The 14 foreign feature films selected to screen at Sundance 2010 — out of more than 1,000 entries submitted from countries outside the United States — offer a rich and exciting showcase to this year's viewers. All will have subtitles.
Near the top of my own not-to-be-missed list is "Son of Babylon," a new film from Iraq.
Taking place in the days following Saddam Hussein's fall from grace, it follows a young Kurdish boy and his grandmother who make their way through the Iraq's vast landscape in hopes of finding the old woman's son (the boy's father). The film will make its international premiere at Sundance.
And with Tallinn, Estonia, now holding the spot in my heart that Czechoslovakia's Prague used to own, I'm looking forward to "The Temptation of St. Tony" by Estonia's director/screenwriter Veiko Ounpuu. In this new film, a mid-level manager, who reaches middle age and toys with morality, begins to lose his hold on what had been — up to now — a relatively satisfying and quiet existence.
Change is also in store for an upper-class family in Bolivia in the new film, "Zona Sur" (or "Southern District"). Set in a beautiful villa and gardens in La Paz, the film centers on a wealthy family that senses that social changes are now beginning to signal the end of their elegant upper-class lifestyle.From India comes a world-premiere of the film "Peepli Live," which takes a satirical look at the predicament of a poor farmer who, overcome by debt, announces to his family that he will commit suicide so his family might receive compensation from the government.
"Grown-Up Movie Star," from Canada, concerns a teenage girl who, just when she has determined to grow up fast, finds that her mother has run away, leaving her to care for her hopelessly rural father.
Australia's "Animal Kingdom" makes its world premiere at Sundance, as it also deals with a teenager (this time a boy who has lost his mother) finding himself suddenly caught in the turmoil of a criminal family, but who soon is befriended by a detective who is determined to try to save him. The film features two top actors from Australia — Guy Pearce and Ben Mendelsohn.
From Argentina is "The Man Next Door" (El Hombre de al Lado) in which a small incident sparks a feud between neighbors which, in turn, triggers out-of-control paranoid obsessions.
"Contracorriente" (co-produced by Colombia, Peru, France, and Germany, and set in a Peruvian seaside) offers the predicament of a fisherman who, although married, has a male lover, and this does not sit well within the strictures of his town's traditions.
From Poland, a country long known for excellent filmmaking, comes a new film set in the early 1980s during the time of Poland's growing solidarity movement. Called "All That I Love," it concerns four teenagers who form a punk rock band and dream of being able to perform at a local festival.
In the South Korean film, "Vegetarian," a young housewife, suddenly beset with disturbing dreams that make her disgusted with meat, finds herself in the dilemma of how to satisfy her meat-loving husband. Korean films, incidentally, have become surprisingly popular at international film festivals, and this could prove to be a good sampling of something you've been missing.
"Me Too" (Yo Tambien), from Spain, promises to be a new and rich cinematic experience because it features a 34-year-old, college-educated man with Down syndrome who strikes up an unusual and unconventional relationship with a free-spirited co-worker. Sure to be of great interest is the film "Boy," making its world premiere at this year's Sundance. From New Zealand, it deals with an 11-year-old boy who, along with his little brother, Rocky, find that when their long-missing father finally returns home, they must reconcile reality with the fantasy father they had created in their imagination.
"Four Lions," from Great Britain, is another world premiere. Dealing with a bunch of self-styled British jihadists is sure to provide comedy in today's troubled world.
And the world premiere of "Nuummioq" should be a treat for all. How often do we get to see a film from Greenland? As he journeys through breathtakingly pristine and natural landscapes, a young man makes a concentrated effort to piece together the various elements of his past in order to finally move forward with his life.
Don Marshall is a retired director of the BYU International Cinema program.