Monday, January 31, 2011

On Tour (2010)


On Tour / Tournée (2010)
On Tour / Tournée (2010)

Genre: Comedy / Drama
Director: Mathieu Amalric
Starring: Mathieu Amalric, Mimi Le Meaux, Damien Odoul
Duration: 111 min.
Rating: 7.1/10

Summary:
On the eve of his 40th birthday, formerly successful television producer Joachim Zand returns from America to his native France, where he previously had left everything behind, including friends, enemies and his own children.  In his company is a burlesque striptease troupe whom he has promised a grand performance in Paris. 

Sunday, January 30, 2011

Simple Simon (2010)


Simple Simon / I rymden finns inga känslor (2010)
Simple Simon / I rymden finns inga känslor (2010)

Genre: Comedy
Director: Andreas Öhman
Starring: Bill Skarsgard, Cecilia Forss, Martin Wallstrom
Duration: 85 min.
Rating: 7.0/10

Summary:
When Sam's girlfriend breaks up with him he becomes depressed. To cheer him up, and get things back to normal, his socially awkward brother Simon decides to set out on a quest to find Sam a new, perfect, girlfriend. Struggling with his own Asperger Syndrome, the quest is more difficult than Simon first expected.

Saturday, January 29, 2011

Mammuth (2010)


Mammuth (2010)

Genre: Drama / Comedy
Director: Gustave de Kervern, Benoît Delépine
Starring: Gerard Depardieu, Yolande Moreau, Isabelle Adjani
Duration: 92 min.
Rating: 6.8/10

Summary:
Serge Pilardosse hasn’t missed a day’s work in his life. Since he began work at the age of 16, he has never been unemployed, nor has he ever taken a day off through sickness. But on the day of his retirement, having just turned 60, he makes an alarming discovery. Several of his employers have failed to declare his earnings and consequently he will not receive his full pension entitlement. Serge has no option but to take to the road in his 1970s motorbike and track down these negligent employers. 

Friday, January 28, 2011

Gainsbourg (Vie héroïque) (2010)


Gainsbourg (Vie héroïque) (2010)

Genre: Biography
Director: Joann Sfar
Starring: Eric Elmosnino, Lucy Gordon, Laetitia Casta
Duration: 130 min.
Rating: 6.9/10

Summary:
A glimpse at the life of legendary French singer Serge Gainsbourg, from growing up in 1940s Nazi-occupied Paris through his successful song-writing years in the 1960s to his death in 1991 at the age of 62.

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Outside the Law (2010)


Outside the Law / Hors-la-loi (2010)
Outside the Law / Hors-la-loi (2010)

Genre: Drama / Action
Director: Rachid Bouchareb
Starring: Jamel Debbouze, Roschdy Zem, Sami Bouajila
Duration: 138 min.
Rating: 6.4/10

Summary:
After loosing their family home in Algeria, three brothers and their mother are scattered across the globe. Messaoud joins the French army fighting in Indochina; Abdelkader becomes a leader of the Algerian independence movement in France and Saïd moves to Paris to make his fortune in the shady clubs and boxing halls of Pigalle. Gradually, their interconnecting destinies reunite them in the French capital, where freedom is a battle to be fought and won.

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Illégal (2010)


Illégal (2010)

Genre: Drama
Director: Olivier Masset-Depasse
Starring: Anne Coesens, Alexandre Gontcharov
Duration: 90 min.
Rating: 6.8/10

Summary:
Tania and her 14-year-old son Ivan are illegal Russian immigrants who have been living in Belgium for eight years.  Constantly on the alert, Tania is fearful of police checks until the day when she is finally arrested.  Separated from her son, Tania finds herself in a detention centre.  She is prepared to do anything to be reunited with her son, but the threat of deportation hangs over her...

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

83rd Academy Awards (2011) - Nominees


At 08:30 EST today, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences revealed the nominees for the 83rd Academy Awards.  

The awards ceremony will take place on Sunday, February 27 and will be hosted by actors James Franco and Anne Hathaway.


