Favorite Foreign Films
by lunaticprophet | created - 14 Jul 2011 | updated - 12 Apr 2012 | PublicThe very first foreign language film I remember watching (other than many dubbed kung fu movies) was "Travolti da un insolito destino nell'azzurro" ("Swept Away") in the late-70s when I was in my early teens. Now, the only reason I watched it was because I caught a scene with the scantily clad Mariangela Melato and was hooked. But by the end of the movie, I was completely caught up in the story and immensely entertained. I've been watching foreign films ever since.
A list of my favorite foreign films (simply meaning that they were not made by the American movie industry -- as opposed to being in a foreign language... that being anything other than English in my case).
Some of these are great films ("City of God", "Amores Perros", "Revolver", "Old Boy"...) some aren't... but all are, at the least, very entertaining.
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1. City of God (2002)
R | 130 min | Crime, Drama
In the slums of Rio, two kids' paths diverge as one struggles to become a photographer and the other a kingpin.
Directors: Fernando Meirelles, Kátia Lund | Stars: Alexandre Rodrigues, Leandro Firmino, Matheus Nachtergaele, Phellipe Haagensen
Votes: 800,853 | Gross: $7.56M
This... is one of the best movies... ever .
2. The Crying Game (1992)
R | 112 min | Crime, Drama, Romance
A British soldier kidnapped by the IRA soon befriends one of his captors, who then becomes drawn into the soldier's world.
Director: Neil Jordan | Stars: Stephen Rea, Jaye Davidson, Forest Whitaker, Miranda Richardson
Votes: 60,050 | Gross: $62.55M
I was in Atlanta, had already seen one movie (don't remember it) and felt like seeing another. It was premier night and I had no idea what this movie was about, but Forrest Whittaker was in it and that was all that I needed since I loved "Bird". The movie theater was completely packed, not one seat open... completely loved this movie!
3. Revolver (2005)
R | 111 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Gambler Jake Green enters into a game with potentially deadly consequences.
Director: Guy Ritchie | Stars: Jason Statham, Ray Liotta, André 3000, Vincent Pastore
Votes: 102,723 | Gross: $0.08M
4. Amores Perros (2000)
R | 154 min | Drama, Thriller
An amateur dog fighter, a supermodel, and a derelict assassin, all separately struggling to find love, find their lives transformed by a devastating car wreck in Mexico City.
Director: Alejandro G. Iñárritu | Stars: Emilio Echevarría, Gael García Bernal, Goya Toledo, Álvaro Guerrero
Votes: 252,849 | Gross: $5.38M
5. Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985)
R | 120 min | Drama
A gay man and a political prisoner are together in a prison. The gay man narrates the stories of two fake movies and his own life.
Director: Hector Babenco | Stars: William Hurt, Raul Julia, Sonia Braga, José Lewgoy
Votes: 17,347 | Gross: $17.04M
6. The Secret in Their Eyes (2009)
R | 129 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance
A retired legal counselor writes a novel hoping to find closure for one of his past unresolved homicide cases and for his unreciprocated love with his superior - both of which still haunt him decades later.
Director: Juan José Campanella | Stars: Ricardo Darín, Soledad Villamil, Pablo Rago, Carla Quevedo
Votes: 222,330 | Gross: $6.39M
7. Nine Queens (2000)
R | 114 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Two con artists try to swindle a stamp collector by selling him a sheet of counterfeit rare stamps (the "nine queens").
Director: Fabián Bielinsky | Stars: Ricardo Darín, Gastón Pauls, Graciela Tenenbaum, María Mercedes Villagra
Votes: 57,105 | Gross: $1.22M
8. You, the Living (2007)
Not Rated | 95 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
You, the Living is a film about humankind, its greatness and its baseness, joy and sorrow, its self-confidence and anxiety, its desire to love and be loved.
Director: Roy Andersson | Stars: Elisabeth Helander, Jörgen Nohall, Jan Wikbladh, Björn Englund
Votes: 16,288 | Gross: $0.02M
visually intent on being starkly drab... a great compliment/contrast to the sullen humor. Very funny...
9. Swept Away (1974)
R | 114 min | Adventure, Comedy, Drama
A trip into the Mediterranean sea becomes a trip into the discovery of how society's frameworks of the rich and poor are delicate and temporary.
