A beginner's guide to world cinema - post your suggestions
 

With this being Oscars week and one of the best picture nominations being a remake of an Asian Language film and another two being subtitled combined with the recent popularity of Pans Labyrinth I decided it might be nice to start a thread like this. I have a real love of world cinema because I like to learn how other cultures tell their stories and to experience the best cinema the world has to offer and not all of that is in English. I know a lot of people have this fear of subtitles but I think a lot of that is in not seeing the best films because when a film is good you don't notice you are reading. The use of subtitles in tv shows like Lost and Heroes shows that it doesn't take away from the story.

So, I thought if those of us that do like world cinema could suggest a few for those that don't know where to start (or just want do discover some gems) it could be fun and useful.

I will start off with:

City of God (Brazil) - Had to be the first to mention it. Just a fantastic film that is the tale of gang warfare in the slums of Brazil.

Amores perros (Mexican) - From the same director of Babel but don't hold that against him. The story of interconnecting events surrounding a car crash. You have to be able to stomach some nasty dog fighting scenes.

Jean de Florette (French) - If you ever wondered why Gérard Depardieu is famous this is the film that will show you why. In his own language he is a really good actor (another reason to use subtitles because dubbing is evil and doesn't show you how good the original actors can be). It is a very gentle tale of a man that moves his family into a small French village and the next door neighbors don't like it and set out to do anything to try to make him leave. After you watch is watch the sequel Manon des Sources.

Taxi (French) - Just to show that not all French film is up its own backside. This was remade by Hollywood but was horrible in comparison. It is just the first in a series of Taxi movies that are just wild romps with a French taxi driver.

Eat Drink Man Woman (Taiwan) - This film has been remade into a number of different languages including Tortilla Soup which is the English language version using a Latin American family. It is the story of an old chef that is living with his three grown daughters.

Battle Royale (Japanese) - Nobody does brutal like the Japanese. A bunch of students brought to an island t be on a game show. The only this is the game show requires them all to hunt and kill each other.

Run Lola Run (German) - Super fast paced with a good soundtrack. A German thrill that tracks Lola trying to get a bunch of money before her boyfriend robs a bank to get it. This is a 'do over' type movie where it explores how the story would be different if different things happened to Lola during the day. hard to explain but a world cinema film for the modern generation.


Okay, that is my start...add your own...

city of god, run lola run and battle royale are all great films.

pity about battle royale 2 tho:Oh crap

I'd say to add crouching tiger hidden dragon which is a blinding film....

Bangkok Dangerous - moving story of a deaf hit man from Thailand's Pang Brothers

Versus and Ichii the Killer - more insanity from Japan

JSA (Joint Security Area) - Korean film that asks "can't we all just get along?"

The Killer and Hard Boiled - great introductions to Hong Kong heroic bloodshed films

Akira Kurosawa was the master of Japanese cinema, so a survey of some of his films is always excellent.

Another Japanese director I recommend, is Juzo Itami, who did not start making movies until he was nearly fifty. He had a keen sense and absorbing, particularly Japanese, style of filmmaking, that made his movies enjoyable internationally. Itami was once brutally attacked by the Yakuza (Japanese mafia) for making a satire poking fun at them, and met an untimely death after only 10 films, in what was ruled a highly suspicious suicide.

German director Wim Wenders is another favorite of mine.

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Yeah, I couldn't make it all the way through Battle Royale 2

My vote for the worst sequel of all time.

7 samurai
Das Experiment
farewell to my concubine
The Battleship Potemkin

wings of desire
maria full of grace

das boot

Joyeux Noel. "Inspired by a true story, this heartwarming tale unfolds on Christmas Eve, 1914, in the midst of World War I. As the French, Scottish and German soldiers prepare to open their presents, a momentous event occurs that changes the destinies of four people: an Anglican priest, a French lieutenant, a world-class tenor and his soprano lover."

I liked that one too..to me the South American and Central American cinema scene has been the most exciting of the past five or so years.


Ah, reminds me to add Central Station (Brazil) to the list.

bump for more suggestions

my problem with subtitle movies:
-if the movie is good: you miss all the great cinematography (that's why I watch them multiple times)

ex:
- House of Flying Daggers
- Hero
- Delicatessen
- 13 Tzameti
- City of God
- O Brother, Where Art Thou? (great cinematography - no subtitles - thought I'd share)

just a few I can think of off the top of my head.. 2:00am... gnite :)

I find that if the film is good I don't at all notice I am reading and I don't miss anything..maybe I am just a fast reader, I don't know. What is getting better is the way the subtitles are done because they used to be done in white on white backgrounds and almost impossible to read. These days they appear to be taking the ability to actually see the words into account more.

21 gram

crash

philadelphia

Clueless - Epic drama of intense teenagers featuring teens braving daily struggles like who to date and what to wear. If you love materialistic consumption then this is the movie for you.

Legally Blonde - The rise of a courageous young woman who isn't afraid to follow her heart and her dreams. She rises through incredible obstacles and struggles in order to realize her dream of becoming an attorney. A very touching and moving piece. It takes a lot of creativity in order to still be fashionable while reaching for new heights.

