Recommend a foreign film that you don't think others here have seen.

[FSogol]

Last edited Thu Apr 17, 2014, 02:23 PM - Edit history (1)

I'll go first and recommend "Queen Margo" French movie from 1994.

"The night of August 24, 1572, is known as the Massacre of St. Bartholomew. In France a religious war is raging. In order to impose peace a forced wedding is arranged between Margot de Valois, sister of the immature Catholic King Charles IX, and the Hugenot King Henri of Navarre. Catherine of Medici maintains her behind-the-scenes power by ordering assaults, poisonings, and instigations to incest."






PS: Edited to add. Thanks for all the suggestions. I'll check them out sometime.

[Aristus]

1. "White Tiger" - A Russian film from 2012.

I mentioned it in my tank-movie thread.

A fictional story set during the Russian advance into Germany during World War II. A Russian T-34 tanker, left for dead in the burned-out hulk of his tank, makes a miraculous recovery; he is then assigned to find and destroy a German Tiger tank, painted a ghostly white, that comes and goes from the battlefield like a phantom, destroying every Russian tank in sight.

The film wavers between a 'Saving Private Ryan' gritty realism, and a haunting (and likely very Russian) surrealism.

Interesting film.

[FSogol]

5. Thanks. I only ever saw "The Beast" from your tank list. n/t

[NRaleighLiberal]

2. Cherry Blossoms - we watched it again last night. Just superb.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0910559/?ref_=nv_sr_1

[Ohio Joe]

3. Ran

I suppose this has probably been seen more then most Kurosawa films... And there are plenty of them that should be seen by all but this is simply put... A masterpiece.

[FSogol]

4. Ran is a classic. n/t

[longship]

6. "Z" by Costa-Gavras

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0065234/

It's a fictional account of the 1963 Greek counter-revolution. It won Best Foreign Language Film Oscar in 1969. It is a damned good flick.

In French.

[FSogol]

7. Recommending another: "North Face" German 2008

"Based on a true story, North Face is a suspenseful adventure film about a competition to climb the most dangerous rock face in the Alps. Set in 1936, as Nazi propaganda urges the nation's Alpinists to conquer the unclimbed north face of the Swiss massif - the Eiger - two reluctant German climbers begin their daring ascent."

[flying rabbit]

8. "Brotherhood of the Wolf", 2001 french

Historical drama set in 18th century France, with werewolves, martial arts, native Americans and even some road warrior looking types! What's not to love?

[scarletwoman]

9. Oh yes, I have a favorite! "Ofelas" (English: "Pathfinder") from Norway.

Last edited Wed Jul 30, 2014, 06:47 PM - Edit history (3)

It's the first (and only?) film that's been made entirely in the Sami language - the indigenous people of the far north of Scandinavia, more commonly known as "Lappland". The Sami are the ancient tribes of reindeer herders with their own unique culture and language, quite distinct from the Scandinavian culture and languages.

Their traditional territory stretched from northern Norway, Sweden, Finland, and the Kola Peninsula of Russia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sami_people

"Ofelas" is based on a thousand-year old traditional Sami tale of a young man who saved his fellow Sami from brutal invaders. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093668/

It's one of the most unforgettable movies I've ever seen - sadly, no Region 1 DVD has ever been made of it. It's only available as a VHS tape or a Region 2 DVD.

It's a visually gorgeous movie - shot on location above the Arctic Circle with ordinary native Sami playing most of the roles. The scenes of the young boy skiing to escape the barbarians who had just murdered his entire family are absolutely breathtaking - there were no ski poles in those days, skiing was done with a single wooden staff for steering. At one point he is down to a single ski as well, racing for his life through an incredible snowscape, wounded and bleeding.

I had the great good fortune to see this movie at an art house when it first came out (1987) and was able to borrow the VHS from the Public Library later on and watched it a couple more times - sharing it with my family. It is such a brilliant, amazing movie - I wish everyone could see it!

[Paladin]

10. "The Lives Of Others" (2006, German)

Brilliant movie about the last days of East Germany, and the ability of people to change for the better.

[Lionel Mandrake]

23. another movie about East Germany ...

Das Versprechen (The Promise) (1995)

Director: Margarethe von Trotta

Plot Summary by Eduardo Casais:

East-Berlin, 1961, shortly after the erection of the Wall. Konrad, Sophie and three of their friends plan a daring escape to Western Germany. The attempt is successful, except for Konrad, who remains behind. From then on, and for the next 28 years, Konrad and Sophie will attempt to meet again, in spite of the Iron Curtain. Konrad, who has become a reputed Astrophysicist, tries to take advantage of scientific congresses outside Eastern Germany to arrange encounters with Sophie. But in a country where the political police, the Stasi, monitors the moves of all suspicious people (such as Konrad's sister Barbara and her husband Harald), preserving one's privacy, ideals and self-respect becomes an exhausting fight, even as the Eastern block begins its long process of disintegration.

Read more: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0111613/plotsummary?ref_=tt_ov_pl

[Paladin]

24. Looks excellent. Thanks so much for the tip. (nt)

[Lionel Mandrake]

25. You're welcome!

I think you will enjoy "The Promise", just as I enjoyed "The Lives of Others". Both movies make you think.

[Little_Wing]

11. The Wages of Fear

French, 1953. "In a decrepit South American village, men are hired to transport an urgent nitroglycerine shipment without the equipment that would make it safe." On the surface, it reads kind of "meh," but this film will have you sweating bullets. The 1977 U.S. remake, Sorcerer, starring Roy Scheider is pretty good, but Wages of Fear is far superior.

