What is your favorite foreign film?

[Catsbrains]

I love foreign films! I need a list of the great ones so I can start watching them on netflix. Thanks for your help.

[YankeyMCC]

1. I don't see many but

one that I saw last year was really compelling and convinced me to try others is:

Monsieur Ibrahim et les fleurs du Coran - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0329388/

[Maraya1969]

2. "Three weddings and a funeral"

:P

[DrDan]

40. Great Movie!

I loved the Rowan Atkinson ceremony.

[defendandprotect]

66. Who was in the foreign version --- what country made it?

[Crazy Dave]

3. The Gods Must Be Crazy n/t

[lizziegrace]

58. One of my favorites too. n/t

[defendandprotect]

67. Yeah, really funny --- really funny actors ---

[enigmatic]

4. Ikiru (1952)

http://www.time.com/time/2005/100movies/0,23220,ikiru,00.html

[Hand]

80. Dingdingdingdingding!!!!! We have a WINNA!

An absolutely beautiful, heartfelt film. I've seen it umpteen times and still :cry: at that swing scene. Takashi Shimura was a brilliant actor--he played Watanabe in Ikiru a year after portraying the lead samurai in Seven Samurai.

Kurosawa+Shimura=Brilliance beyond all measure. :applause: :toast:

[enigmatic]

95. It's one of the 5 greatest films ever made, IMO

It requires your undivided attention, but the rewards are unforgettable..

[Callalily]

5. One of my favorites

is Tsosi. Great story, and the music is just wonderful.

http://www.tsotsi.com/english/index.php

Another good one is Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. The cinematography is stunning.

http://www.sonypictures.com/homevideo/crouchingtigerhiddendragon/index.html

[terrya]

6. "La Dolce Vita"

[CGowen]

16. the kitten thing is hugh!1!! in the lounge

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKN1T3K1idg

[pokerfan]

7. La vita è bella (Life Is Beautiful)

Roberto Benigni, 1997

[RainDog]

8. here are some

amelie

run lola run

city of lost children

the blue/white/red trilogy from Kieslowski

jean de florette and manon (two movies cover one story by pagnol)

a very long engagement

all of those, except for run lola run are french. rlr is german.

those are all excellent, imo.

[bikebloke]

29. Bad transfers

The DVD versions of Jean de Florette and Manon de Source are awful. It looks like they were recorded off bad VHS tapes. I've tried watching them, but remembered better quality images from rental tapes. I'm hoping they'll come out with a new improved transfer. These films deserve it.

[Rabrrrrrr]

9. Blue/White/Red trilogy; Eat, Drink, Man, Woman; My Favorite Concubine; Miyazaki films

Kurasawa films

[BurtWorm]

10. My current favorite is Pandora's Box with Louise Brooks.

A movie and star ahead of their time.

[RebelOne]

11. The Umbrellas of Cherbourg

I think it is one of the best French films ever made.

www.rottentomatoes.com/m/umbrellas_of_cherbourg/

[tishaLA]

68. I love that film.

I have the DVD and just watched it the other day. It's just beautiful.

[malta blue]

12. here are some of my favorites

Como Agua Para Chocolate (Like Water for Chocolate)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0103994/

Le Violon Rouge (The Red Violin)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120802/

La Reine Margot (Queen Margot)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110963/

Water
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0240200/

[kwassa]

13. The Seven Samurai

a great, epic film.

other Kurosawa films.

[DarkTirade]

25. 2nded.

If you don't get at least a little bit misty-eyed at the end of that movie, you're not human. :)

[DrDan]

41. EXCELLENT!

[ThomCat]

14. Europa Europa

[LynneSin]

17. What's amazing about that story is that it's a true life story

It's not my favorite foreign film but one of the tops

[ThomCat]

19. My second favorite at this point is The Lives of Others.

I wonder what that says about my taste in films. :shug:

[tishaLA]

70. The Lives of Others was one of the best films I've seen

in the past 10 years. It's really exceptional.

[sazemisery]

15. Cinema Paradiso

Beautiful!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095765/

edited to add link

[ProfessorGAC]

30. That's One Of Mine, Too

I still watch it when it comes on IFC.
The Professor

[pink-o]

83. I was waiting for that one!

Make sure to watch it with a box of kleenex!

It helps to be Italophile, which I am to the extreme. Sicily is just an amazing place, too bad it gets the stereotype mafia stuff!

Now I have to scroll down further and see if anyone mention DiSicca's "Bicycle Thief" (another cryfest just because it deals with down-to-earth human emotion and threadbare circumstances)

Love to say this without prejudice, but no can do: Italians make some of the best films I've ever seen in my life.

[sazemisery]

93. You don't even need subtitles for this one

The film is just so beautiful and the story needs no words. I watch at least once a year.

