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Excellent Foreign Language films with subtitles

3851 Views 49 Replies 16 Participants Last post by Art Sonneborn, Apr 30, 2020

alebonau

Discussion Starter · Sep 16, 2019 (Edited)

Hello Folk,

wondering what are your favourite or what class as "Foreign Language films with subtitles"

list them here for the joy of others who also appreciate...

I'll kick off with some I know and love ...

Pans Labyrinth
The Orphanage
The hunt
Belle & Sebastian
Das Boot
Populaire
Incendies
Rust and Bone
Intouchables
Run lola run
Sarah's key
A prophet
Tell no one

some classics...
Le Samouraï
La Piscine
Le Circle Rouge
Les Parapluies de Cherbourg
Wages of fear
Plein Soleil

over to you ...

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Mister B.M.

· #2 · Sep 16, 2019 (Edited)

Good calls in that list; seen most of them. I love contemporay hidden WWII gems like Sarah's Key. And La Piscine is next up in my foreign title queue.

Demy and WWII and Alain Delon,...all great movie tags

Musts for WWII buffs:
The Cranes Are Flying
Come And See
Army of Shadows
Forbidden Games
The Garden of the Finzi-Continis

Never seen an Alain Delon movie that wasn't good (yet):
Scorpio = good spy movie
Farewell, Friend = that one with Charles Bronson

A Do-Not-Miss for everybody:
Mr. Hulot's Holiday

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alebonau

Discussion Starter · #3 · Sep 16, 2019

Thank you mr BM

definitely some great classics there by looks and most I have not seen, so great to hear and something for me to look forward to

I tend to like foreign films from a few genre.... seem to have seen fair share of french language... can only hope to enjoy more of what are some of the greats and excellent films there are...

Mister B.M.

· #4 · Sep 16, 2019

...And I'll be the one to point out I sorta screwed up. The two Alain Delon movies I mentioned are actually in English. But still, they were good!

Reactions: 1

Mister B.M.

· #5 · Sep 16, 2019

@alebonau - yes, those classics take some catching up to do. I hadn't heard of Belle & Sebastian, but I just looked it up on IMDB, and Kid + Dog + WWII = must see for me. Sounds like a perfect example of the kind of movie to stumble across by recommendation here.

Since the really good thriller "Tell No One" got mentioned, I'd add:
La Ceremonie - Chabrol always kicks ass
Love Crime - Kristin Scott-Thomas can act in any language

HGC!
Les Diaboliques (1955) - Must see mystery

French Horror:
Eyes Without a Face - So freaky it inspired Bill Idol

If anybody has any New Wave Of French Horror suggestions besides
High Tension
Frontiere(s)
Inside
Martyrs

...let me know. I think Martyrs is the gold standard of NWOFH, but I've only seen that short list. Its the kind of genre you need to take a break from.

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docrog

· #6 · Sep 16, 2019 (Edited)

Les Miserables (1995, France) NO, this is not the musical or earlier adaptations of the Hugo classic. It is stars Jean-Paul Belmondo and is directed by Claude Lelouch. The movie is set primarily around the time of the D-Day invasion, but encompasses the late 19th century through WW2. A true classic, it's on my list as one of the best films in any language. BTW, it won the 1995 "Golden Globe" award for best foreign film (FWIW).

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alebonau

Discussion Starter · #7 · Sep 16, 2019

Mister B.M. said:
@alebonau - yes, those classics take some catching up to do. I hadn't heard of Belle & Sebastian, but I just looked it up on IMDB, and Kid + Dog + WWII = must see for me. Sounds like a perfect example of the kind of movie to stumble across by recommendation here.
.

feel good ... gorgeous setting heart melting

alebonau

Discussion Starter · #8 · Sep 16, 2019

Mister B.M. said:
@alebonau - ~

Since the really good thriller "Tell No One" got mentioned, I'd add:
La Ceremonie - Chabrol always kicks ass
Love Crime - Kristin Scott-Thomas can act in any language

HGC!
Les Diaboliques (1955) - Must see mystery

French Horror:
Eyes Without a Face - So freaky it inspired Bill Idol

If anybody has any New Wave Of French Horror suggestions besides
High Tension
Frontiere(s)
Inside
Martyrs

...let me know. I think Martyrs is the gold standard of NWOFH, but I've only seen that short list. Its the kind of genre you need to take a break from.

thanks you for all the suggestions

will take some catching up on. I have spent many saturday afternoons in my youth watching french films from 50-60s so a bit of a soft spot for them...

alebonau

Discussion Starter · #9 · Sep 16, 2019

docrog said:
Les Miserables (1995, France) NO, this is not the musical or earlier adaptations of the Hugo classic. It is stars Jean-Paul Belmondo and is directed by Claude Lelouch. The movie is set primarily around the time of the D-Day invasion, but encompasses the late 19th century through WW2. A true classic, it's on my list as one of the best films in any language. BTW, it won the 1995 "Golden Globe" award for best foreign film (FWIW).

how very interesting ! I hadn't heard of this ever ! will definitely have to track down

docrog

· #10 · Sep 16, 2019

alebonau said:
how very interesting ! I hadn't heard of this ever ! will definitely have to track down

It was previously released on VHS & Laserdisc in the US as well as on DVD (no subtitles) in France. Amazon Prime Video had it available to rent or purchase at one time, but not currently. Depending on where you live, it might be a tough movie to locate, but will be well worth your effort.

