|
Wow! Must have seen most of the films mentioned here. Love foreign films.
Yeah "Fucking Amal" is a good story. Great adolescent acting and remained interesting to the watch the whole time. Haha I thought Amal was the name of a guy at first...apparently "Fucking" isn't that big of a swear word at all in Swedish.
I find quite a passion in Vietnamese films that's lacking in other Asian films. One of my favourites is "Three Seasons". Great story-telling with good cinematography. Does have issues with obscurity however but it doesn't really detract from the overall feel. Couldn't really relate with "Cyclo" however, despite the attempt at realism, I didn't think it was pulled off that well.
The French "Taxi" series is great, combines my love of Peugeot with some great subtly-comedic acting. In short: no. 1 was the best, two was a bit cheesy, three was fairly good.
<3 Miyazaki films too. Favourite is "Kiki's Delivery Service" - just something about it's monotony and linearity is magical, difficult to quantify. Great to see them being shown on SBS recently.
Out of the vastness that is epic, modern Chinese drama "Farewell My Concubine and "Raise The Red Lantern" are stand-outs. Similarly themed and both highlighting the talents of the famous actress Gong Li, one can only appreciate and envy the skill Chinese directors and actors possess upon viewing films such as these. Another of more recent times is "Shower", a very touching yet uplifting tale. Made by the same director as "Shower", Yang Zhang, "Quitting" is another film which avoids cliches and introduces "real" perspectives. Some will be able to identify with it as I did but others may not. Many other great Chinese films I could go on about, there are plenty out there.
Probably my favourite non-English speaking movies however come from the work of the master: Satyajit Ray, a favourite of David Stratton. I guess they don't really count as foreign films for me as the language it's in, Bengali, is my mother tongue. The beautiful yet tragic stories that Ray narrated without any overbearing directorial presence shows how capable a filmmaker he was. I've seen most of his mainstream releases and a few rare ones my parents had. My favourites are: "Pather Panchali / Song of the Road" (this is where the Simpsons' character Apu comes from) and also "Jalsaghar / The Music Room". The latter is a great tale of decadenece, nostalgia and in the end complete sympathy. Ray was seemingly able to so effortlessly bring a catathartic reaction, his work has to be seen by anyone who appreciates humanity in their films.
Also another past master Akira Kurosawa (who was a huge supporter of Ray's works), will also forever be noted in the directorial "greats" department. Anyone who's not seen the classics "Seven Samurai" and "Ran" have missed out on seeing some of the truly best the mediuim of film has to offer. The visually earth-shattering and quietly heartbreaking "Ran" is one that I'll watch every now and then.
Mentioned in the same breath as "Ran" is Luchino Visconti's 1971 masterpiece "Death in Venice". This is one of those films you really must see before you die, so subtly moving, very similar in theme to Ray's "The Music Room". Also, Visconti's short piece in the compilation film: The Witches is really the highlight of an otherwise forgettable episode.
On another tangent, also have to mention a very clever, intelligent comedy/drama Serbian film I saw on SBS a while back: "Wheels". Extremely well-written script which brings out parallels between the microcosm that is the tavern (the entire setting for the film) and the real-life deaths in the former Yugoslavia.
Ok enough from me babbling on...
___________________
Top tunes for your enjoyment...
Âme Strong - Tout Est Bleu (François K. Remix) [Delabel]
Louise Vertigo - Où Est La Femme [Yellow Productions]
Natural Rhythm & Trap Groove - Dancefloor Jazz (Pat Bailey Mix) [LowDown Music]
Rick Wilhite - Ruby Nights [Third Ear Recordings]
Supreme Beings of Leisure - Never The Same [Palm Pictures]
Flashback track: Luther Vandross & Janet Jackson - The Best Things In Life Are Free (Def Version) [Perspective Records, 1992]
My Collection
|
at times
