TOP-TEN NON-ENGLISH LANGUAGE FILMS OF THE NINETIES
Aug 20 '04 (Updated Dec 23 '04)
The Bottom Line Continuing my series of Top Non-English Language Films by decade, here's a Top Ten for the nineties plus another twenty-nine rated at five or four stars.
The nineties were a good decade for non-English language films – a bounce back from the relative weakness of the eighties. There was a diffusion of important contributions among a large number of directors and nations. Seventeen countries are included in the lists below. This is a subjective list – i.e., my personal favorites. It is not intended to represent critical consensus. The list was constructed from a pool of over sixty eligible films that I have personally seen.
TOP-TEN NON-ENGLISH LANGUAGE FILMS OF THE NINETIES:
#1. Three Colors (1992/4)___Country: France___Director: Krzysztof Kieslowski
Kieslowski produced his trilogy Trois Couleurs beginning with Bleu in 1992, followed by Blanc and Rouge in 1994. I am treating this trilogy as one item because the three films are ultimately interrelated, though any one of the films can be watched separately with full enjoyment. Were I to treat them separately, Bleu and Rouge would both have to be in my top ten films from the 1990’s, foreign or otherwise. Blanc is not as strong as the other two. Bleu features the incomparable Juliette Binoche while Rouge stars the equally alluring Irene Jacob. If you plan to see all three films, see them in order.
#2. Central Station (1998)___Country: Brazil___Director: Walter Salles
This is a poignant story of redemption. Dora, an embittered retired schoolteacher, reluctantly takes charge of an orphaned boy and finds new meaning in her life. Set in Rio de Janeiro and rural Brazil, this film features an award-winning performance by Fernando Montenegro as Dora. It’s a highly sensitive film.
#3. Burnt By the Sun (1994)___Country: Russia___Director: Nikita Mikhalkov
This film won the 1995 Academy Award for Best Foreign Film. An old hero of the Russian Revolution lives in blissful retirement in a rural community with his lovely wife, Maroussia, and their beautiful daughter – until the madness of the Stalinist purges storms into their lives in the form of Maroussia’s old boyfriend. Betrayal, rationalization, and courage are the currency of this film.
#4. Cyrano de Bergerac (1990)___Country: France___Director: Jean-Paul Rappaneau
Cyrano is the epitomy of a romantic hero in this marvelous adaptation of the great play by Edmond Rostand. Gérard Depardieu plays Cyrano with marvelous panache while Anne Brochet makes a comely Roxane. The final scene is a tear-jerker par excellence.
#5. Butterfly (1999)___Country: Spain___Director: Jose Luis Cuerda
This great Spanish film is set in the waning days of the Spanish Republic, just before it was swept away by the Spanish Civil War. Don Gregorio, a school teacher nearing retirement, played by the great Fernando Fernan Gomez, befriends seven-year-old Moncho (Manuel Lozano), teaching him about nature, life, and love. The idyllic tone of much of the film is shattered by a tumultuous ending.
#6. The Horseman on the Roof (1995)___Country:France ___Director: Jean-Paul Rappeneau
This romantic period drama features charming performances by Juliette Binoche and Olivier Martinez. Thrown together by chance, the two must battle assassins, rogues and, most of all, the plague, while traveling through the France of 1862. This film effectively combines high adventure and romance.
#7. Life is Beautiful (1997)___Country: Italy___Director: Roberto Benigni
Benigni both directed and starred in this masterpiece about the durability of human spirit in the face of adversity. This film is one of those rare instances where a part perfectly matches the characteristics of a performer. Humor, great cinematography, and an excellent score all add to a story of great sensitivity.
#8. Ma Vie en Rose (1997)___Country: France/Belgium___Director: Alain Berliner
Seeing this film recently for the third time and with my family reinforced my opinion of the merits of this Golden Globe award winning Best Foreign Film in 1997. It is a study of individuality and a plea for tolerance. A young lad believes that he was meant to be a girl instead of a boy, throwing the entire neighborhood into a tizzy. Georges Du Fresne plays young Ludovic with wide-eyed sweetness and serenity.
