No Travel Plans? These Foreign Gems on Netflix Are the Next Best Thing
:extract_cover():upscale()/2018/07/06/781/n/1922283/5ea1cd885b3faac7a4b2a4.64199249_.jpg)
From original TV shows to sexy films, Netflix is giving us lots of great excuses to leave the office happy hour early. If you haven't scoped out the foreign film section, it's time. These movies transport us to other places, like Parisian streets and Brazilian seasides. Go ahead and whip up some healthy appetizers and add these 25 must-see films to your queue.
Amélie
There is no other movie that delights like Amélie. Audrey Tautou captivates viewers as she navigates love, Paris, human relationships, and her own neuroses. It will leave you smiling and fulfilled in a way that only director Jean-Pierre Jeunet could.
Clouds of Sils Maria
You might be confused by the presence of Kristen Stewart, but we assure you, Clouds of Sils Maria is a foreign film. The French drama tells the story of Maria Enders, an actress asked to star in the revival of a play that gave Enders her start 20 years ago. Now that she is asked to play the other role, she must deal with the complicated feelings that come with playing opposite the woman (Chloë Grace Moretz) who is playing her previous role.
Nymphomaniac: Volume 1
This French film made waves for its provocative sexual scenes, but its impressive list of accolades suggests there is much more to it than that. Did we mention Nymphomaniac stars Shia LaBeouf, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Christian Slater, Uma Thurman, and Willem Dafoe?
The Invisible Guest
This Spanish film will make your spine tingle. In The Invisible Guest, a man wakes up next to his dead lover in a hotel room, and finds he has become the prime murder suspect. It's gripping, intense, and full of twists.
Force Majeure
If you like suspense, comedy, and drama, Swedish film Force Majeure should be in your watch list. A Scandinavian family goes skiing, but their plans are immediately derailed when an avalanche forces the husband to flee. The rest of the family has to take care of themselves in the aftermath.
Y Tu Mamá También
This coming-of-age Mexican film follows two teenage boys on their cross-country road trip with a sexy older woman. Y Tu Mamá También is a funny, moving look at male friendship sure to leave a lasting impact.
Life Is Beautiful
You know a film is remarkable when it manages to take a devastating event like the Holocaust and create moments of joy and humor within it. Life is Beautiful will make you laugh and cry with its amazing plot line. A Jewish waiter and his wife and son are sent to a concentration camp, but the waiter manages to spin the awful reality into playing a game in order to protect his son. Get the tissues ready.
Mustang
Mustang is a dark, emotional Turkish film about five sisters who are put on lockdown at their conservative, strict grandmother's house after they were spotted flirting with boys. It's been compared to The Virgin Suicides, so you know it's good.
City of God
You've probably heard the hype about Brazilian film City of God, and it is spot on. It focuses on a poverty-stricken neighborhood on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro. Two boys have to navigate life in the corrupt city as they try to survive. As they grow older, one pursues a career as a photographer, and the other one becomes a drug dealer.
Blue Is the Warmest Color
First love is the subject of French film Blue Is The Warmest Color. There's no shortage of passionate love scenes between the two female characters, but the coming-of-age film about falling in love is also extremely powerful and beautiful.
Aquarius
The premise of Brazilian film Aquarius is compelling: a 65-year-old widow is forced to hold firm on her vow to live in her apartment until she dies, as her landlord decides to sell the units to a developer. She is forced to confront her own baggage in order to uncover why she doesn't want to leave. Plus, it stars Sonia Braga. who is one of our favorite guest stars on Sex and the City.
The Apostate
Uruguayan director Federico Veiroj focuses his drama The Apostate on a young Spaniard attempting to sever ties with the Catholic Church. The schism is extremely difficult for him, as the church refuses to give him his baptismal records. It's an existential comedy sure to engage viewers.
Leap Year
Not to be confused with Amy Adams's romantic comedy, Mexican drama Leap Year focuses on a 25-year-old nymphomaniac and her night-time escapes. A new lover (Gustavo Sanchez Parra) heightens the encounters to dangerous and violent levels.
My Golden Days
French film My Golden Days is an engaging film that focuses on middle-aged anthropologist Paul Dédalus as he looks back on his painful childhood. It's a prequel in certain ways to director Arnaud Desplechin's other films, but this one focuses on boyhood, first love, and heartbreak.
The Host
For those of you looking for a scary movie, The Host is just the ticket. The South Korean film centers on a beast rising from the Han River in Seoul who captures a young girl. The rest of the film is all about defeating the beast and saving the girl.
Gomorrah
The 08 Italian film Gomorrah focuses on organized crime in Naples, Italy, and what happens to a family when their patriarch is imprisoned for his mafia ties. It's not exactly uplifting, but it is extremely entertaining.
Headhunters
Suspenseful film Headhunters is about accomplished headhunter Roger, who steals art to afford his luxurious lifestyle. When he risks it all to steal an exceptionally valuable artwork, he becomes a hunted man himself. Bonus points: heartthrob Nikolaj Coster-Waldau stars in it.
The Little Death
The Little Death examines the lives of five different Australian couples, and how their sex lives intertwine with their public lives. It delves into sexuality, fetishes, and everything in between.
Brahman Naman
Brahman Naman has been proclaimed the Indian version of American Pie, and we can see why. It follows four nerdy college quiz champions traveling for the championship, and hoping to lose their virginities. Get ready for endless entertainment and laughs.
Sing Street
This Irish film from the director of Once and Begin Again is not to be missed. The soundtrack alone is enough to make Sing Street incredible, but the adorable love story that plays out during the film will make your heart sing.
Train to Busan
We must warn you that Train to Busan is intense. The South Korean horror film illustrates a zombie outbreak that sweeps the country, and it does suspense like no other. Make sure you have a flashlight handy.
Phoenix
German film Phoenix is as intense as it gets. After surviving a Nazi concentration camp, a woman is reunited with her husband who has had reconstructive surgery. Ultimately, she must uncover whether or not he was the one who betrayed her to the Nazis in the first place.
Queen
Get ready for some feel-good vibes with this Indian movie. In Queen, a young woman is left at the alter by her fiancé, but decides to go on her honeymoon without him. She travels to Paris and Amsterdam alone, and learns that she can be strong without any man.
The Beauty Inside
There's no movie quite like South Korean film The Beauty Inside. Woo-jin awakes each day in a different body. He eventually falls in love with a woman, and they both have to navigate how his transformations affect their budding romance.
Girlhood
We know there's a lot of French films on this list, but this coming-of-age film about a teenage girl making her way through Paris is a must-see. In Girlhood, Marieme attempts to escape her abusive family, and ends up making friends with an interesting group of girls. It spotlights her desperate search for independence, and it will definitely leave you with a new level of understanding.