I didn’t get all the way through before my PC shut off (definitely needs to be upgraded) but so far it was definitely mainstream. Was Twilight Samurai in it?
Damn it, how did I forget Werckmeister Harmonies….that opening scene is incredible.
I forgot Moolade and Spirited Away. Also Checkovian Motifs and Platform! And The Silence Before Bach.
What About the best foreign film last 25 years? Sorry I misread the thread completely, flagrant mishap on my part
I’m not familiar with all the films on that list but I’d definitely omit Y Tu Mama Tambien and Oldboy.
Don’t want to sound elitist, but this list might be something for a foreign films newbie.
Of course there are great films on it, but the combination makes me awkward. The little man in my head screams “mainstream, consensus, succesfull and known in the States, etc.”, which is never a good sign.
David’s Carlos’ and Kenji’s lists are more to my liking – but as a dedicated cinephile, I do have to post my own.
;-)
in chronological order:
Baise-moi “Fuck Me” (Virginie Despentes, Coralie / France)
Eureka (Shinji Aoyama / Japan)
Uttara “The Wrestlers” (Buddhadev Dasgupta / India)
Zhantai “Platform” (Zhang Ke Jia / China, Hong Kong, Japan, France)
Avalon (Mamoru Oshii / Poland, Japan)
Der Felsen “A Map of the Heart” (Dominik Graf / Germany)
Je rentre a la maison “I’m going Home” (Manoel de Oliveira / France, Portugal)
Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi “Spirited Away” (Hayao Miyazaki / Japan)
Kôfuku no kane “Blessing Bell” (Sabu / Japan)
Le fils “The Son” (Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne / Belgium, France)
Sophiiiie! (Michael Hofmann / Germany)
Vendredi Soir “Friday Night” (Claire Denis / France)
Bu jian “The Missing” (Lee Kang-sheng / Taiwan)
Dogville (Lars von Trier / Denmark, Sweden, UK, USA, Germany, Finland, Netherlands, France, Norway)
Goff in der Wuste “Goff in the Desert” (Heinz Emigholz / Germany)
L’esquive “Games of Love and Chance” (Abdellatif Kechiche / France)
Dare mo shiranai “Nobody Knows” (Hirokazu Koreeda / Japan)
Marseille (Angela Schanelec / Germany)
Sud pralad “Tropical Malady” (Apichatpong Weerasethakul / Thailand, France, Germany, Italy)
Au-delà de la haine “Beyond Hatred” (Olivier Meyrou / France)
Batalla en el cielo “Battle in Heaven” (Carlos Reygadas / Mexico, Belgium France, Germany)
Invisible Waves (Pen-Ek Ratanaruang / Thailand, Netherlands, Hong Kong, South Korea)
Nekam Achat Mishtey Eynay Avenge but One of my Two Eyes (Avi Mograbi / Israel, France)
Il regista di matrimoni “The Wedding Director” (Marco Bellocchio / Italy)
Unser täglich Brot “Our Daily Bread” (Niklaus Geyrhalter / Austria)
Lists like this are often about noteworthy “cultural events” rather than serious cinema. They’re for people who want a basic cultural literacy. I agree with a lot of the ones people have suggested, including Techine, who has done some of his best work this decade, and Bela Tarr. Also, Catherine Breillat.
@Justin
Yes, Breillat is brilliant! But I haven’t seen any of her recent films (with the exception of “A ma soeur” about 5 years ago, which I honestly don’t remember enough to seriously talk about its qualities…). Do you prefer her recent films to her older output, or do you think she has remained consistently good?
And I have to make a big confession… so don’t beat me.
I don’t appreciate Tarr [yet?] ." Werckmeister Harmonies" and “Damnation” seemed shallow to me (typical style over substance), and I walked out of the cinema after watching three hours of “Satantango”, cause I thought there’s probably something better to do (though it wasn’t uninteresting – but I was also a bit tired). So far, I’ve only admired his 1978 flick “Family Nest”. One of the best films of the 70s, imo.
well, the list is so straight ;) so mainstream-well-known movies….some of them are worth seeing (Le Scaphandre…, Oldboy, La Meglio Gioventù..)
but Gomorra??? didnt like Cidade de Deus either…
anyway
i agree with some of you about Tarr’s masterpiece Werkmeister Harmóniák (i liked it more than Satan’s Tango).
Romance is fantastic, and I think it’s from this decade. She’s still going strong.
@Carlo
Haha, Aaltra was terrific fun, alright.
Family Nest is a great film. Very shocking. I came away with sort of a low opinion of Hungarian men (and Hungarian communism).
Dimitris Psachos
i am from Greece,so…can i add English-spoken films too???
too European-based list but i must admit,compared to some UK/U.S. films of the last decade,especially considering what those fuckin’; award shows often pick,3/4 of this list are movies i have greatly admired,no matter how many others have been excluded,which are more or so nearly…300 plus films of the decade,hehe.difficult to name them all…
Lives of Others and Diving Bell are quite simplistic films to be honest,Volver too….and i’ll also agree that is VERY American-friendly…at least most of them belong to the quality mainstream…
but am still curious,this “foreign” business counts me in?i wanna add Young Adam,can i not????