one more foreign film

Tonight was the final night of the free foreign film festival in Fullerton (how's that for alliteration?). I have to say that the selections have been awesome and now I am going to rent the ones I missed out on!



We saw The Kite Runner (Afghanistan) tonight. Wow. What a story. I haven't read the book yet (I know, I know...I'm a little behind on my current lit titles), but the movie was really powerful. I don't want to say too much, but, again, this is a must see movie (there are some pretty tough parts in it--it is probably not for kids). Be prepared for some heart-wrenching moments.

By the way, does anyone have a copy of the book I could borrow?

OK. Here is the list of the films I didn't make it to:

Pauline and Paulette (Belgium)
La Vie en Rose (France)
The Way Home (South Korea)

Have you seen any of these titles? Are they hits or misses? I am sure that they are pretty good, but if anyone has any input, I would love to hear it!

French Night at the Foreign Film Festival

My new city is pretty great. I never expected it to feel so non-city like. There are so many free community events going on all the time, and one of them was tonight.

Tonight was French night at a local community college's film festival. I only was able to stay for one of the movies shown, but I think I saw the best one! The movie is called Les Choristes (The Chorus in English).



I loved it! If you are a fan of foreign films--you MUST watch this one. Especially if you are a teacher, know a teacher or had a good teacher in school. The movie is about a school of boys with behavior problems and a teacher who works hard to reach them. The teacher begins a choir and helps transform the boys' lives. It is really endearing and the music is beautiful. It made me think of Mr. Holland's Opus in many ways (and who doesn't like that movie?). If you see it or have seen it, let me know what you think!

Yesterday, the festival featured a film from Spain. It was called Todo sobre mi madre (All About My Mother). It was a good movie, too, however, I am not sure I want to recommend it. This movie addresses a range of issues, like prostitution, transgendered individuals, drugs, unplanned pregnancy and death. It is kind of emotionally heavy.