The final nominees for Foriegn Language Film are:

Algeria - “Hors la Loi” - Rachid Bouchareb

  Canada - “Incendies” - Denis Villeneuve

Denmark - “In a Better World” - Susanne Bier - Winner

Greece - “Dogtooth” - Yorgos Lanthimos

Mexico - “Biutiful” - Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu

 See the full list of nominees here.


Monday, January 24, 2011

Wild Grass (2009)


Wild Grass / Les herbes folles (2009)
Wild Grass / Les herbes folles (2009)

Genre: Drama
Director: Alain Resnais
Starring: Sabine Azema, Andre Dussollier, Anne Consigny, Emmanuelle Devos
Duration: 104 min.
Rating: 6.9/10

Summary:
A wallet lost and found opens the door to romantic adventure for Georges and Marguerite. After examining the ID papers of its owner, it is not a simple matter for Georges to turn the red wallet he found in to the police. Nor is it that Marguerite can recuperate her wallet without being piqued with curiosity about whom it was who found it. As they navigate the social protocols of giving and acknowledging thanks, turbulence enters their otherwise quotidian lives.

Sunday, January 23, 2011

Heartbreaker (2010)


Heartbreaker / L'arnacoeur (2010)
Heartbreaker / L'arnacoeur (2010)

Genre: Comedy
Director: Pascal Chaumeil
Starring: Romain Duris, Vanessa Paradis
Duration: 105 min.
Rating: 6.9/10

Summary:
Alex and his sister run a business designed to break up relationships. They are hired by a rich man to break up the wedding of his daughter. The girl is beautiful and the future husband a perfect match. Will he manage to accomplish this difficult mission?
  

Saturday, January 22, 2011

Chloe (2009)


Chloe (2009)

Genre: Drama / Thriller
Director: Atom Egoyan
Starring: Julianne Moore, Liam Neeson, Amanda Seyfried
Duration: 96 min.
Rating: 6.4/10

Summary:
Catherine and David, she a doctor, he a professor, are at first glance the perfect couple. Happily married with a talented teenage son, they appear to have an idyllic life. But when David misses a flight and his surprise birthday party, Catherine's long simmering suspicions rise to the surface. Suspecting infidelity, she decides to hire an escort to seduce her husband and test his loyalty.

Friday, January 21, 2011

Mother (2009)


Mother / Madeo (2009)
Mother / Madeo / 마더 (2009)

Genre: Drama / Thriller
Director: Bong Joon-Ho
Starring: Kim Hye-ja, Won Bin
Duration: 128 min.
Rating: 7.8/10

Summary:
A mother lives quietly with her twenty-eight-year-old son, Do-joon, providing herbs and acupuncture to neighbors. One day, a girl is brutally murdered, and Do-joon is charged with the killing. Now, it's his mother's call whether to prove him innocent or to leave him imprisoned.

Thursday, January 20, 2011

83rd Academy Awards (2011) - Foreign Language Film Shortlist

 
As you may be aware, over the past couple of months I have been trying to watch as many of the Best Foreign Language Film submissions as possible.  To date I have only managed to see 28 out of the 65 submissions.  I do have access to about a dozen others but unfortunately they are either without subtitles, or subtitled in a language that I cannot understand.     

Earlier today, the Academy announced the shortlist of nine semi-finalists.  The official final nominees will be selected from these nine films and will be announced on Tuesday, January 25th, along with all the other Oscar nominees.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

To Die Like A Man (2009)


To Die Like A Man / Morrer Como Um Homem (2009)


Genre: Drama / Fantasy
Director: João Pedro Rodrigues
Starring: Chandra Malatitch, Fernando Santos, Alexander David
Duration: 133 min.
Rating: 5.4/10

Summary:
Tonia is a large-than-life drag icon of Lisbon's night life in the late 1980s.  Under pressure from her boyfriend Rosario, Tonia begins a series of operations to become a woman but the final step proves much harder than she could have guessed. Torn between her love for Rosario and her deeply-rooted religious convictions, Tonia looks for distraction in a trip to the countryside with Rosario. Lost along the way, the couple find themselves in an enchanted forest where everything they think they know about life and love is proven wrong.