Director: Lina Wertmüller | Stars: Giancarlo Giannini, Mariangela Melato, Riccardo Salvino, Isa Danieli
Votes: 6,782
10. The Lives of Others (2006)
R | 137 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
In 1984 East Berlin, an agent of the secret police conducting surveillance on a writer and his lover finds himself becoming increasingly absorbed by their lives.
Director: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck | Stars: Ulrich Mühe, Martina Gedeck, Sebastian Koch, Ulrich Tukur
Votes: 410,398 | Gross: $11.29M
11. REC (2007)
R | 78 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
A television reporter and cameraman follow emergency workers into a dark apartment building and are quickly locked inside with something terrifying.
Directors: Jaume Balagueró, Paco Plaza | Stars: Manuela Velasco, Ferran Terraza, Jorge-Yamam Serrano, Pablo Rosso
Votes: 196,594
12. Persepolis (2007)
PG-13 | 96 min | Animation, Biography, Drama
A precocious and outspoken Iranian girl grows up during the Islamic Revolution.
Directors: Vincent Paronnaud, Marjane Satrapi | Stars: Chiara Mastroianni, Catherine Deneuve, Gena Rowlands, Danielle Darrieux
Votes: 100,151 | Gross: $4.45M
13. Kung Fu Hustle (2004)
R | 99 min | Action, Comedy, Fantasy
In Shanghai, China in the 1940s, a wannabe gangster aspires to join the notorious "Axe Gang" while residents of a housing complex exhibit extraordinary powers in defending their turf.
Director: Stephen Chow | Stars: Stephen Chow, Wah Yuen, Qiu Yuen, Siu-Lung Leung
Votes: 150,811 | Gross: $17.11M
This is a fun movie!
14. Rashomon (1950)
Not Rated | 88 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
The rape of a bride and the murder of her samurai husband are recalled from the perspectives of a bandit, the bride, the samurai's ghost and a woodcutter.
Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Machiko Kyô, Masayuki Mori, Takashi Shimura
Votes: 180,380 | Gross: $0.10M
Really like the story... but just love the camera work.
15. Oldboy (2003)
R | 120 min | Action, Drama, Mystery
After being kidnapped and imprisoned for fifteen years, Oh Dae-Su is released, only to find that he must track down his captor in five days.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Choi Min-sik, Yoo Ji-tae, Kang Hye-jeong, Kim Byeong-Ok
Votes: 635,580 | Gross: $0.71M
16. Audition (1999)
R | 115 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
A widower takes an offer to screen girls at a special audition, arranged for him by a friend to find him a new wife. The one he fancies is not who she appears to be after all.
Director: Takashi Miike | Stars: Ryo Ishibashi, Eihi Shiina, Tetsu Sawaki, Jun Kunimura
Votes: 89,205
17. Memories of Murder (2003)
Not Rated | 132 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
In a small Korean province in 1986, two detectives struggle with the case of multiple young women being found raped and murdered by an unknown culprit.
Director: Bong Joon Ho | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Kim Sang-kyung, Kim Roe-ha, Song Jae-ho
Votes: 216,222 | Gross: $0.01M
18. The White Ribbon (2009)
R | 144 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Strange events happen in a small village in the north of Germany during the years before World War I, which seem to be ritual punishment. Who is responsible?
Director: Michael Haneke | Stars: Christian Friedel, Ernst Jacobi, Leonie Benesch, Ulrich Tukur
Votes: 77,628 | Gross: $2.22M
19. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2009)
R | 152 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A journalist is aided by a young female hacker in his search for the killer of a woman who has been dead for forty years.
Director: Niels Arden Oplev | Stars: Michael Nyqvist, Noomi Rapace, Ewa Fröling, Lena Endre
Votes: 223,322 | Gross: $10.10M
20. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest (2009)
R | 147 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Lisbeth is recovering in a hospital and awaiting trial for three murders when she is released. Mikael must prove her innocence, but Lisbeth must be willing to share the details of her sordid experiences with the court.
Director: Daniel Alfredson | Stars: Michael Nyqvist, Noomi Rapace, Lena Endre, Annika Hallin
Votes: 74,549 | Gross: $5.43M
21. The Girl Who Played with Fire (2009)
R | 129 min | Action, Crime, Drama
As computer hacker Lisbeth and journalist Mikael investigate a sex-trafficking ring, Lisbeth is accused of three murders, causing her to go on the run while Mikael works to clear her name.