[LynneSin]

18. I don't have 1 favorite but here are my favorites

In no particular order

• Amelie
  
• Cinema Paradiso
  
• Il Postino
  
• Life is Beautiful
  
• Raise the Red Lantern
  
• Farewell my Concubine
  
• City of God
  
• The Seventh Seal
  
• Europa Europa
  
• Like Water for Chocolate (but NOT the dubbed version of the movie)
  

[ghostsofgiants]

20. Favourite? Tough call.

Maybe Alain Renais' "Last Year at Marienbad" or Jean-Luc Godard's "Masculin Feminin."

[momophile]

21. Amelie, Belle Epoque, Italian for Beginners

and lots lots more.

[bigwillq]

22. Run Lola Run

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Maria Full of Grace

My Top 3

[cyberswede]

46. Seconded!

Great movie! I love Franka!

[momophile]

23. Kieslowski's 'Dekalog' series is great too - 10 Commandments

very dark but very good.

[Tracer]

24. Orfeo Negru

Quite an old film, but excellent.

[WritingIsMyReligion]

77. Is that the Portuguese one--"Black Orpheus"?

Never seen it, but the soundtrack contributed several beautiful bossa songs to the jazz standards canon.

:hi:

[HERVEPA]

26. "Derzu Uzula, the Hunter"

[MrCoffee]

27. You've probably seen these...

Wings of Desire

The Killer

Jean de Florette

[zingaro]

28. Like Water For Chocolate. nt

[bif]

31. Fellini's "Amaracord" and "Cinema Paradiso"

[CGowen]

32. Kukushka

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0308476/

[newcriminal]

33. He loves me/he love me not

[MrScorpio]

34. Amsterdamned

[BrotherBuzz]

35. Delicatessen

[MrsMatt]

86. second that recommendation!

and I'll add City of Lost Children.

[BrotherBuzz]

92. I was just informed about City of Lost Children

I guess I need to chase that one down. Thanks for putting things into motion.

[RubyDuby in GA]

36. Antonia's Line

Love that movie!

[CBHagman]

37. I don't have a favorite, but...

...I'd second the recommendation of Kieslowski films, particularly the Three Colors trilogy, and I suggest you check out some French comedies: The Closet, The Valet, My Best Friend, La Buche.

[bertha katzenengel]

38. Europa Europa - but be forewarned

It's about the Holocaust

[tishaLA]

69. and another that came out the same year IIRC

was Au Revoir Les Enfents. Another excellent holocaust film.

[AlCzervik]

39. The Triplets of Belleville.

[Stuart G]

88. I didn't know.......

...anyone but me knew about this film...Strange, but I can see that it is strange in a way that something really special is strange..

[rosesaylavee]

90. LOVED that film.

You are not alone. Bought the DVD and watch it every few months. The animation is excellent.

[Flaxbee]

42. Several have stood out -

Amelie was very cute, but already mentioned.

Three that haven't been are "8 Femmes" (8 Women) with Fanny Ardant, Catherine Deneuve, to name a few. Funny; it's a musical murder mystery.

There's also "Les Invasions barbares" - During his final days, a dying man is reunited with old friends, former lovers, his ex-wife, and his estranged son - I liked this one a lot.

Also good (some great music in it), but with a typically tragic French ending: Le Mari de la coiffeuse (The Hairdresser's Husband). Definitely worth seeing, though.

And this one is also good, but another (by now, expected) French ending. Has Omar Shariff, from 2002: "Monsieur Ibrahim"

[kentauros]

43. Another vote for "Wings of Desire" :)

and anything by Wim Wenders
Metropolis (both the silent Fritz Lang version and the anime version)
Solaris (Russian version)
Alphaville
El Ángel exterminador (The Exterminating angel) (Luis Bunuel, director and surrealist)
anything by Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, My Neighbor Totoro...)
anything by Isao Takahata (Grave of the Fireflies, Only Yesterday, The Raccoon War...)
Picnic At Hanging Rock (yes, it's in English, but it is an Australian original) so, anything by Peter Weir

Australia has produce some fine movies over the decades. Breaker Morant, The Man From Snowy River, Gallipoli... :)

[bookworm65t]

44. Akira Kurosawa

Dreams
Rashomon

also: Paradise Now

[MrCoffee]

45. The Castle! how could I forget???

It's an Australian movie, and it's absolutely hilarious. It's the story of a guy who's house by the airport is under threat of eminent domain, and his fight against the government.


It's a brilliant film.

[riderinthestorm]

47. Y Tu Mama Tambien

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Amelie
Man from Snowy River
Ballroom Dancing (another Australian film, really funny)

[Jade Fox]

82. Do you mean "Strictly Ballroom?"

Fun movie.

[riderinthestorm]

89. Yes! Brain fart exposed... Strictly Ballroom of course...

:blush:

[tigereye]

48. Tampopo and A Taxing Woman

Ran

Fellini's Satyricon

Y Tu Mama Tambien

all of MIke Leigh's films

[Binka]

49. Any Movie by Pedro Almodovar n/t

[peacefreak]

50. Antonia's Line

Good-bye Lenin
Danny Deckchair
Muriel's Wedding
Mifune
Waking Ned Devine
Saving Grace
Secret of Roan Inish(by John Sayles, but very Irish)

[Tikki]

51. "Central do Brasil" (Central Station) 1998.....

