Foreign Cinema - Favourite film

[Trufflehound]

Of the German films, you can't really argus with M, Metropolis, Das Boot, Downfall, Goodbye Lenin, Stalingrad. Internationally-high standards.

Sophie Scholl: Die Letzten Tagen is also brilliant.

As is Die Blechtrommel (The Tin Drum)...

 

[Trufflehound]

... but new foreign cinema seems so much more satisfying than a lot of the tripe America churns out.

The Spanish film Abre Los Ojos (Open Your Eyes) was profound, moving, brilliantly acted, and gripping.

Besides switching the action from Madrid to New York, the Amercian version was an exact shot-for-shot remake. But they put Tom Cruise in the lead role and called it Vanilla Sky and it managed to be none of the above (good soundtrack though).

 

[keaton]

I'd have to add to the list:
Breathless,
Zatoichi
and pretty much all Kurosawa, Wong-Kar Wai and Hayao Miyazaki
films

 

[Trufflehound]

Tokyo Story by Yasujiro Ozu. The saddest film of all time - FACT.

 

[Barrel of Fun]

Seven Samurai is a bit of a cracker. Long, but excellent. Even US might like that, as it has some action in it.

My English teacher told me that Spielberg wasn't worthy of tying the bootlaces of Akira Kurosawa. Sorry US.

 

[Tooting Gull]

I've seen a couple of Etienne Chatiliez's films - La Vie est une longue fleuve tranquille, and Tatie Danielle - both very funny, satirical French 'comedy of manners' stylee.

And one the other year, maybe called 'Swimming Pool' with a well fit bird lounging about in a bikini (occasionally) and having sex with all the locals (just checked, it was Ludivine Sagnier staying with her aunt who was played by Charlotte Rampling). The deeper point was lost on me in that one.

 

[Meade's Ball]

M of Harveys is right. M is a cracker. Its the sort of video or dvd one gets from the library for 50p on a Sunday afternoon. Oops, i've just swallowed two un-Liono-ed kit-kats and had a litre of Tango because its fruity.
A lovely day.

Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke made me something or other too.

 

[Lammy]

Monsoon Wedding.

 

[Man of Harveys]

Can we also have a list of really crap foreign films that you can't help liking?

Rabbi Jacob by Louis de Funes - ridiculous daft French screwball comedy about a xenophobic bigot who gets mistaken for a rabbi who's also visiting Paris - with hilarious consequences!

 

[Dandyman]

City of God (Brazil)
Battle of Algiers (France/Italy)
Come See (USSR)

All classics.

 

[Man of Harveys]

M of Harveys is right. M is a cracker.

Let's have a thread of Peter Lorre!

 

[Tooting Gull]

Can we also have a list of really crap foreign films that you can't help liking?

What about Porkys Revenge?

 

[Trufflehound]

Seven Samurai is a bit of a cracker. Long, but excellent. Even US might like that, as it has some action in it.

My English teacher told me that Spielberg wasn't worthy of tying the bootlaces of Akira Kurosawa. Sorry US.

(Edited to turn the first sentence into English)

Spielberg isn't worthy of tying many people's bootlaces, let alone Kurosawa's.

Seven Samurai is a great movie, but my personal favourites of his are Rashomon and Kagemusha. There are plenty others of his that are classics (Yojimbo, Ran, Throne of Blood, the Hidden Fortress, the Bad Sleep Well) and all rate far above Spielberg's best efforts.

 

[The Large One]

Rififi et Son Freres (1955).

 

[Tooting Gull]

Gervais - Yeah, Kurosawa, he's certainly one of the big two...

 

[Lokki 7]

Leningrad Cowboys Go America is great. Also saw them play live a couple of years ago, absolutely mental but great. Love just about anything directed by Aki Kaurismaki although they can be very dark. The man without a face was also excellent. Very Finnish.

 

[Man of Harveys]

When Garth The Film Critic sees what you naughty boys have written about his hero, why boyoboy he'sa gonna be real MAD at youz

 

[Icy Gull]

Das Boot

Seven Samurai

 

[Trufflehound]

Let's have a thread of Peter Lorre!

"Might I remind you, Mr Spade, that you may have the falcon... But we certainly have you."

 

[Tooting Gull]

When Garth The Film Critic sees what you naughty boys have written about his hero, why boyoboy he'sa gonna be real MAD at youz

Touche. Where is NSC's 'film critic' when the conversation moves off blockbusters?