HYPEWe’d like to believe that love conquers all; that there’s the happily-ever-after, but the overworked mind and cultural taboos can conjure up not magic, but sheer mayhem. Eunice Ng explores 4 foreign films available on DVD that look beyond the fluff.
The song from this movie is so sad it apparently inspired numerous people to kill themselves in the 1930s and was banned by the BBC then for fear it would trigger more suicides. Set in Hungary before the tumultuous World War II era, this movie is not only deathly depressing, but also surprisingly charming and sensual…(Read More)
Fresh from her role as the sweet, innocent girl in Amélie, Audrey Tautou takes on the role of a promising art student who’s hopelessly in love with a married doctor in this film. As it starts out in the perspective of the young talented artist it seems that she and the physician share a delightful extra-marital affair. However, when the show takes a turn and gives the viewpoint of the medical practitioner, the ugly truth is revealed…(Read More)
Based on a true story, this feature swept the Oscar and Golden Globe Award in 2004 for “Best Foreign Language Film”. Based on a true story, it’s about a Galician quadriplegic who sparked off controversy in Spain in 1998 for his campaign, lasting 30 years, to end his life voluntarily. This clever piece presents a discussion of the all-time taboo topic of euthanasia…(Read More)
The storyline of this motion picture brings to mind a popular Chinese legend that was made into a Disney animation, Mulan (1998). Similarly, this movie tells a tale of a daughter, dressing up as a male to work in place of her father so as to provide for the family, one of many Afghan refugees escaping the Taliban regime. The girl can’t hide her real identity for long, and when someone at the workplace finds out the truth, love blossoms between the pair who are from contrasting social backgrounds…(Read More)