Letters From IwoJima(Japanese)**directed by Clint Eastwood** - Kinda slow, but interesting ww2 film

HERO!!!!!- One of my favorite films EVER. Very thought provoking and cinematically BEAUTIFUL. Awesome fights, great food for thought...

Battle Royale - MEH, I wasn't impressed... I heard so many great things, and all I came away with was a feeling they could have done way better with such a cool idea. Definitely cool to see once, but it couldn't hold a place among the lineup of great American Cinema.

Amelie(french) - Wonderful film, fukin fantastic. Interesting, fun, good story, yadda yadda.

Oh, and if you want to leave the theater depressed and unsatisfied I suggest watching "Pan's Labyrinth"

Fantastic American cinema, great recommendations :1orglaugh :1orglaugh

Pedro Almodovar has several movies worth watching: Talk to Her and Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown being two which come to mind. A French movie called Amelie is one of the best foreign-language movies ever. Something of a chick-flick certainly, but so well done it can be forgiven that :)

But generally my non-english favorites are from the 50's through the 80's... Bergman, Kurosawa, Fellini, Truffaut, etc.

I can see why some people would need subtitles on those.

I usually enjoy Almodovar's films but for some reason they don't grab me the way to do a lot of other people. I haven't seen Volver yet though.

If to US viewers, British movies can count as "world cinema", there are several I strongly recommend from the past few years:

The Full Monty
The Committments
Brassed Off
Calendar Girls
Saving Grace
Bend It Like Beckham
Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels
Snatch
Greenfingers

There are probably many more, but trawling through Netflix for movies which look as if they may be a bit different, isn't the surest way to keep up with British cinema :)

Good point, Snatch is GREAAAT!!!! (no pun, I really like the movie lol)

Trainspotting
OldBoy
Battle Royale
Hero
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Irreversible
Dirty Pretty Things
Snatch
City of God
Amelie
The Science of Sleep

Off the top of my head.

everything written and directed by takeshi kitano
everything written and directed by stephen chow
if you liked "run lola run", check "the princess and the warrior"

Most of those aren't from this millennium ...City of God is a British film if you want to be really up to date :)

I meant Children of Men ...not City of God! I need a nap.

I'm a bit "not of this millenium" myself :)

And as I wrote before, being dependent on Netflix for non-US movies, isn't ideal for keeping up to date. On your recommendation I just added Children of Men to my queue. "Release date unknown" :(

it is still in the cinema in the States, I think..it is out on DVD here at the moment

• city of lost children
• spider (cronenberg)
• seventh seal
• Insomnia (the orginal)

The criterion collection isn't a bad place to start.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...ction_releases

Airbag
Damn funny Spanish film, A guy loses his wedding ring up a prostitutes ass and he's trying to get it back.

Torrente 1,2 and 3
Laugh out loud funny but also makes you cringe that someone could be that disgusting.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0102783/

http://blogs.citypages.com/amadzine/...illythekid.jpg

Great film.

I'll add these three to the list:

Tsotsi
Yesterday
L'enfant

Some of the best I have seen lately:

Children of men - Alfonso Cuaron (Mexico)
Y tu mama tambien - Alfonso Cuaron (Mexico)
Bad Edication - Pedro Almodovar (Spain)
The Experiment - Oliver Hirschbiegel (Germany)
Downfall - Oliver Hirschbiegel (Germany)
Pan's labrynth - Guillermo del Toro (Mexico)
First Snow - Pablo Aguero (Argentina-France)

Funny how everyone is forgetting La Vita es Bella (Life is Beautiful) with Roberto Benini.

It won an oscar

Oh and of course the Barbarian Invasions and Bon Cop, Bad Cop if you're a French Canadian

That's the States... I live in a small town in the mid-West ;)

City of God, Hero and Amélie were awesome !

My suggestions :

**The Chorus (France) - Simply excellent !

****The mortorcycle Diaries(Argentina) This one talks about the Che Guerava's life and travels when he was young; very interesting - with Gael garcia Bernal (Y tu mama tambien, La mala educacion - which are good too)

**C.R.A.Z.Y (Quebec)

**The Spanish Apartment and it's sequel The Russian Dolls (France) - Both are amazing and a MUST see for sure !!


and also :

Volver (spanish) - From Pedro Almodovar, always excellent.

Born into brothels - more of a documentary

La vita è bella (Italian)

Enjoy !!!

The Godfather I, II AND III!

Time of the Gypsies (Emir Kusturica, Bosnia and Hercegovina)
Black Cat, White Cat (Emir Kusturica, Bosnia and Hercegovina)
No Man's Land (Danis Tanovic, Bosnia and Hercegovina)
Remake (Dino Mustafic, Bosnia and Hercegovina)

See them and be amazed... "Time of the Gypsies" is probably one of the best and weirdest movies ever made.

Spirited Away
One Night in Mongkok

I didn't think it was all that great, to be honest.

because it is about Italians?

how did i forget Amelie! and yes, bon cop bad cop is very good, i just saw it a couple of days ago.