Movie Recommendations

DVD RECOMMENDATIONS

There are so many movies cropping up here and there----mostly commercially viable movies for mainstream viewers. My list is very unique because I think these are movies most people will pass on because of the following reasons:

1. It's a foreign film and sub-titled. So it takes too much effort to read. (What? Reading is hard?)
2. They are movies that didn't make the theaters for one reason or another. (Read: $$$)
3. They do not have 'stars' with name power.

So, let me list this months top picks:

1. Duma: A wonderful film! No, it's not "Jungle Book". And it is not a story about a cheetah either---even if there's one involved. It is a beautiful story about family and a young boy's determination.
2. Swimming Upstream: Little seen Aussie gem. Inspiring. Especially because it's a true story. Beautifully acted. Watch the scene when mother and son bid each other farewell.
3. Il Mare: The original. Though Keanu and Sandra made an Americanized version (The Lakeplace), this original version is a lot more tight and tidy. Korean.
4. Downfall: Hitler's last days in the bunker. Excellent fast-paced story-telling. (German)
5. Everything is Illuminated: a well-crafted piece about a young Jewish man who goes on a search for the gentile woman who saved his grandfather. Quirky characters.
6. Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter....Spring: Another Korean masterpiece. Very zen. If a poem can be interpreted as a movie, this is a masterpiece. It attempts, and beautifully at that, to show the meaning of life, it's sorrows and wisdom...in a Buddhist mindset. Don't expect this movie to move along. To enjoy it, you must calm yourself and let the movie take you where it must.
7. Little Manhattan: First love set against the beautiful backdrop of....Manhattan! You will have a longing for all things pure and honest after this experience.
8. Zelary: a wondrous film about the clash between two different worlds...and two different people...and love. You will fall inlove with Joza. (in Czech and German)
9. Der Tweeling (Twin Sisters): A moving tale about twin sisters orphaned and then separated. A tragic and thought-provoking cautionary tale. Just when you think you know where this movie is going, you don't. Every time. (in Dutch and German)
10. Les Choristes (The Chorus): This movie will put a smile on your face. Guaranteed. I just can't seem to leave this one out though I've had this title on my other lists.