I loved the ORIGINAL...."Shall We Dansu?" (Shall We Dance?) from Japan 1996.



Tikki

[bicentennial_baby]

52. Au Revoir Les Enfants

[trackfan]

53. Dunno. I like "Le Grand Chemin"

[Fire Walk With Me]

54. The double life of Veronique, toto les heros, delicatessen, Amelie, Bicycle thief, 400 blows,

seven samurai, dreams, princess mononoke, spirited away, Akira (use the Japanese language track and the American subtitles).

[pink-o]

85. And here it is...

Wondering how long it would take someone to mention Bicycle Thief, DiSicca's masterpiece.

[yellowdogintexas]

55. Amelie,;Like Water for Chocolate; Lives of Others; Cousin, Cousine, Pan's Labyrinth, Topsy-Turvy

are the ones that come most readily to mind

[doc03]

56. Eastwood's Spagetti Westerns

[doc03]

57. Das Boot n/t

[opiate69]

59. A few of my favs...

Y Tu Mama Tambien
Motorcycle Diaries
Pan's Labrynth
Killing Words
Grave of the Fireflies
Koma

[CreekDog]

60. Like Water For Lee Mercer

[libnnc]

61. Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears

[Ekirh]

62. The Battle of Algiers

Anything Kurosawa

Hara Kiri

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

63. Macunaima

Maybe not a favorite, but very unforgettable!

:hi:

[Beausoir]

64. Babette's Feast.

Sensual and gratifying.

[Catsbrains]

72. I saw that one. Made me want to go eat at a French restaurant!

[unsavedtrash]

74. mine too n/t

[Common Sense Party]

65. Man Facing Southeast

Hombre mirando al sudeste -- from Argentina, 1986

A new patient mysteriously appears in a psychiatric ward. He claims to come from another planet to study humans and their behavior. The alien is gentle but criticizes humans for their harsh treatment of each other. The assigned psychiatrist is himself unhappy, and affected by the patient's insight. But he is ordered to treat the patient according to institutional procedure.




Excellent movie. K-Pax was a pathetic ripoff of this basic idea.

[RainDog]

71. Ma Vie en Rose

a Belgian movie about a boy who dresses like a girl and wants to marry the boy next door. The adult reactions are a great contrast to the kids' "this is who I am" innocence. Also has a barbie-esque fantasy sequence.

As others have said, I don't have one favorite. Almost all the movies I've seen mentioned here are ones I would include on a list too.

oh, edit to add Goodbye Lenin. also Chunking Express.

[Orsino]

73. Branagh's Henry V. n/t

[Paladin]

75. "Amercord," "The Lives Of Others," Soldier of Orange"

"Amercord": Fellini's most accessible and tender work; his remembrance of a small Italian village during WWII.

"The Lives Of Others": The German masterpiece about the grim activities of the East German state police ("Stasi"). Winner of last year's Best Foreign Film Oscar; absolutely riviting.

"Soldier of Orange": A largely forgotten WWII epic from The Netherlands, tracing the extremely divergent paths of some college students. Rutger Hauer in an early role; the always excellent Paul Verhoeven directed.

Enjoy.....

[Trailrider1951]

76. Life is Beautiful

My personal favorite. It has everything: humor, romance, beautiful scenery, interesting characters, violence, murder, and hope. It is indeed a beautiful film.

[ElizabethDC]

78. Seres Queridos. n/t

[AlanAdam]

79. Two recommendations ...

"Children of Heaven", Iranian film about a brother and sister in a poor family trying to deal with losing a pair of shoes.

"Stalingrad", German film about WWII battle of Stalingrad, horribly depressing, no heroes, but worth seeing.

[Aristus]

81. "Das Boot". Incredible film.

The only other film that makes you root for the Germans is "All Quiet On The Western Front".

Root for the professional soldiers and sailors, I mean; not the Nazis. One of the thing I liked about "Das Boot" is the fact that the professional submariners disliked and distrusted the one outspoken Nazi on the sub, and held him in contempt.

[Starbucks Anarchist]

84. The 400 Blows, Seven Samurai, Ikiru, among others.

[Stuart G]

87. Seven Samurai.......

Shichinin no samurai (1954)
aka "Seven Samurai" - UK
aka "The Seven Samurai" - USA

[WinkyDink]

91. "Alfie".

[jonnyblitz]

94. Spoorloos (The Vanishing), the original Dutch version,

not the American remake starring Keifer Sutherland. Also, "Funny Games", a 1997 German movie remade in the US this year and called "Funny Games U.S." Both are very psychologically creepy movies.

Spoorloos: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096163/

Funny Games: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119167/