All in Foreign

Episode 192 - The Grand Budapest Hotel

This week, we watch the film that is not only largest box office success of Wes Anderson's career so far, but also received a fair number of Oscar nominations, including one for Best Picture.  The cast is stacked, the shots are symmetrical, the effects are a combination of miniatures, stop motion, projected live action on matte paintings - all of the styles we've come to love from Wes.  Its might not be the film to turn the nay-sayers, but it certainly gives fans a lot to enjoy.  The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), directed by Wes Anderson.

Episode 193 - Amores Perros

This week, we watch the first film of Inarritu's "Trilogy of Death", where three brutal stories are told before and after a car accident.  Filled with extreme, realistic violence (most of it involving dogs), it is good knowing before going in that no animals were hurt during the making of this very effective drama. Amores Perros, directed by Alejandro Inarritu.

Episode 195 - Wild Tales

This week, we watch the film that took the country of Argentina by storm, smashing all of the box-office records, and earning a Best Foreign Picture nomination in the 2015 Oscars.  Comprised of six stories that, according to the director, are "linked by violence, and nothing else", this film lets its characters go far beyond typical socially accepted behavior, and explore what might result if people acted solely on their instincts.  Wild Tales (2014), directed by Damian Szifron.

Episode 207 - Memories of Murder

This week, we watch the the movie that captured a slot in Quentin Tarantino's list of the 20 best films since 1992 - a murder mystery that combines horror and comedy in a way that that leaves you not only guessing at who the killer is, but what tone the movie will take with the next scene.  Also, the best jump-kicks in movie history. Memories of Murder (2003), directed by Bong Joon Ho.

Episode 228 - La Haine

This week, we watch the film that kickstarted a renaissance in French cinema, which tells a story of a day in the life of three friends living in the projects one day after a night of violent riots of protest in the streets of Paris- La Haine (Hate, 1995). Directed by Mathieu Kassovitz.