Favorite Eastern European Movies?

Discussion in 'Visual Arts' started by MortSahlFan, Sep 16, 2019.

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  1. MortSahlFan

    MortSahlFan Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
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    Preferably 1930-70s. I haven't seen too many, but they are very personal. Very conversational, usually in a few settings. I saw one with only 2 characters - which is really awesome. I can't explain why I love them so much.

    I'll name a few now, and more some after - I don't want to load the sample, and I'm curious to see if anyone's matches mine.

    -Two Half-Times in Hell
    -The Fifth Seal
    -Knife In The Water
    -The Last Day of Summer
     
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  2. Monosterio

    Monosterio Forum Resident

    Location:
    South Florida
    I haven’t seen very many, but I do like Knife in the Water and the 1994 Before the Rain.
     
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  3. MortSahlFan

    MortSahlFan Forum Resident Thread Starter

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    The Shop on Main Street is good, too.
     
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  4. realkilroy

    realkilroy Forum Resident

    Location:
    Oslo, Norway
    Ashes and Diamonds (Wajda)
    Closely Watched Trains (Menzel)
    Vera Chytilova's Daisies
     
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  5. fabre

    fabre Forum Resident

    Location:
    Germany
    I especially like the Czech, Polish and Russian Cinema.
    Here are some of my favourite movies:

    Russia

    Everything by Andrey Zvyagintsev (The Return, Banishment , Elena, Leviathan, Loveless)
    Come and See (Elem Klimov)
    The Ascent (Larisa Shepitko [Klimov's wife])
    The Evil Spirit of Yambuy (Bunejew)
    Savage Hunt of King Stakh (Rubinchik)
    A Cruel Romance (Ryazanov)
    The Flight (Alov/Naumov)
    War and Peace (Bondarchuk)

    Poland
    Man of Marble; Ashes and Diamonds (Wajda)
    Dekalog (Kieslowski)
    The Saragossa Manuscript (Wojciech Has)
    Pharao (Jerzy Kawalerowicz) fantastic!!

    Czech(oslovakia)
    The Cremator (Juraj Herz)
    Valerie and her Week of Wonders (Jaromil Jires) [the movie is a bit strange, the music is wonderful]
    Larks on a string (Jiri Menzel)
    The Firemen's Ball
    Lemonade Joe
    Joachim, Put It in the Machine
    Kolya
    Men About Town
    Witchhammer (Otakar Vavra)

    Others:
    Underground (Kusturica)
    Sunshine (Szabo)
    4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days (Mungiu)

    I left out animation filmmakers. I think, some of the best animators come from Eastern Europe/Russia. I am thinking of Yuri Norstein, Jan Švankmajer, Ladislas Starewitch and many more.

    That looks very interesting! Thanks for mentioning.
     
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  6. MortSahlFan

    MortSahlFan Forum Resident Thread Starter

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    The last time I mentioned this movie, there was a reply from her son who is a member here!

    I think you'll love "The Fifth Seal" (I love dialogue-driven films)
     
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  7. Matt Richardson

    Matt Richardson Forum Resident

    Location:
    Suburban Chicago
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  8. Dillydipper

    Dillydipper Space-Age luddite

    Location:
    Central PA
    First that always comes to mind is 2006's The Lives Of Others, about a Stasi agent who gets caught up in the lives of the artist couple he is assigned to observe.
     
  9. realkilroy

    realkilroy Forum Resident

    Location:
    Oslo, Norway
    There's quite a few truly great movies about WWII experience made in Poland/Czechoslovakia/USSR. Different perspective, nothing like "The Great Escape". There's even more propaganda films, too.
     
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  10. stepeanut

    stepeanut The gloves are off

    [​IMG]
     
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  11. Geithals

    Geithals Forum Resident

    Location:
    Reykjavik
    A remarkable film from Romania, 4 months, 3 weeeks and 2 days directed by Cristian Mungiu. I can't say it's a favourite film of mine because of the subject matter and traumas but it's a brilliant film and a most harrowing experience

    4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days - Movies - Review
     
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  12. fabre

    fabre Forum Resident

    Location:
    Germany
    Wow, it's a small world!
    The director of "The Fifth Seal" sounded a bit familiar and I searched his filmography and I found the reason. I think I saw Körhinta (Merry Go-Round) a long time ago.
    Interesting. I read a lot about "On Body and Soul" but haven't heard about "My 20th Century". Sounds great!
    Very true! I love "The Great Escape" but like you said there are some very different war movies out there.
    I forgot to mention "Komissar" by Aleksandr Askoldov.

    @stepeanut
    I still haven't seen this one.

    Second Run and Criterion's Eclipse Series have a lot of interesting titles to offer.
     
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  13. MortSahlFan

    MortSahlFan Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
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  14. stepeanut

    stepeanut The gloves are off

    Like Valerie, Morgiana is a little odd, but I like that off-kilter weirdness that you get in Czech cinema. It’s worth seeing, definitely, although the Second Run DVD now appears to be OOP. You may have to hunt around to pick it up at a decent price.

