Western

Directors: Manuel Poirier
Starring: Sergi Lopez, Sacha Bourdo
Year: 1997

On a trip through the French countryside, Spanish shoe salesman Paco picks up the unassuming Russian hitchhiker Nino. Their relationship gets off to a rocky start, as Nino begins a chain of events that causes Paco to lose his car and his job. But when the pair, penniless and directionless, take off for a three-week hitchhiking journey together, they discover their common struggles in life, love and what it feels like to be an outsider in this heartwarming, romantic road comedy.

Comments: sentimental, but amusing. Nice story about how we all come from different places and origins.

Recommended.

Baraka

Directors: Ron Fricke
Year: 1992

BARAKA is a non-verbal cinematic meditation on the earth, an exploration of the natural beauty of places, of human spirituality, of birth, life and death, and man’s own capacity for destruction. Director Ron Fricke states, “BARAKA is a journey of rediscovery that plunges into nature, into history, into the human spirit, and finally into the realm of the infinite.”

Three years in the making, including a 14-month period of intensive location shooting, BARAKA takes the viewer on an unforgettable journey to 24 countries. The imagery is as varied as life itself. From the unspeakable horror of raging oil fires in Kuwait during the final days of the Gulf War to the contemplative beauty of a lone Tibetan Monk deep in meditative prayer. We see the inquisitive gaze of a Kayapo boy peering out of the Amazon jungle and the cold stares of armed Cambodian soldiers guarding a munitions storage area.

Comments: Simply amazing.

Highly Recommended.

51 Birch Street

Directors: Doug Block
Year: 2006

Documentary filmmaker Doug Block had every reason to believe his parents' 54-year marriage was a good one. But when his mother dies unexpectedly and his father swiftly marries his former secretary, he discovers two parents who are far more complex and troubled than he ever imagined. 51 Birch Street is a riveting personal documentary that explores a universal human question: how much about your parents do you really want to know?

Comments: Explores a number of universal human themes with sensitivity and without judgment.

Highly Recommended.

Autumn Moon ("Qiu Yue")

Directors: Clara Law
Starring: Matatoshi Nagase
Year: 1992

Twenty-something Japanese tourist (Tokio) vacations to Hong Kong looking for good restaurants. He meets 15-year-old Chinese girl (Li Pui Wai). Wai, whose family has gone ahead of her to move to Canada, invites Tokio for a meal prepared by her 80-year-old grandmother. Through the platonic relationship that develops, both Tokio and Wai find support and companionship to fill their respective voids. As Tokio regains his taste for life and food and Wai emerges from childhood into womanhood, both confront the sources of their respective alienation.

Comments: Exquisitely shot, the film poses a wonderful contrast between modern vs. old cultures, and Japanese and Hong Kong Chinese cultures. Good performances by Nagase and Wai (her first and only film?) who execute very effectively most of the dialogue in broken, halting English.

Recommended.