I suggest you read some of the "user comments" on IMDB or this review by the movie critic James Beradenelli: http://www.reelviews.net/reelviews/les-miserables

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locutus2k

· #11 · Sep 16, 2019

Let me suggest all the Paolo Sorrentino movies you can find, they are really something. One of them, "This must be the place" with Sean Penn, i think is native english spoken but all the others aren't.

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Mister B.M.

· #12 · Sep 16, 2019

docrog said:
Les Miserables (1995, France)
it might be a tough movie to locate

...Right, apparently IT IS gonna be hard to find on disc. Allmovie.com (my goto site for home video releases) doesn't even list it; that's hard to believe for something with big names like Belmondo and Lelouch. I'll be on the lookout though in Amazon. Belmondo always shows up in good things, and Lelouch made the short Rendezvous, one every gearhead knows

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Mister B.M.

· #13 · Sep 16, 2019

While on the topic of thrillers earlier I can't believe I was remiss in forgetting to mention three of the best mystery thrillers in any language:

The Conformist (1969) - Unforgettable = The rest of the ballroom yielding the floor to Dominique Sanda and Stefania Sandrelli, as they "had the whole show and that's a natural fact"

Diva (1981) - Stylish thriller with opera, motorscooters, bootlegs, Citroens, superfans, weirdos, and third-best chase scene ever (per Siskel and Ebert).

Cache (2005) - A videocassette arrives at Juliet Binoche's. Juliet Binoche pops it in the VCR, and its surveillance footage of ... NO SPOILERS! ... but you'll lean forward looking for details at that point, just like Juliet Binoche did.

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Art Sonneborn

· #14 · Sep 16, 2019 (Edited)

None would be complete without The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. Watched on Friday evening Attack of the Robots something of a James Bond spoof lots of fun.

Art

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Herve

· #15 · Sep 16, 2019

The Sissi Collection (1954 - 1957), released in blu ray in 2017; German audio with English subtitles

https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/The-Sissi-Collection-Blu-ray/165509/

My wife wanted this because it was recommended to her by relatives in Belgium. Because it's expensive for Canadians, I was reluctant, but I love my wife, so.......... we received it about three weeks ago and started watching it the same day.

In short, I was wowed by the video quality. IMO, the scene caps on the above link are not as high quality as what I saw during the movie.

The story is interesting, but I have no idea how close to reality it is.

At the end, which takes place in Venice, there is the best rendition of the German national anthem I've ever heard and, together with the pomp and circumstance, almost brought tears to my eyes.

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Craig Peer

· #16 · Sep 16, 2019 (Edited)

I'll start with my favorite war films -

Flame and Citron
The North Face ( excellent climbing film with a WWII tie in ).
Max Manus
Winter In Wartime
Days Of Glory
Female Agents
Sophie Scholl
The 12th Man
Land Of Mine
The Roundup
City Of War
Army Of Crime
My Way ( off the rails but totally entertaining ).
The Captain ( excellent, and disturbing )
The Kings Choice ( great film )
The Counterfeiters
Life Is Beautiful - classic film.

Talvisota - great film about the Finnish Winter War, which makes a great companion film with -
Unknown Soldier - another excellent film about the Finnish Continuation War, which I had no clue about.

So many of these films show WWII from a completely different perspective that we in the US are used to, that I find them fascinating.

Lore is another. More of an art film about the aftermath of WWII.

Also, The Front Line ( South Korean ), Lebanon and the new film Mosul are interesting.

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Craig Peer

· #17 · Sep 16, 2019

Of course I've got Das Boot too !

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dlinsley

· #18 · Sep 16, 2019

I've got to add A Man Called Ove to this list. It may hit a little close to home with most of us being (getting) older crotchety men

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Craig Peer

· #19 · Sep 16, 2019

Asian films I have and love -

Hero
Fearless
Curse Of The Golden Flower
The Admiral - Roaring Currents
Confucius
Ip Man 1 & 2
Kung Fu Hustle ( love it ) !
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
War Of The Arrows
Detective Dee - Mystery Of The Phantom Flame
Ran
Kagemusha
The Good, Bad and Weird
A Taxi Driver
Burning

And the new film Shadow - which I liked a lot.

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Craig Peer

· #20 · Sep 16, 2019 (Edited)

The rest of my "Foreign Language films with subtitles" consist of -

Tell No One - excellent thriller
The Intouchables - I'm not bothering with the US remake.
In Order Of Disappearance - I'm not bothering with the US remake of that either.
Pan's Labyrinth ( soon on 4K ).
The Devil's Backbone
Elite Squad - The Enemy Within
Le Dernier Vol - my wife and I like this film, even though it doesn't get high ratings.
The Liberator
The Lives Of Others - excellent film.
Of Gods And Men
A Hijacking
The Wave
Amelie !!!
Queen Margot
Incendies
Cinema Paradiso !!

That's it so far - 55 "Foreign Language films with subtitles" plus Mosul !

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