Film Quizzes: Great Foreign Films

I wasn’t planning on doing another film quiz soon after my Magic post, but in the comments section from my Teachers quiz an idea for foreign films was suggested by Leí, whose blog I discovered recently. While most of my quizzes focus on Hollywood, I have always had a fondness for films from different cultures, and even did a Blogathon entitled Foreign Favourites. Below are 15 stills from successful films made in different languages and cultures. How many can you work out? There are countless more I could have included, so feel free to mention any you’re especially fond of.

 Film 1  (1940s)

 Film 2  (1950s)

 Film 3  (1960s)

Film 4  (1980s)

 Film 5  (1980s)

 Film 6

 Film 7  (1980s)

 Film 8  (1990s)

 Film 9  (1990s)

 Film 10  (1990s)

 Film 11  (2000s)

 Film 12  (2000s)

 Film 13  (2000s)

 Film 14  (2000s)

 Film 15  (2000s)

Answers below

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Film Quizzes: World War 2 Films

After seeing the superb Dunkirk last week, it got me thinking about what other depictions there had been of World War 2. There are some pretty famous ones I’ve left out, which you’re more than welcome to mention in the comments section. I wanted a wide range  that covered different aspects of the war. Fighting on the ground, being under attack under water, aerial warfare, resistance fighters and the struggle within concentration camps among them. See how many you can get. A bonus point if you can guess my favourite among them.

 1. (1940s)

 2. (1940s)

 3. (1950s)

 4. (1950s)

 5. (1950s)

 6. (1960s)

 7. (1960s)

 8. (1970s)

 9. (1980s)

 10. (1990s)

 11. (1990s)

 12. (1990s)

 13. (2000s)

 14. (2000s)

 15. (2000s)

Answers below

Foreign Favourites: Nowhere in Africa

It’s been a while since we had an entry to my Foreign Favourites series, but Cindy Bruchman has happily entered the fray with a review of a very intriguing sounding film. She has a fantastic site filled with great analysis of films and books that is definitely worth a detailed look. Here’s her take on the award-winning German film Nowhere in Africa.

Quick Synopsis: (IMDB)

A Jewish family in Germany emigrate short before the Second World War. They move to Kenya to start running a farm, but not all members of the family come to an arrangement with their new life.

Escaping the Nazi regime in 1938, a Jewish family become farmers in remote Kenya. Walter Redlich is a judge and his wife Jettel is fond of her comfortable life-style and resents her barren life. Their five-year-old daughter, Regina, is an inquisitive girl who adapts to the culture of Kenya and a Christian boarding school. Half of the narrative focuses on a girl growing up and the other half focuses on the strained marriage of Walter and Regina.

The film’s strength rests on the acting and the unique plot. Actress Juliane Köhler plays the complicated Jettel Redlich with sophistication. Swaying with coldness and frustration and tenderness, as was her portrayal as Eva Braun in Downfall (2004), in Nowhere in Africa, Juliane Köhler is convincing. A marriage of compromise and frustration with secrets and resolution, it is a worth your time to watch the evolution of their marriage.

Add a parallel plot that twines through the starving marriage to their daughter, Regina. Her friendship with farm cook, Owuor, counter-balances the marriage with heartwarming richness. Owuor functions as nanny and bridge between Europe and Kenyan lifestyles. For Regina, who might have well as been transplanted to Mars as Kenya, Owuor is indispensable as the consistent element, the North Star of her universe. As a coming-of-age story for Regina and Jettel (Mom’s more a child than her daughter) grow up and handle their plight with satisfying enlightenment. Poor Walter Redlich, played by Merab Ninidze, who endures his tempestuous wife and worries about his parents left in Nazi Germany. Cheers to female director and writer Caroline Link for creating a fine film. Did you see in 2008, A Year Ago in Winter? 

Final Grade: 8/10

My thanks again to Cindy for participating. I’ve seen quite a few German films, and this one sounds like one I definitely need to see and add to a future quiz. Would be fun to read the book too I imagine. 

Film Quizzes: Germany

With a reminder for those interested in participating in my Foreign Favourites series included, I’ve decided to do a quiz highlighting some of the phenomenal films outside of the English language. The six films below are shining examples of Germany’s sense of creativity, culture and history. See how many of the ausgezeichnet (excellent) films below you recognise.

 (1930s)

 (1980s)

 (1990s)

 (2000+)

 (2000+)

 (2000+)

Answers below