    As Eastern European WWII films were mentioned, I’d like to suggest the recent Polish film Wołyń. I picked it up on BD earlier this year, whilst visiting Krakow. It’s a powerful story about one young woman’s fight for survival during the massacre of the Poles by Ukrainian insurgents. Not an aspect of the war typically covered by Western filmmakers. A brutal, but excellent, piece of work that deserves to be seen more widely.
     
    Last edited: Sep 18, 2019
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  15. fabre

    fabre Forum Resident

    Location:
    Germany
    That's right, the Czech New Wave is definitely worth seeing. I liked "The Cremator" very much and a few years ago I was at this famous crematorium in Pardubice
    If Morgiana is anything like it I guess I have a hunch of what to expect.

    I've yet to see some of the more recent Polish films like "Ida" and "Cold War" by Pawel Pawlikowski or "Spoor (Pokot) by Agnieszka Holland. Now "Wołyń" is on that list as well. Thanks for the recommendation.

    Édes Anna - I had a small déjà vu here as well. I found the source of it on my bookshelves. It's a book about the history of the Hungarian cinema (it's in German: Wort und Bild) by Istvan Nemeskürty. There is a chapter about Zoltan Fabri where a lot of his movies from the 60ies and 70ies are portrayed. He is described as "without doubt the most important filmmaker of that time alongside Miklos Jancso". There are references to Alain Resnais' Hiroshima Mon Amour (one of my favourite movies). I will have to check out his movies.
     
    Last edited: Sep 18, 2019
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  16. MortSahlFan

    MortSahlFan Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
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    The Round-Up (1966) is really good... 8/10
     
  17. antoniod

    antoniod Forum Resident

    I'd say the 30s comedies of Voskovec and Werich, but I can't find any with subtitles. I like to watch them anyway! And the Soviet musical CARNIVAL NIGHT(1956).
     
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  18. townsend

    townsend Senior Member

    Location:
    Ridgway, CO
    4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days was just brilliant. Anything that Mungiu does is worthy of one's time and attention. I hope he never comes to Hollywood and gets ruined.

    I have seen a couple of movies by Nuri Bilge Ceylan -- a set of his films is being released on Oct. 28, 2019: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07W47G...olid=22KMGKQVXN1PK&psc=1&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

    How about The Tribe: Plemya (2014) - IMDb
     
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  19. fabre

    fabre Forum Resident

    Location:
    Germany
    I don't think I've seen any but the Czech made great comedies. I've seen "When the Cat Comes" (1963) with Jan Werich. It was filmed in the beautiful small town of Telč. I've been there a few years ago and the main square and the castle are impressive. Werner Herzog filmed "Woyzeck" there.
    Telč - Wikipedia
    Have you heard of Jara Cimrman? I like the comedies of Zdeněk Svěrák and Ladislav Smoljak.
    Also worth mentioning are the films of Karel Zeman.

    I didn't think of Turkey because of the very small European part but that is south-eastern Europe. I've heard a lot about Nuri Bilge Ceylan but I haven't seen his films yet. I have "Winter Sleep" somewhere on DVD.
    Do you know Reha Erdem? I've seen "Jin" and liked it a lot. It reminded me a little bit of Gabriele Salvatores' "Io non ho paura (I am not scared)", an Italian film that I loved. Both films have beautiful shots of landscape, nature and wildlife looking like the perfect place on earth but of course there is evil everywhere. Zvyagintsev's movies could also fit this description, at least "The Return" and "Banishment".
     
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  20. unclefred

    unclefred Coastie with the Moastie

    Location:
    Oregon Coast
    A Russian film I saw not too long ago-The Return, (2003) Directed by Andrey Zvyagintsev. It made quite an impression. Don't look at Wiki or other sites because they give a major spoiler that would have ruined the movie for me.

    [​IMG]
     
  21. Dhreview16

    Dhreview16 Forum Resident

    Location:
    London UK
    The 2018 Polish movie Cold War is terrific.
    I don’t know if you count them as just German but this year’s Ballon (Balloon) and Never Look Away (by the Director of the Lives of Others) are set mainly in East Germany and are both really good too, especially the latter.
     
  22. antoniod

    antoniod Forum Resident

    Also the Soviet comedies of Yuri Nikulian, Yorgi Weitzen, and Margunov. Plus Arkady Raikin.
     
  23. MortSahlFan

    MortSahlFan Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    US
    Thanks so much for mentioning that... Many times I've had a movie spoiled, and it makes a difference when you're expecting certain things, or just constantly waiting for a certain event.

    I'd consider "The Lives of Others" - especially since it takes place in Eastern Germany. I don't think I've seen any other of the director's movies, so thank you for the reminder.
     
  24. Old Zorki II

    Old Zorki II Storm Watcher

    Location:
    near Tampa, FL
    I do not like dialogue-driven film, but The Fifth Seal I absolutely love, in fact I consider it one of the best movies ever made in Eastern Europe. I also read a book, and movie is remarkably close, but somehow better.
    I would also add to other Hungarian movies by Zoltan Huszarik - Szinbad and Csontvary, 2 art-house masterpieces.
    Please also do not forget Russian director Tarkovsky movies - almost all of his works deserved to be seen - Ivan's Childhood, Solaris, Andrey Rublev, Mirror and some others.
     
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  25. MortSahlFan

    MortSahlFan Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
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    I've watched all those you mentioned by Tarkovsky, and I was disappointed.
     
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