Also recommended but sadly not available on DVD (not sure about Netflix): The Return of Martin Guerre (French, 1982). In medieval France, a young man goes off to war, but when he returns 10 years later, his fellow villagers are unsure if he is who he says he is. Starring a young, wonderful Gerard Depardieu. (Whatever you do, avoid the U.S. remake (Sommersby) with Richard Gere and Jodie Foster. Awful.)

[FSogol]

12. Thanks for the Wage of Fear rec. I've seen Martin Guerre. Good film. n/t

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

13. I found this French comedy of a few years ago pretty funny

Here's the complete film in seven parts, with subtitles:

[brooklynboy49]

14. The Road Home

If you're a sucker for romance and are interested in Chinese culture, The Road Home is a must-see.

[brooklynboy49]

15. And for something completely different...

Run Lola Run.

The catch here is foreign films I don't think others here have seen. I have no idea what others here have seen. I would recommend The Motorcycle Diaries in a heartbeat, but I suspect others here have seen it. Hell, I've got a list a mile long of foreign films I think others would enjoy, but I'm not listing em because of my suspicion others have seen em.

[FSogol]

16. "Run Lola Run" was pretty popular in the US. I saw it and expect most film fans saw it too.

List away, someone hasn't seen them. I was just hoping for stuff more obscure than "Life is Beautiful" and "Amelie."

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

17. I've always loved this 1960s British film

The Loneliness Of The Long Distance Runner. It's been a critically acclaimed film so I don't know if there might be others who haven't seen it. It's one of the best "angry young man" style British films of the 60s. If you click through to Youtube,you can see the full film.

[Chan790]

18. I've got two.

Goodbye, Lenin! Set in the days following the fall of the Berlin Wall, a young TV repairman and his close friends work to convince his dying bedridden devoutly-communist mother that the Soviets have won the Cold War, going to ever more extreme measures to uphold the charade so she can die happy and feeling fulfilled by her life's work. (German, with subtitles)

Cache A French TV newsman and writer is tormented by the anonymous deliveries of videos shot unawares of his family and home, inter-cut with graphically-violent images, all of which allude to a vicious secret he has kept for 30 years based on a destructive lie he told as a child which destroyed the life of a peer. Despite all efforts, the videos will not stop coming and no source can be found. Possibly the best French-language mystery I've seen in the last 15 years.

[yallerdawg]

19. "Let the Right One In"

Swedish genre-bending horror film.

Robert Englund (original Freddy Kreuger, Nightmare on Elm Street) recommended this as the most innovative spin on a familiar theme he had seen in years.

If this is your cup of tea, this is better and more provocative than the newer American version "Let Me In."

[shenmue]

20. 'Steam'

The ending is sad.

[valerief]

21. Mon Oncle. Love the 'modern' house. nt

[mandy36974]

22. Recommend a foreign film that you don't think others here have seen.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0986264/?ref_=fn_al_tt_9


Awesome movie...

[nirvana555]

26. i second "The lives of othets" not just an amazing

Foreign film but one of my all time favorites of all time. Another great one is the (Ican't think of the name -La vein a rose or something like that) . It' about the lifecof Edith Pilaf. The actress who played her won the oscar for her performance.

[cyberswede]

27. Die marquise von O (1976)

I saw this back in college; I'd like to see it again.

Based on a novella by Heinrich von Kleist from 1808.

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

28. "The Wicker Man" (1973)

Probably best classified as horror but defies description. Kind of like a long film version of the Shirley Jackson story "The Lottery" if it happened in a remote island in the Scottish Hebrides.

Quite possibly Christopher Lee's best role, Edward Woodward (better known for "Breaker Morant&quot shines in the lead role too.

Beautiful folk music pervades the movie and conveys the culture of the island very well as well as adding a haunting quality.

It's showing on the 27th of July on Showtime Beyond so record it if you've never seen this.

I understand the recent Nic Cage remake is crap by the way. See the original.

[bikebloke]

29. The City of Life and Death

Japanese invasion of Nanking.

[Paladin]

30. Very tough movie to watch, but really well done.

Black & white, with a WWII documentary feel to it. But again, given the portrayal of the atrocities at Nanking, it's not an easy one to sit through (and I fancy that I have a fairly high tolerance for such things).

[clarice]

31. I love Asian horror movies...

Here are three that I would highly rec.

1. Shutter (not the American remake)
2. The Eye 2 " " " "
3. Pulse " " " "

[Tuesday Afternoon]

32. Oldboy (the original or any of the remakes)

A washed up alcoholic is kidnapped and imprisoned in a single room by his unseen captors for 20 years. After finding that he has been framed for murder he sets out for revenge and vindication. And while bettering himself in the process he aims to find out why he endured his confinement.

A solid remake of the great South Korean film based on the Japanese Manga 'Oldboy' by Nobuaki Minegishi and Garon Tsuchiya. With plenty of homage's to Chan-wook Park's 2003 original Spike Lee adaptation makes some minor changes to the story some are for the better including a more fitting closing. Pacing however does feel choppy/rushed in places possibly due to studios heavy editing intervention.

Lee's offering is wonderfully filmed and acted, Samuel L. Jackson leaves an impression but Josh Brolin excels and clearly was 100 percent dedicated to the role, surprisingly executing the action scenes with surreptitiousness. The casual viewer may not find the dark humour, peculiar characters or reveal palatable. Nevertheless it equals or debatably surpasses the likes of Sixth Sense, Angel Heart, The Usual Suspects to name a few with its surprise ending. Ultimately, those who want a gritty psychological thriller with a spot of action and a fantastic twist look no further.

Possibly curious viewing for fans of Park's original but a compelling must see for viewers not familiar with the story.