Worldwide Selection at the Cinema

April 2, 2004

The five movies on the list today come from five different nations, Brazil, Hong Kong, France, South Korea and the United States. That's an amazing achievement in diversity.

Middle of the World - Reviews
Critics are split on Middle of the World, the story of a poor Brazilian family traveling by bicycle to Rio de Janeiro in hopes of finding a better life. Based on the a true story, the film is a little too heavy-handed to be truly effective.

Shaolin Soccer - Reviews
After lengthy delays, this film finally comes to theatres in North America. Anyone who's a fan of Wire Fu should have a blast at this movie but the soccer theme might keep some of the American audience away. The biggest concern is how closely this film resembles the Hong Kong version; there were rumors of heavy editing by Miramax, but they have since said the film was changed back to closely match the original version. It's still not the original version, mind you, it just more closely resembles it.

Son Frere - Reviews
The story of two brothers, one straight (Thomas) and the other gay (Luc.) Thomas couldn't accept Luc's homosexuality so he distanced himself from his brother, but now that he has a terminal illness he must turn to him for help. An excellent film that is too dark to escape the art-house circuit.

Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter … and Spring - Reviews
A beautifully shot film that talks about the unending cycle of life through the metaphor of the seasons. While the story of the life of the monk from child to adult is very engaging, this film worth seeing for the visuals alone.

The United States of Leland - Reviews
Another film that was pushed back a long time. But unlike Shaolin Soccer, this film is not earning praise from the critics and is being particularly savaged by the Cream of the Crop reviewers. Praise is being given to the cast, especially Ryan Gosling.


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Filed under: Shaolin Soccer, The United States of Leland, Son Frere, The Middle of the World