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Lourdes (2009)


Lourdes (2009)
Lourdes (2009)

Genre: Drama
Director: Jessica Hausner
Starring: Sylvie Testud, Lea Seydoux, Bruno Todeschini, Elina Lowensohn
Duration: 96 min.
Rating: 7.4/10

Summary:
Christine has spent most of her life confined to a wheelchair, unable to use her arms and legs, and while she has a keen mind and the means to seek treatment, she looks for a solution to her condition in faith as well as medical science. Christine has made a pilgrimage to Lourdes, the village in Southwestern France where a celebrated miracle is said to have occurred.

Monday, January 17, 2011

Tuesday, After Christmas (2010)


Tuesday, After Christmas / Marti, dupa Craciun (2010)
Tuesday, After Christmas / Marţi, după Crăciun (2010)


Genre: Drama
Director: Radu Muntean
Starring: Mimi Brănescu, Maria Popistaşu, Mirela Oprisor, Dragoş Bucur
Duration: 99 min.
Rating: 7.8/10

Summary:
Paul Hanganu loves two women. Adriana his wife and the mother of their daughter, the woman with whom he's shared the thrills of the past ten years, and Raluca the woman who has made him redefine himself.  After an unexpected change in Adriana's schedule brings the two women in the same room for the first time, Paul is forced to face a difficult decision.

Sunday, January 16, 2011

How Funny (This Country Is) (2010)


How Funny (This Country Is) / Alangkah lucunya (negeri ini) (2010)

Genre: Comedy
Director: Deddy Mizwar
Starring: Reza Rahadian, Deddy Mizwar, Slamet Rahardjo
Duration: 103 min.
Rating: 6.0/10

Summary:
Muluk is an university graduate who has for some time had no luck in getting work.  During one of his job-seeking excursions, Muluk meets Komet - a child who is on the run after stealing a purse. Trying to set things straight, Muluk runs after Komet, but is left speechless when Komet proves to be wise beyond his years. The next encounter finds the child treating Muluk to lunch, and before long, Muluk finds himself lured into Komet's world of young thieves operating under a big boss, Jarot.

Saturday, January 15, 2011

Noy (2010)


Noy (2010)

Genre: Drama
Director: Coco Martin, Dondon S. Santos
Starring: Coco Martin, Cherry Pie Picache, Erich Gonzales
Duration: 104 min.
Rating: 5.9/10

Summary:
Desperate to find means of support for his family, Noy fakes his credentials to get a job as a TV journalist. His assignment is to come up with a documentary on the 2010 Philippines national elections while following the trail of his namesake, senator Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III, the top presidential contender. During the campaign Noy becomes more aware of the responsibilities of real journalists. While a fresh wave of nationalistic fervor and enthusiasm permeate the country, life at home fails to improve for Noy's family and the disparity between the two "Noys" becomes increasingly evident. If one lives for the truth, the other lives a lie to survive.


Friday, January 14, 2011

Somewhere (2010)


Somewhere (2010)
Somewhere (2010)

Genre: Drama
Director: Sofia Coppola
Starring: Stephen Dorff, Elle Fanning
Duration: 97 min.
Rating: 6.9/10

Summary:
Johnny is living at the legendary Chateau Marmont hotel in Hollywood. He has a Ferrari to drive around in, and a constant stream of girls and pills to stay in with. Comfortably numbed, Johnny drifts along. Then, his 11-year-old daughter Cleo from his failed marriage arrives unexpectedly at the Chateau. Their encounters encourage Johnny to face up to where he is in life and confront the question that we all must: which path in life will you take?
 

