Foreign Films

I love watching foreign films because just the addition of subtitles or even a strong accent makes me feel like I'm becoming smarter as I watch. Of course, I didn't really feel a whole lot smarter watching About a Boy, but the accent made it all seem that much more funny, once I could understand what they were saying. But have you ever noticed that films that come with subtitles are often more depressing than American movies. Some movies, like Osama, are so depressing you'll want to poke your own eyes out after watching it. But others, like Kitchen Stories, seem like a pleasant sort of movie until the end, when they drop a bomb of despair on you. I always say, it's not a good foreign film unless they give you a kick in the teeth somewhere along the way.

This last weekend, we decided to inaugurate our new Netflix account with the Hebrew film Ushpizen. And it was a great movie, but as I sat watching it, I had this sense that because it was a foreign film, I just couldn't be sure what they were going to throw at me. There is something reassuring and protective about knowing what genre your movie fits into and what the rules of that genre are. For example, in an action movie, you usually know that certain characters (e.g., Julia Roberts, Tom Cruise, or Harrison Ford) won't be killed because they are the movie. But in Ushpizen I had no idea what to expect.

This movie is about a Jewish couple who have recently decided to live the orthodox life, but as the next holiday approaches, their faith is tested when they don't have enough money to make the necessary preparations for the holiday. They are saved by a miracle, but then two unexpected guests show up, hoping to mooch off of them, and that's the main conflict of the movie, whether or not they invite these guests to join them. And that's also where I got uneasy watching the film. I wasn't sure how worried I should be about these questionable guests, but I'm happy to say there was no obligatory kick in the teeth at the end. In fact, the movie was an interesting and provocative look at what it means to have faith and how to demonstrate that faith. And it ended quite happily. I highly recommend it to anyone who, like me, feels like subtitles make a movie that much more of a cultural experience.

A few other recent favorites with cultural appeal include Dear Frankie, Wallace and Gromit, and Millions (especially interesting for it's odd allusion to LDS missionaries).