French and French-language Films | Japanese Films
Inju, the Beast in the Shadow: a standard crime thriller with unrealised potential
Barbet Schroeder, “Inju, la bête dans l’ombre” (2008) Enjoyably silly movie about a literature academic
Se7en: well-made if not great film about good and evil in an indifferent universe
David Fincher, “Se7en” (1995) “Se7en” is a well-made film with some excellent acting performances and
The Man without a Past: heart-warming comedy about need for “identity” to survive in modern society
Aki Kaurismäki, “The Man without a Past” (2002) A heart-warming comedy about a man who
Spider Forest: amusing psych horror / art-house drama that maps an amnesiac mind’s networks
Song Ilgon, “Spider Forest” (2004) Amusing if eccentric film that straddles a grey zone between
Gasland: intelligent and unassuming documentary on fracking
Josh Fox, “Gasland” (2010) Written, filmed, narrated and directed by Josh Fox, this documentary is
Australian and New Zealand Films
Balibo: forcing viewers to think and ask questions about tragic fate of six news reporters
Robert Connolly, “Balibo” (2009) Imaginatively constructed as three stories that initially fit into one another
Strangers on a Train (dir. Alfred Hitchcock): film labours under director’s favourite themes and obsessions
Alfred Hitchcock, “Strangers on a Train” (1951) As with many other films made by English-American
German and German-language Films
Downfall: masterly if flawed fictional account of Adolf Hitler’s last days
Oliver Hirschbiegel, “Downfall” (2004) This is an incredible and masterly fictional dramatisation of the last
Members of the Funeral: interesting film about a dysfunctional family of self-absorbed isolates
Baek Seungbin, “Members of the Funeral” (2008) An interesting little gem from South Korea that’s
Princess Mononoke: flawed epic with ambition and good intentions
Hayao Miyazaki, “Princess Mononoke” (1997) When I first saw this movie about a decade ago,