Thursday, January 13, 2011

A Barefoot Dream (2010)


A Barefoot Dream / Maen-bal-eui Ggoom (2010)
A Barefoot Dream / Maen-bal-eui Ggoom / 맨발의 꿈 (2010)

Genre: Drama
Director: Tae-gyun Kim
Starring: Hee-soon Park, Kei Shimizu
Duration: 121 min.
Rating: 6.0/10

Summary:
After a series of pipe dream ventures go belly up, retired pro soccer player Kim Won-kang happens to visit East Timor, where he finds children playing the game barefoot on rocky pitches. Sensing a new business opportunity on finding the country doesn't have a single sporting goods store, he embarks on a scheme to get rich quick by purveying athletic shoes to the unshod youngsters. Sadly, no one there can afford to pay $60 for a pair of shoes, even on a generous installment plan, and before he knows it, he is reduced to coaching a team of ragged 10-year-olds and prospects are looking grim.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Outrage (2010)


Outrage (2010)
Outrage / Autoreiji / アウトレイジ (2010)


Genre: Crime Drama
Director: Takeshi Kitano
Starring: Takeshi Kitano, Kippei Shiina, Ryo Kase
Duration: 109 min.
Rating: 7.0/10

Summary:
The Sanmo-kai family chairman learns that his henchman Ikemoto has struck an alliance with the drug-dealing Murase family, and is not best pleased, to say the least. The ensuing retaliation triggers an orgy of killings, territorial invasions and score settling while law enforcement officers, too corrupt to intervene, sit back and enjoy the show.


Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Animal Kingdom (2010)


Animal Kingdom (2010)
Animal Kingdom (2010)

Genre: Crime Drama
Director: David Michôd
Starring: Ben Mendelsohn, James Frecheville, Jacki Weaver
Duration: 113 min.
Rating: 7.6/10

Summary:
Teenage Joshua Cody is suddenly on his own after his mother's drug habit catches up with her, and he's taken in by his grandmother Smurf, usually regarded as the black sheep of the family. Joshua quickly learns Smurf's reputation is well deserved; she and her four sons are members of a mid-level crime syndicate that operates out of her home in Melbourne.

Monday, January 10, 2011

My Joy (2010)


My Joy / Schastye moe (2010)
My Joy / Schastye moe / Щастя моє (2010)

Genre: Drama / Horror
Director: Sergei Loznitsa
Starring: Viktor Nemets, Vlad Ivanov, Olga Shuvalova
Duration: 127 min.
Rating: 7.1/10

Summary:
Truck driver Georgy sets out on a provincial Russian motorway for a routine delivery but a series of chance encounters see his journey spiral out of control. A roadside police check, a war veteran and a young prostitute lead him to a village from which there appears to be no way out.

Sunday, January 9, 2011

Socialism (2010)


Socialism / Film socialisme (2010)
Socialism / Film socialisme (2010)

Genre: Drama
Director: Jean-Luc Godard
Starring: Alain Badiou, Catherine Tanvier, Christian Sinniger, Patti Smith
Duration: 101 min.
Rating: 6.0/10

Summary:
A symphony in three movements.
Such things: A Mediterranean cruise. Multiple conversations, in multiple languages, between passengers, almost all of whom are on holiday... 
Our Europe: At night, a sister and her younger brother have summoned their parents to appear before the court of their childhood. The children demand serious explanations of the themes of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity. 
Our humanities: Visits to six sites of true or false myths: Egypt, Palestine, Odessa, Hellas, Naples and Barcelona. 

Saturday, January 8, 2011

Strayed (2009)



Strayed / Заблудившийся (2009)

Genre: Thriller
Director: Akan Satayev
Starring: Andrey Merzlikin, Tungyshbai Al-Tarazi
Duration: 90 min.
Rating: 4.6/10

Summary:
A man, his wife and young son travel across a deserted steppe by car. They get lost on a country road and are forced to spend the night in their car. Come morning, the man awakes to find that he is alone--his wife and son have disappeared. His first efforts to find them lead him to an isolated house inhabited by an old man and young woman. They seem to know everything about his family. The traveler does not feel comfortable staying but he does not want to leave the area in case his family shows up again. Odd things begin to happen in and around the house and the traveler becomes increasingly suspicious about his hosts. Ultimately, he becomes convinced they are the source of his misfortune and he must eliminate them before they eliminate him.

