World Cup season is of course underway, and here at Sound on Sight we have decided to choose one film to represent each country in the running for the ultimate prize in professional sports. As the tournament takes places each time a country is eliminated we will also eliminate the movie representing that team. At the end of the month we will review the films on an episode of the Sound On Sight podcast matched to the countries finishing first, second and in third place. Here is the list of competitors from groups C & D. Good luck to the teams of all our listeners.
Group E
Netherlands
Spoorloos (The Vanishing) (1988)
Directed by George Sluizer
A masterpiece of psychological horror, this Dutch/French film has one of the greatest and most unforgettable endings of all time.
Japan
Rashômon (In the Woods) (1951)
Directed by Akira Kurosawa
One of legendary director Akira Kurosawa’s most acclaimed films, Rashomon features an innovative narrative structure, beautiful cinematography, rhythmically nuanced editing, and excellent performances.
Chocolat (1988)
Directed by Claire Denis
In Claire Denis’s gentle, sensual, and subtextful directorial debut you feel as if your senses have been quickened and reawakened.
Denmark
Dancer In The Dark (2000)
Directed by Lars Von Trier
Von Trier is vicious when it comes to milking the melodrama but it demands to be seen, and though you may not like it, you’ll never forget it.
Group F
Italy
8 ½ (1963)
Directed by Federico Fellini
Fellini has made many masterpieces, but this 1963 Oscar-winner is arguably his most brilliant and influential films.
Paraguay
O Toque do Oboé (1998)
Directed by Cláudio MacDowell
The Cinema of Paraguay is small compared to that of neighbouring Argentina and Brazil. However, this has begun to change in recent years with films like El Toque del Oboe, an unpredictable, poetic Latin American tale.
New Zealand
Once Were Warriors (1994)
Directed by Lee Tamahori
One of the most powerful, ultra-realistic dramas about domestic violence – this film speaks volumes with the help from searing performances matched by the incredible camerawork of cinematographer Stuart Dryburgh.
Slovakia
Obchod na Korze (The Shop On Main Street) (1965)
Directed by Ján Kadár & Elmar Klos
One of the more memorable and underrated films about the Holocaust. The noted Polish actress Ida Kaminska was deservedly nominated for an Oscar for her performance, set in Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia.