Foreign Films

Like many American independent films, there are countless foreign
films that deserve greater attention. Most of them do not follow the Hollywood method of casting beautiful people who have perfectly applied makeup in all scenes. Instead, the actors may look as real or flawed as the characters they play.

Some films tell extraordinary stories, such as “Pan’s Labyrinth” or “Volver” or are told in an exceptional
way, like “Run Lola Run” and “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.” And many of the best films about the Holocaust like “Life is Beautiful,” “Downfall” and “Counterfeiters” are foreign films.

If you’re not excited about reading subtitles, there are also fantastic movies from the UK, Australia and other English speaking countries. “Trainspotting,” “Secrets and Lies,” “Muriel’s Wedding,” and “Lantana” use familiar language, but have distinctive tones and humor that highlight cultural differences.

Try mixing up your DVD queue with some foreign films. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do.

“La Fin,” “Das Ende,” “El Final,” “The End.”

Vegetarian Vampires

You don’t have to be a fan of vampires to enjoy Stephenie Meyer’s first novel “Twilight.” The story centers on a budding romance between two teenagers, Bella and Edward. Unlike typical storylines of this genre, the heroine Bella, is a clumsy human who doesn't make friends easily. Edward and his family are vampires who have chosen not to kill humans, but rather feed on wild animals. We won’t go into details, but Meyer does a fantastic job developing characters and adding unexpected twists.

The production stayed true to the NW setting by filming mostly in Oregon and Washington. There are also a couple of local actors, including Billy Burke, who plays Bella’s father and Cam Gigandet, who plays an evil vampire. We’re excited to see the movie and hopeful that it captures the essence of the book.

Movie Mojo

For those of you interested in the success of movies, check out Box Office Mojo. This website contains production budget totals, theater and DVD sales and release schedules. It breaks out domestic and international grosses. For example, the production budget for “Troy” was $175 million. It only grossed $133 million in the U.S., but made an additional $364 million worldwide.

It also has an “All Time Box Office” section that lists the top grossing movies, including a list adjusted for inflation. You may be surprised that the number one box office movie isn’t “Titanic” or “Dark Knight.” A hint: it’s a classic that was released in 1939.

The site is rich with film-related articles and trailers. It also has a game section where you can predict movie grosses for the week. When you sign up for a free membership, you can customize how you would like to view movie showtimes, create a favorite list of theaters, rate movies and subscribe to an email alert that gives an overview of the weekend’s movies. Box Office Mojo earns an IndieShares nod!