Cinematic arthouse gems from around the world that are as challenging as they’re rewarding.
Everyone loves a good blockbuster, but there’s a special place in cinephiles’ hearts for arthouse films. These are movies, typically independent, that are made on a smaller budget and with a more intimate scope to appeal to a specific niche rather than to mainstream audiences. They are usually experimental and driven by the auteurial voice of the director at their helm, exploring difficult and even challenging yet intriguing subjects.
Throughout the world, many artistic voices from non-English-speaking countries have redefined what an arthouse movie can be. From poetic directors like Andrei Tarkovsky and his Stalker to Latin American icons like Alfonso Cuarón and his Y Tu Mamá También, there are plenty of foreign arthouse masterpieces that have stood the test of time. They’re a window into different realities, a portal that takes audiences into a completely different way of making artistic cinema.
10 ‘Tokyo Story’ (1953)
Directed by Yasujirō Ozu
The Japanese master filmmaker Yasujirō Ozu had one of the most distinctive voices the film industry has ever seen. Known for his naturalistic and slow-burning narratives about real human conflicts, filmed with some of the most inconspicuous cinematography one can find in Asian cinema, Ozu was one of the most influential auteurs to ever come out of Japan. His most popular film, arguably his best, is Tokyo Story, about an old couple visiting their children and grandchildren in the city, where they find that they may not be as welcome as they’d have liked.
Tokyo Story is one of the best and most influential movies of the ’50s, telling a deeply moving story of gut-wrenching emotional power in a way so admirably understated that it makes it all the more of a tearjerker. It displays all of its director’s greatest artistic skills in all their splendor, and though its slow pace and simple story may not be to general audiences’ taste, it’s a fantastic introduction to Ozu’s style for those interested.
Tokyo Story
- Release Date
- March 13, 1972
- Cast
- Chishû Ryû , Chieko Higashiyama , Sô Yamamura , Setsuko Hara
- Runtime
- 136 minutes
- Writers
- Kôgo Noda , Yasujirô Ozu
9 ‘Y Tu Mamá También’ (2001)
Directed by Alfonso Cuarón
Mainstream cinema tends to be pretty afraid of sex-heavy and intimate films — so arthouse tends to be the perfect home for them. Alfonso Cuarón proved that with Y Tu Mamá También, one of the most beloved Mexican films by international audiences. It’s about two teenage boys and an older woman who embark on a road trip that teaches them a thing or two about life, each other, and themselves.
On the surface, Y Tu Mamá También is sexy and jovial until it becomes emotionally devastating. Beneath that surface lies a powerful critique of Mexico’s political and socioeconomic state at the time, which can be appreciated and enjoyed by audiences of any nationality. It’s a tremendously potent film with three exceptional lead performances by Maribel Verdú, Gael García Bernal, and Diego Luna, proving that there’s nothing wrong with movies that aren’t scared to get a little steamy, especially if sexuality is used to explore the character’s psyche.
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8 ‘A Brighter Summer Day’ (1991)
Directed by Edward Yang
The late Edward Yang was one of the greatest Taiwanese filmmakers of all time, and A Brighter Summer Day is arguably his best movie. One of the best arthouse epics of all time, this nearly 4-hour-long teen crime drama is based on a true story about a conflict between two youth gangs. The clash between the head of one of the gangs and a 14-year-old boy’s girlfriend leads to a violent climax.
This powerful coming-of-age may be set in Taipei, but A Brighter Summer Day‘s themes are relatable to anyone who has ever experienced issues of identity and generational conflict. The runtime is certainly daunting for a film like this, but those willing to patiently watch how Yang’s fascinating characters and story unfold will be treated to a timeless classic that will stay with them for a long time.
7 ‘Come And See’ (1985)
Directed by Elem Klímov
It may not exactly be a horror movie, but Come And See is perhaps the most horrifying arthouse film ever made. Set during WWII, it follows a young boy who finds a rifle and joins the Soviet resistance against German forces. Experiencing the horrors and atrocities of the war through the eyes of a child (particularly one played as impeccably as Aleksey Kravchenko plays his role) is a truly harrowing experience.
The way director Elem Klimov paints the Russian countryside as a violent and unpredictable hellscape is as admirable as it is devastating. As Flyora’s soul is slowly twisted and corrupted as the war rages on, audiences are forced to sit through some of the most discomforting scenes they will ever watch. It may not be an easy experience, but Come And See is absolutely worth the effort for its sheer power and willingness to confront some of the darkest aspects of the human experience.
Come and See
- Release Date
- September 3, 1985
- Cast
- Aleksey Kravchenko , Olga Mironova , Liubomiras Laucevicius , Vladas Bagdonas
- Runtime
- 142 minutes
6 ‘The Holy Mountain’ (1973)
Directed by Alejandro Jodorowsky
Chilean-French filmmaker and artist Alejandro Jodorowsky is definitely an acquired taste, but his contributions to defining and redefining cinematic surrealism are undeniable. The Holy Mountain is the head-scratching work that’s typically praised as his best. In its corrupt world fueled by greed and not governed by the typical rules of reality, a powerful alchemist leads a messianic figure and seven colorful characters to the Holy Mountain, where they will achieve enlightenment.
