OVP: Best Foreign Language Film (1999)
The Nominees Were...
All About My Mother, Spain
Himalaya: Caravan, Nepal
East-West, France
Solomon and Gaenor, United Kingdom
Under the Sun, Sweden
My Thoughts: This is a momentous moment for the OVP this season given that we are having our first foray into the 1990's (yes, we did do a quick season in the 1930's, but the 1990's are where I first fell in love with Oscar so it's special to me). When we move back to the 1980's & 1990's, the Best Foreign Language Film category (now known as International Feature), had a different aesthetic. Whereas today we tend to see visionary filmmakers in the mix and provocative and groundbreaking subjects, the last two decades of the 20th Century tended to make movies in this category that are, well, a bit dull. So color me surprised when I look at this list and realize-there's not a stinker in the bunch. All of these movies are good movies, and two of them are approaching being great ones. So let's take a look at the very rare lineup where I'd recommend every one of the pictures.
Given that it's directed by Pedro Almodovar and stars Penelope Cruz, All About My Mother is going to be the title you'll recognize if you see anything familiar in this lineup. This is stylistically the most impressive of this field, and it's also the most inventive (and reflexive of modern tastes). Almodovar does a great job playing with sexual fluidity and using melodrama & actresses (Cecilia Roth is devastating in the title role) to maximum effect. I will say that if you want a more succinct, specific story (one that takes less twists-and-turns), you're not going to find it here. In my opinion, the script is too indulgent toward the end (though the dialogue is aces). But that's splitting hairs with a great movie.
Solomon and Gaenor is one of those pictures that could only exist in the 1990's. The film's sexual politics are a bit played out, far too much focus on the same storylines, and it doesn't quite invest in the side characters enough. But it's also wonderfully-lit, and very sexy. Ioan Gruffudd makes the most of his eager handsomeness, and it's passionate (and the scene in the barn will make you perspire). If that sounds a bit pervy, it's a good movie overall (I liked the leads), but also get a grip-movies are supposed to elicit emotions, and lust is definitely an emotion.
I am generally not besotted by stories about how impossible it is to make a movie (I feel like underscoring that constantly for The Revenant was the worst part of that press tour), but I will admit as a longtime fan of adventuring that I was into Himalaya being actually shot in the Himalayas. The story here is a bit tried-and-true, and you can see every plot point coming, but film is a visual medium, and (like Solomon & Gaenor) you don't always need a great script to make your movie work. This is a wonder to behold, and you'll feel something for the grandeur even if not for the tale at-hand.
East-West is dealing with the aftermath of World War II (this category's favorite subject), though it takes place entirely after the war in Russia (with a couple of sojourns into mainland Europe). This is a case where the first twenty minutes play with cliche so much you might wonder if you're in for a dull-as-dirt story, but beyond that, I was totally hooked. I honestly loved East-West (this was my second time through it), and the way that it plays with complicated sexual taboos (again, this is a movie that very much only could exist in the 1990's given that it is unfathomably horny), as well as the focus on swimming and the position of elite athletes in a Soviet Union trying to dominate the world.
For our final nominee we have yet another erotic love story (Y2K was making everyone thirsty), though Under the Sun is just as much about acceptance as it is about getting your groove back. The movie's plot is telegraphed too much-you see every major plot point coming thirty minutes before it actually happens, and in a move that's supposed to have some intrigue, that's a problem. But the central love story is deeply compelling, so you don't always care that it's predictable. Kudos to the main three actors building the love triangle-this is a very much a movie where good acting is going to lift it up.
Other Precursor Contenders: Awards ceremonies like the Goyas and the Cesars aren't good representatives here since they're typically honoring the main films of a specific country, so I only count the Globes among the awards bodies we check-in with for International Feature Film. The Globes chose All About My Mother against East-West, The Red Violin (Canada), Girl on the Bridge (France), and Aimee & Jaguar (Germany). Of these, only Aimee & Jaguar was the only one that was submitted for an Oscar as the other two were ineligible (France was only allowed one submission, and The Red Violin had too many scenes in English). Looking at the list of submissions, the biggest titles appear to be the Dardennes' Rosetta and Andrzej Wajda's Pan Tadeusz, the former I've seen, the latter I haven't.
Films I Would Have Nominated: I don't see all of the submissions, and without a shortlist there's little room to corner down here, but I probably would've bumped one of these films for Rosetta.
Oscar’s Choice: Oscar found it was time to give this awards to Pedro, probably at the expense of France getting another statue.
My Choice: Here's the thing-these are my choices, and while I do like edgy and provocative film, I also have a traditionalist streak if it's done well. Therefore, I'm going to make one of my biggest upsets in this category and pick East-West to beat All About My Mother. Pedro's film is prettier (and perhaps even better acted), but I like the plotting in East-West better, and it's the film I responded to more. Behind these two (in order) are Under the Sun, Himalaya, and Solomon & Gaenor.
Those are my thoughts-what about you? Is anyone willing to come over and hang with East-West and I, or is everyone standing next to Pedro appalled? Why was Oscar so horny in 1999 given the subjects of these films? And do you think the Dardennes (the Academy is basically the only awards body not to recognize them yet? Share your thoughts below!
Past Best Foreign Language Film Contests: 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023
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