Foreign Films Are Important

After watching the movie Bicycle Thieves fairly recently, it had me thinking about the importance of foreign films as a whole. Foreign films are important to the film industry because it allows filmmakers from other countries to have their content be shown in the United States as well as globally. It allows filmmakers to show issues that are important to them. They can show what is happening currently or something that happened many years ago. It allows for creative freedom. For example, in Bicycle Thieves, the director portrays Italy post WWII through the eyes of poverty stricken people looking for any kind of work to support themselves and their families. Another example would be the film City of God. The director shows teenagers living through a drug war from the '60s into the '80s in Brazil. If it were not for these two directors putting these stories out there, these stories would not be seen by others and be lost in the ashes. I am sure there are more examples of this but these two films came first to my mind. It also shows different film techniques from filmmakers in different countries. For example, a director in France could use a tracking shot whereas a director from Russia might not like to use that shot and instead, use wider shots because they want to capture the true feel for a scene. It is subjective to the filmmaker and that is what is beautiful about cinema as a whole.

Not only are foreign films important to the film industry but foreign films are also important for people to watch. It allows us to experience what is going on in the world around us in the comfort of our living room or in a movie theater. It also allows us to experience new actors/actresses to fall in love with. It shows new film techniques all over the world that are different from others. With movies, there are some fantastic selections and there are some crummy selections as well. The first foreign film I remember loving is Cinema Paradiso. It expanded my horizon to a taste as to what Italian cinema can be like. It had beautiful cinematography and great character development. A foreign film I did not like at all was Son of Saul, a film from Hungary. It was overhyped in my opinion by the critics and cinephiles on social media and I believe that it swayed in my viewing experience. With all forms of media, everything is subjective. Watching a foreign film is not that different from watching any other movie. The only difference is that subtitles might be needed and in my opinion, it doesn't take away from the viewing experience.

If there is anything that I would hope you take away from this article, it would be this. Foreign films are cool because of how it can portray a story from another country that is different from your own. It introduces us to new actors/actresses, film techniques, and the people that create these films. If you are hesitant to watch foreign films because of it not being in English or because it will be confusing to follow, put on the subtitles. It is allowing you to broaden your horizons from what you are comfortable with and I believe that in order to grow, stepping outside of your comfort zone is important. Give foreign films a chance and see what they are all about and if you still don't like it after that, you can say "I told you so."