This being Thursday, it's time for another edition of Thursday Movie Picks, the blogathon run by Wandering Through the Shelves. This time out, we have a theme that's been done before, but one that isn't particularly difficult: Non-English films. The only think I really had to do was check whether or not I'd used any of the movies before. Sure enough, one of my original choices was one that I had used, so I had to think of some others. In the end I came up with three movies set in World War II:
Rome, Open City (1945). The first film in Roberto Rossellini's war trilogy, this one is set in Italy during the period when the Allies had already invaded Sicily but not reached Rome, where the Nazis and Italian Fascists were still in control. An underground is operating, and the Nazis are trying to find the leaders and exterminate them, being typically ruthless in the process. A young Anna Magnani plays a war wido.
The Ascent (1977). In the western Soviet Union (what is now Belarus) in the winter of 1942, the first after the Nazi invasion, a group of Soviet soldiers have been caught behind enemy lines. Two of their number are sent to find food, but the farm where the food is supposed to be has been burned to the ground, to the two have to soldier on, hopefully not to be caught by the Nazis. Directed by Larisa Shepitko, who would die tragically in a car crash while doing location scouting for what would have been her following film.
Divided We Fall (2000). In the Nazi-occupied Czech lands, the husband of a couple finds an old Jewish friend who has escaped one of the concentration camps. Having a spare storage room in their Prague apartment, the couple hides the Jewish friend in that room away from the Nazis. Things get exceedingly complicated.
6 comments:
Rome, Open City is a fascinating film and Anna Magnani incredible in it. Easy to see why it was so influential.
The Ascent is so grim it was tough watching to realize how well it was made but it lingered in my memory afterwards. It was then I saw how well it was done.
I haven't seen the last but it sounds worth tracking down.
I went with recent watches, one each per country.
Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion (1970)-An Italian police inspector (Gian Maria Volonte) held in high regard within the department and community murders his mistress and then insinuates himself into the homicide investigation that follows. Believing he is above suspicion he takes it as a game to plant clues at the crime scene to test the competence and integrity of Italian law enforcement. Winner of the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.
A Colt is My Passport (1967)-Hitman Shuji Kamimura (Joe Shishido) and his partner Shun Shiozaki (Jerry Fujio) are hired by yakuza boss Senzaki to kill a rival whose greed has become a problem. The job comes off but then the pair runs into complications that seem to be headed in a deadly direction. This pastiche of noir/yakuza/spaghetti Western takes you on a wild ride.
Orpheus (1950)-During an altercation in a Parisian Cafe involving the poet Orphée (Jean Marais) rival poet Cègeste (Edouard Dermithe) is killed. A mysterious princess (María Casares) appears and insists on taking Orpheus and the body away in her Rolls-Royce. Orphée soon finds himself in the underworld, where the Princess announces that she is, in fact, Death. Orpheus escapes in the Rolls back to the land of the living but at a cost. Jean Cocteau directed this surrealistic updating of the Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice.
I first saw Divided We Fall on the old IFC many years ago, when they actually showed independent movies and didn't have commercials. The movie received an Oscar nomination for best foreign-language film. I can't imagine TCM showing it, however, unless Criterion gets the rights to it.
We share a director in Larisa Sheptiko as I went with Wings which was her other feature. Oh man, I miss the old IFC/Sundance Channel. They used to show a lot of interesting films uncut and commercial-free back then. It's where I discovered Francois Ozon, samurai movies, and all sorts of stuff. I miss those channels.
Rome, Open City has been on my list for a while. I hope to get to it eventually. I haven't seen your other picks either.
Rome, Open City is one I have been wanting to see. I really like Anna Magnani. I wouldn’t mind catching you other debts .
I haven't seen any of your picks but heard of all of them. Especially Rome, Open City is very high up on my to-watch-list!
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