Director: Daniel Alfredson | Stars: Noomi Rapace, Michael Nyqvist, Lena Endre, Peter Andersson
Votes: 98,494 | Gross: $9.08M
22. Pan's Labyrinth (2006)
R | 118 min | Drama, Fantasy, War
In the Falangist Spain of 1944, the bookish young stepdaughter of a sadistic army officer escapes into an eerie but captivating fantasy world.
Director: Guillermo del Toro | Stars: Ivana Baquero, Ariadna Gil, Sergi López, Maribel Verdú
Votes: 702,871 | Gross: $37.63M
23. Timecrimes (2007)
R | 92 min | Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi
A man accidentally gets into a time machine and travels back in time nearly an hour. Finding himself will be the first of a series of disasters of unforeseeable consequences.
Director: Nacho Vigalondo | Stars: Karra Elejalde, Candela Fernández, Bárbara Goenaga, Nacho Vigalondo
Votes: 68,761 | Gross: $0.04M
24. Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
R | 120 min | Crime, Drama, Romance
A teenager from the slums of Mumbai becomes a contestant on the show 'Kaun Banega Crorepati?' When interrogated under suspicion of cheating, he revisits his past, revealing how he had all the answers.
Directors: Danny Boyle, Loveleen Tandan | Stars: Dev Patel, Freida Pinto, Saurabh Shukla, Anil Kapoor
Votes: 877,671 | Gross: $141.32M
25. Caché (2005)
R | 117 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
A married couple is terrorized by a series of surveillance videotapes left on their front porch.
Director: Michael Haneke | Stars: Daniel Auteuil, Juliette Binoche, Maurice Bénichou, Annie Girardot
Votes: 85,209 | Gross: $3.63M
26. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)
PG-13 | 120 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
A young Chinese warrior steals a sword from a famed swordsman and then escapes into a world of romantic adventure with a mysterious man in the frontier of the nation.
Director: Ang Lee | Stars: Chow Yun-Fat, Michelle Yeoh, Ziyi Zhang, Chang Chen
Votes: 281,584 | Gross: $128.08M
27. Let the Right One In (2008)
R | 114 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
Oskar, an overlooked and bullied boy, finds love and revenge through Eli, a beautiful but peculiar girl.
Director: Tomas Alfredson | Stars: Kåre Hedebrant, Lina Leandersson, Per Ragnar, Henrik Dahl
Votes: 226,731 | Gross: $2.12M
28. A Fistful of Dollars (1964)
R | 99 min | Action, Drama, Western
A wandering gunfighter plays two rival families against each other in a town torn apart by greed, pride, and revenge.
Director: Sergio Leone | Stars: Clint Eastwood, Gian Maria Volontè, Marianne Koch, Wolfgang Lukschy
Votes: 232,610 | Gross: $14.50M
29. For a Few Dollars More (1965)
R | 132 min | Drama, Western
Two bounty hunters with the same intentions team up to track down a gang of outlaws led by a psychotic Mexican bandit, who is plotting an audacious bank robbery.
Director: Sergio Leone | Stars: Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, Gian Maria Volontè, Mara Krupp
Votes: 274,588 | Gross: $15.00M
30. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966)
Approved | 178 min | Adventure, Western
A bounty hunting scam joins two men in an uneasy alliance against a third in a race to find a fortune in gold buried in a remote cemetery.
Director: Sergio Leone | Stars: Clint Eastwood, Eli Wallach, Lee Van Cleef, Aldo Giuffrè
Votes: 810,983 | Gross: $6.10M
31. Layer Cake (2004)
R | 105 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A successful cocaine dealer gets two tough assignments from his boss on the eve of his planned early retirement.
Director: Matthew Vaughn | Stars: Daniel Craig, Sienna Miller, Michael Gambon, Tom Hardy
Votes: 195,535 | Gross: $2.34M
32. Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998)
R | 107 min | Action, Comedy, Crime
Eddy persuades his three pals to pool money for a vital poker game against a powerful local mobster, Hatchet Harry. Eddy loses, after which Harry gives him a week to pay back 500,000 pounds.
Director: Guy Ritchie | Stars: Jason Flemyng, Dexter Fletcher, Nick Moran, Jason Statham
Votes: 616,181 | Gross: $3.90M
33. Sexy Beast (2000)
R | 89 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Brutal gangster Don Logan recruits "retired" safecracker Gal for one last job, but it goes badly for both of them.