Friday, January 7, 2011

Deep Red (1975)

Deep Red / Profondo Rosso (1975) - Poster
Deep Red Profondo Rosso (1975)

Genre: Giallo • Thriller
Director: Dario Argento
Starring: David Hemmings, Daria Nicolodi, Gabriel Lavia
Language: Italian
Duration: 126 min.
Rating: 9.1  

Summary:
An English pianist living in Rome witnesses the brutal hatchet murder of his neighbor, a psychic. With the help of a tenacious young reporter he tries to discover the killer using very unconventional methods -- and the two are soon drawn into a shocking web of dementia, savagery and violence.

Thursday, January 6, 2011

9:06 (2009)


9:06 (2009)

Genre: Drama / Thriller
Director: Igor Sterk
Starring: Silva Cusin, Labina Mitevska, Pavle Ravnohrib, Igor Samobor
Duration: 71 min.


Summary:
In Lubljana, a police inspector investigates an unusual case. His investigation turns into an obsession as he secretly moves into the apartment of the deceased, delving deeper into the man's life and gradually assuming his identity.

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Mr. Bjarnfredarson (2009)


Mr. Bjarnfredarson / Bjarnfreðarson (2009)

Genre: Comedy
Director: Ragnar Bragason
Starring: Jón Gnarr, Pétur Jóhann Sigfússon, Jörundur Ragnarsson
Duration: 105 min.
Rating: 7.3/10

Summary:
The epic story of Georg, a hapless man, out of synch with society in search of redemption before his time on this earth runs out.

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

The Temptation of St. Tony (2009)


The Temptation of St. Tony / Püha Tõnu kiusamine (2009)


Genre: Drama / Fantasy
Director: Veiko Õunpuu
Starring: Taavi Eelmaa, Ravshana Kurkova, Tiina Tauraite
Duration: 110 min.
Rating: 7.5/10

Summary:
A mid-level manager who develops an aversion to being "good" finds himself confronting the mysteries of middle-age and morality as he loses grasp of what was once his quiet life. 

Monday, January 3, 2011

The Life of Fish (2010)


The Life of Fish / La vida de los peces (2010)

Genre: Drama
Director: Matías Bize
Starring: Santiago Cabrera, Blanca Lewin, Antonia Zegers
Duration: 84 min.
Rating: 7.0/10

Summary:
At a house party, a handsome man wanders around catching up with friends he has not seen for some years. A travel writer now based in Berlin, Andre appears to be living an exciting international life, and yet... something has drawn him back home to Santiago. As the night goes on, we realize that a tragedy binds this group - an event that was also the impetus for Andre's departure from Chile years ago. Moreover, there is someone at the party he goes to great lengths to avoid. But she is the very person he most needs to see.


Sunday, January 2, 2011

Eastern Plays (2009)


Eastern Plays (2009)

Genre: Drama
Director: Kamen Kalev
Starring: Hristo Hristov, Ovanes Torosian, Saadet Aksoy
Duration: 83 min.
Rating: 7.1/10

Summary:
The story of two alienated brothers, Hristo or Itso, an artist woodcarver who is struggling with his methadone addiction, and Georgi, a high school student who is dragged into a neo-Nazi gang.

Saturday, January 1, 2011

Monsters (2010)


Monsters (2010)

Genre: Drama / Sci-Fi
Director: Gareth Edwards
Starring: Whitney Able, Scoot McNairy
Duration: 94 min.
Rating: 7.4/10

Summary:
Six years ago... NASA discovered the possibility of alien life within our solar system.  A space probe was launched to collect samples but broke up during re-entry over Mexico.  Soon after, new life forms began to appear and half the country was quarantined as an INFECTED ZONE.  Today, the Mexican & US military still struggle to contain 'the creatures'...