The next ten episodes are going to cover a variety of foreign films from all over the world. Sean went through a very meticulous process to curate this particular list, and in this mini-episode, we’re going to chat a little bit about what first got us interested in foreign films, and the criteria that he used to select these titles.
Addendum: Sean noted on Facebook…
A couple of things I wish I had remembered for this introduction (although I think I talk about this in some of the subsequent episodes) – movies from other countries made an impact here starting after WWII because took on characters and subjects Hollywood under the Hays Code was unwilling or unable to touch (and treat those and other subjects in a more adult way than Hollywood was willing and/or able to do), and movies from other countries also appealed because they told their stories in a different way than Hollywood movies. Although the Hays Code is long gone, and American independent movies have picked up the slack somewhat, I still feel movies from other countries offer a fresh perspective on subjects, storytelling, and just a different perspective.
COMING ATTRACTIONS:
We start our tour by going South of the Border, down Mexico way. We’ll be reviewing Y tu mamá también, a wild little coming of age road film from 2001. Then we’ll be looking at Roma, a story about the life of a housekeeper in Mexico City. Both of these films were directed by Alfonso Cuarón, who chose to release Roma only to Netflix to ensure the largest possible audience.