Bizarre, graphic, gorgeous, and transcendentally spiritual, The Holy Mountain is the work of a master in full control of his craft. The movie is pure and unrestrained arthouse goodness, unafraid of being controversial with its themes of religion and humankind’s inherent corruption or with how it depicts them. Getting into Jodorowsky as a newcomer will always be a challenge, but one might as well start with his masterpiece.
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5 ‘Angel’s Egg’ (1985)
Directed by Mamoru Oshii
Clocking in at only 71 minutes long, Angel’s Egg is surreal anime bliss. Heavily allegorical and visually stunning, it’s about a mysterious girl wandering in a desolate, otherworldly landscape while carrying a large egg. Director Mamoru Oshii‘s vision of motherhood, femininity, and the connection between dreams and reality is deeply provocative and enthralling, but Angel’s Egg leaves limitless room for other interpretations of its narrative.
Thanks to its incredible animation, haunting music and sound design, and compelling story, this is one of the best and most ambitious animated arthouse movies of all time. Its impenetrable imagery and ample use of surrealism can definitely be a bit of a challenge for general audiences, especially those unaccustomed to such elusive narratives. However, the short runtime makes it much easier to feel motivated to interpret everything displayed on screen.
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4 ‘Persona’ (1966)
Directed by Ingmar Bergman
Ingmar Bergman is perhaps the greatest and best-known Swedish filmmaker who has ever lived, and for good reason. A master of slow-paced, highly introspective arthouse cinema, Bergman made films like Persona, one of the most powerful pictures the European film industry has created. This film is probably his masterpiece and follows a nurse put in charge of a mute actress and the bizarre dynamic that starts to form between them.
Bibi Andersson and Liv Ullmann, common collaborators of Bergman’s, are beyond amazing in their roles. They create characters who are as mysterious as they are fascinating, perfectly embodying the narrative’s themes of duality and womanhood. Persona is by far its director’s most surrealistic work, using strange imagery and mystifying scenes to permeate a story that demands to be seen at least twice.
Persona
- Release Date
- March 16, 1967
- Cast
- Bibi Andersson , Liv Ullmann , Margaretha Krook , Gunnar Björnstrand , Jörgen Lindström
- Runtime
- 83 Minutes
- Writers
- Ingmar Bergman
3 ‘Sátántangó’ (1994)
Directed by Béla Tarr
It’s a tremendous work of art in its own right, but Hungarian filmmaker Béla Tarr‘s Sátántangó is probably best known for the fact that it’s nearly 7-and-a-half hours long. Its story finds the residents of a collapsing collective farm seeing their optimistic plans turn to despair when Irimiás, a former co-worker they thought was dead, returns to the community.
Visually gorgeous, masterfully directed, and fully confident in its glacially slow pace, Sátántangó is definitely one of the most singular dramas the silver screen has ever seen. It’s precisely its exaggerated length and slow-burning rhythm that enhance its themes of socioeconomic struggle and nihilism, creating a quasi-purgatory that is striking and utterly unnerving. These reasons and plenty of others are why Sátántangó is one of the best arthouse films of all time.
2 ‘Stalker’ (1979)
Directed by Andrei Tarkovsky
Andrei Tarkovsky, master of slow-burning poetic cinema, was one of the greatest filmmakers to ever come out of the Soviet Union. He made numerous masterpieces throughout his career, but Stalker, in particular, is probably the best arthouse sci-fi movie ever made. In it, a man guides a writer and a professor into a mysterious area called the Zone, looking for a Room that grants its visitors’ innermost wish.
It may not be Tarkovsky’s most accessible film, but Stalker is easily one of his best. Its meditation on themes of faith and its reliance on human connections is profoundly moving and thought-provoking, and its subtle yet enthralling sci-fi elements make it surprisingly entertaining. With Stalker, Tarkovsky proves that the genre doesn’t need epic spaceship battles or complex technological systems for a sci-fi film to be tremendously powerful.
Stalker
- Release Date
- May 25, 1979
- Cast
- Alexander Kaidanovsky
- Runtime
- 162 minutes
1 ‘Andrei Rublev’ (1966)
Directed by Andrei Tarkovsky
Though Stalker is Tarkovsky’s most popular work, Andrei Rublev is probably his best. In this highly unconventional biopic, the director explores the life, work, and afflictions of the titular icon painter from Medieval Russia. With a little over three hours of runtime, Tarkovsky is able to touch on topics like religion, art and life and how these three things are truly one and the same.
Andrei Rublev isn’t one’s typical period epic. It’s slow, uniquely structured, and reliant on viewers having some superficial knowledge about Medieval Russian life and art before watching. However, it’s also one of the best films ever made. Its story is spellbinding and deeply life-affirming, its production qualities are absolutely stunning for a ’60s Soviet film, and Tarkovsky’s full mastery of his craft allows him to make the movie feel like a juggernaut of pure high art.
This article was originally published on collider.com