Director: Jonathan Glazer | Stars: Ray Winstone, Ben Kingsley, Ian McShane, Amanda Redman
Votes: 69,218 | Gross: $6.95M
34. Shaun of the Dead (2004)
R | 99 min | Comedy, Horror
The uneventful, aimless lives of a London electronics salesman and his layabout roommate are disrupted by the zombie apocalypse.
Director: Edgar Wright | Stars: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Kate Ashfield, Lucy Davis
Votes: 593,811 | Gross: $13.54M
35. Valmont (1989)
R | 137 min | Drama, Romance
France before 1789: When a widow hears that her lover is to marry her cousin's daughter, she asks the playboy Valmont to take the girl's virginity. But first she bets him, with her body as prize, to seduce a virtuous, young, married woman.
Director: Milos Forman | Stars: Colin Firth, Annette Bening, Meg Tilly, Fairuza Balk
Votes: 14,292 | Gross: $1.13M
36. I Saw the Devil (2010)
Not Rated | 144 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A secret agent exacts revenge on a serial killer through a series of captures and releases.
Director: Jee-woon Kim | Stars: Lee Byung-hun, Choi Min-sik, Jeon Gook-hwan, Chun Ho-jin
Votes: 146,152 | Gross: $0.13M
37. Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)
PG | 91 min | Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy
King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table embark on a surreal, low-budget search for the Holy Grail, encountering many, very silly obstacles.
Directors: Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones | Stars: Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Terry Gilliam
Votes: 570,139 | Gross: $1.23M
38. Ikiru (1952)
Not Rated | 143 min | Drama
A bureaucrat tries to find meaning in his life after he discovers he has terminal cancer.
Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Takashi Shimura, Nobuo Kaneko, Shin'ichi Himori, Haruo Tanaka
Votes: 87,531 | Gross: $0.06M
39. The Decline of the American Empire (1986)
R | 101 min | Comedy, Drama
Sexual revelations emerge when a group of academics and their partners spend a weekend at a country retreat.
Director: Denys Arcand | Stars: Dominique Michel, Dorothée Berryman, Louise Portal, Pierre Curzi
Votes: 8,697 | Gross: $1.90M
40. Talk to Her (2002)
R | 112 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance
Two men share an odd friendship while they care for two women who are both in deep comas.
Director: Pedro Almodóvar | Stars: Rosario Flores, Javier Cámara, Darío Grandinetti, Leonor Watling
Votes: 117,474 | Gross: $9.36M
41. Dirty Pretty Things (2002)
R | 97 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Irregular migrants Okwe and Senay work at a posh London hotel and live in constant fear of deportation. One night Okwe stumbles across evidence of a bizarre murder, setting off a series of events that could lead to disaster or freedom.
Director: Stephen Frears | Stars: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Audrey Tautou, Sophie Okonedo, Kriss Dosanjh
Votes: 44,085 | Gross: $8.11M
42. All About My Mother (1999)
R | 101 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A comedy-drama about a bereaved mother, and overwrought actress, her jealous lover, and a pregnant nun.
Director: Pedro Almodóvar | Stars: Cecilia Roth, Marisa Paredes, Candela Peña, Antonia San Juan
Votes: 102,852 | Gross: $8.26M
43. In the Mood for Love (2000)
PG | 98 min | Drama, Romance
Two neighbors form a strong bond after both suspect extramarital activities of their spouses. However, they agree to keep their bond platonic so as not to commit similar wrongs.
Director: Kar-Wai Wong | Stars: Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Maggie Cheung, Siu Ping-Lam, Tung Cho 'Joe' Cheung
Votes: 166,790 | Gross: $2.73M
44. Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance (2002)
R | 129 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A recently laid off factory worker kidnaps his former boss' friend's daughter, hoping to use the ransom money to pay for his sister's kidney transplant.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Shin Ha-kyun, Bae Doona, Lim Ji-eun
Votes: 75,120 | Gross: $0.05M
45. Lady Vengeance (2005)
R | 115 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
After being wrongfully imprisoned for thirteen years and having her child taken away from her, a woman seeks revenge through increasingly brutal means.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Nam-mi Kang, Jeong-nam Choi, Hye-Sook Go, Bok-hwa Baek
Votes: 86,088 | Gross: $0.21M
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