells the story of a simple worker who finds a new hobby - creating amateur films. It becomes an obsession which completely transforms his life.
[img]https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/f5/Blind_Chance.jpg[/img]
Blind Chance tells how really innocent accident can change a man's life by showing three separate storylines.
War/Communism-orientated
[img]http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_HhuVE89Eoh8/TQTSHxl5kII/AAAAAAAAAco/2-tpeJZhMJM/s1600/ashes-and-diamonds.jpg[/img][img]http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41LSJDSSGNL.jpg[/img][img]http://www.film.gildia.pl/_n_/film/filmy/pokolenie/poster-600.jpg[/img][img]http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film/DVDReviews18/a%20Ryszard%20Bugajski%20Przesluchanie%20Interrogation%20DVD%20Review/poster2%20Ryszard%20Bugajski%20Przesluchanie%20Interrogation%20DVD%20Review.jpg[/img][img]http://www.pigasus-shop.de/images/product_images/popup_images/3058_0.jpg[/img][img]http://i.imgur.com/7NsPhB8.jpg[/img]
Other:
[img]http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mdrpxt6x5x1qg0vd5o1_1280.jpg[/img][img]http://horrorstory.blox.pl/resource/rekopisznaleziony_w_Sarragosie.plakat.jpg[/img][img]http://images.moviepostershop.com/the-hour-glass-sanatorium-movie-poster-1973-1020708548.jpg[/img][img]http://static1.stopklatka.pl/library/61/09/plakatglowny_bc899ee82439156.jpg/1.0/plakatglowny_bc899ee82439156.jpg[/img][img]http://www.zwoje-scrolls.com/zwoje28/poster47.jpg[/img][img]http://observatory.designobserver.com/media/images/Swierzy_525.jpg[/img]
I can also post comedies and more recent films if you like.
It's so easy to dedicate time to music than for movies but I really want to plough through a lot of films around the world...
[img]http://www.vam.ac.uk/users/sites/default/files/2006al3918_sholay.jpg[/img]
maybe the poster is a bit hyperbolic but still
[editline]17th June 2013[/editline]
[img]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/3e/Awaaraposter.jpg[/img]
also has the bonus of apparently being Chairman Mao's favourite film!
9 Queens and the 3 colours films from France afre all top notch classics.
This is on my hit list for this next week. I've heard great things about it and the lead actor from Denmark is usually a great watch.
[img]http://sadpanda.us/images/1677942-5GL5UX2.jpg[/img]
Theres been some interesting films posted here, I will try some of them.
[QUOTE=lolokaust;41086716]This is on my hit list for this next week. I've heard great things about it and the lead actor from Denmark is usually a great watch.
[img]http://sadpanda.us/images/1677942-5GL5UX2.jpg[/img][/QUOTE]
This is the ultimate "feels" movie. I've never felt like crying while watching a movie before. Top notch acting from Mikkelsen.
No order whatsoever. Just a few that I could think of at the moment.
[t]http://www.horror-fix.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/saunapromo.jpeg[/t]
Finnish horror set in a village in the middle of nowhere during the 16th century, and it is one of the rare horror movies I like because they're genuinely good! Another example of that would be...
[t]http://filmitch.files.wordpress.com/2011/01/noroi.jpg[/t]
...the Japanese found-footage film Noroi (The Curse). It's pretty fucking creepy!
[t]http://s3.discshop.se/img/front_large/49488/pistvakt_biofilmen.jpg[/t]
Attempted suicide, death, isolation and moonshine. Swedish Komedi in a nutshell!
[t]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c2/Godzillamothra1992.jpg[/t]
Because awesomeness. Pure awesomeness.
[t]http://www.shockcinemamagazine.com/international.jpg[/t]
Fundementalist muslim action movie filled with random singing and dancing. Also Salman Rushdie being killed by flying Korans. And 3 Batmen. And it's almost 3 hours long. With shitty video quality. From Pakistan. Need I say more?
Honourable mention due to how much I would have wanted to like it (It's quite mediocre):
[t]http://www.vcinemashow.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Pulgasari2.jpg[/t]
Pulgasari: Best Koreas first (and only) Kaiju film! Directed by a director from worst korea Gloriously and Honourably kidnapped on the order of (ex) Dear Leader Kim Jong-Il!
[img]https://fbcdn-sphotos-c-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/58014_438691009553058_975055547_n.jpg[/IMG]
I just watched it and I can safely say that it is incredible. I haven't really seen much Truffaut so it was a real treat to watch.
[img]http://sisterrose.files.wordpress.com/2009/01/class.jpg[/img]
The class, or Entre Les Murs, is pretty great too, I would recommend watching it.
I second the Three Colours. Amazing films.
[URL="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070040/"]El Espiritu de la Colmena / Spirit of the Beehive (1973)[/URL]
[IMG]http://i2.listal.com/image/226875/400full.jpg[/IMG]
[URL="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0364517/?ref_=sr_1"]Jeux d'Enfants / Love Me If You Dare (2003)[/URL]. The only romantic movie I like.
[IMG]http://img1.jike.com/get?name=T1IYHvB7Cv1RCvBVdK[/IMG]
[URL="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0050976/"]Det sjunde inseglet / The Seventh Seal (1957)[/URL]
[IMG]http://i40.tinypic.com/2v3lvg1.jpg[/IMG]
[URL="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0071691/?ref_=sr_1"]Jeder für sich und Gott gegen alle / The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser (1974)[/URL]
[IMG]http://static.rogerebert.com/uploads/movie/movie_poster/the-enigma-of-kaspar-hauser-1974/large_rRWr0nfPX41OcI7hifEOzfLza2F.jpg[/IMG]
[URL="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0986264/"]Taare Zameen Par / Like Stars on Earth (2007)[/URL]
[IMG]http://torrentok.in/film_img_big/516562167.jpg[/IMG]
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