#9. Run Lola Run (1998)___Country: Germany___Director: Tom Tykwer
This clever and highly kinetic film explores interesting questions about fate, intersecting lives, and alternative realities. This meditation on order and chaos features Franka Potente as Lola – who is mostly on the run throughout the film.
#10. The Dinner Game (1998)___Country: France___Director: Francis Veber
It’s only fair to round out this list with a comedy and you won’t find a funnier one than this witty offering from Francis Veber, one of the greatest French farceurs of the twentieth century. Monsieur Pierre Brochant and his exclusive group of friends – the finest and brightest men in Paris – have a rather mean-spirited pastime. Each Wednesday night, they organize an “idiot dinner” to which each regular invites the biggest idiot they can find so that the entire group can wallow in idiot depreciation. Brochant is about to learn that exposing your life to a world-class idiot can be dangerous business indeed.
OTHER FIVE-STAR FILMS FROM THE NINETIES:
Children of Nature (1991)___Country: Iceland___Director: Fridrik Thor Fridriksson
Vacas (1992)___Country: Spain___Director: Julio Medem
The Scent of Green Papaya (1993)___Country: France___Director: Tran Anh Hung
Eat Drink Man Woman (1994)___Country: China___Director: Ang Lee
Strawberry and Chocolate (1994)___Country: Cuba___Director: Tomás Gutiérrez Alea and Juan Carlos Tabío
Under the Domim Tree (1995)___Country: Israel___Director: Eli Cohen
Beyond Silence (1998)___Country: Germany___Director: Caroline Link
FOUR-STAR FILMS FROM THE NINETIES:
Journey of Hope (1990)___Country: Turkey___Director: Xavier Koller
La Femme Nikita (1990)___Country: France___Director: Luc Besson
Tie Me Up! Time Me Down! (1990)___Country: Spain___Director: Pedro Almodóvar
Delicatessen (1991)___Country: France___Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Marc Caro
The Double Life of Veronique (1991)___Country: France___Director: Krzysztof Kieslowski
Raise the Red Lantern (1991)___Country: China___Director: Zhang Yimou
Zentropa (1991)___Country: Germany___Director: Lars Von Trier
Belle Epoque (1992)___Country: Spain___Director: Fernando Trueba
Indochine (1992)___Country: France___Director: Regis Wargnier
Like Water For Chocolate (1992)___Country: Mexico___Director: Alfonso Arau
Farewell My Concubine (1993)___Country: China___Director: Chen Kaige
Stalingrad (1993)___Country: Germany___Director: Wolfgang Petersen
The Visitors (1993)___Country: France___Director: Christian Clavier
Chungking Express (1994)___Country: Hong Kong___Director: Wong Kar-Wai
Farinelli: Il Castrato (1994)___Country: Belgium___Director: Gérard Corbiau
Il Postino (1994)___Country: Italy___Director: Michael Radford
Antonia’s Line (1995)___Country: Netherlands___Director: Marleen Gorris
Hate (1995)___Country: France___Director: Mathieu Kassovitz
Star Maker (1995)___Country: Italy___Director: Giuseppe Tornatore
Kolya (1996)___Country: Czech Republic___Director: Jan Sverak
The Other Side of Sunday (1996)___Country: Norway___Director: Berit Nesheim
Ridicule (1996)___Country: France___Director: Patrice Leconte
Character (1997)___Country: Netherlands___Director: Mike Van Diem
Insomnia (1997)___Country: Norway___Director: Erik Skjoldbjærg
Earth (1998)___Country: Canada/India___Director: Deepa Mehta
The Grandfather (1998)___Country: Spain___Director: Jose Luis Garci
All About My Mother (1999)___Country: Spain___Director: Pedro Almodóvar
The Emperor and the Assassin (1999)___Country: China___Director: Chen Kaige
The Terrorist (1999)___Country: India___Director: Santosh Sivan
Please check out my other decade lists:
Top-Ten Non-English Language Films of the Thirties and Forties
Top-Ten Non-English Language Films of the Fifties
Top-Ten Non-English Language Films of the Sixties
Top-Ten Non-English Language Films of the Seventies
Top-Ten Non-English Language Films of the Eighties
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