Film Difficulty 2

To help you ease your way into our world, we have devised a the film difficulty ranking system to rate the difficulty of each film reviewed on our site. The easiest to watch films (the Rom-Coms and Superhero flicks that you watch anyway) will have a rating of 1. Foreign language films automatically add one point, as do black and white films, and films with strange and hard to follow plots. Welcome to Film Difficulty 2.

Film Difficulty Ranking 2: These films are perfect introductions to those new to foreign films. These one’s may have subtitles, or be in black and white, but these films are all easy to follow and enjoy.

For the next step, check out Film Difficulty Ranking 3.

Beyond the Clouds (India) – Why You Watch Films on the Big Screen

Beyond the Clouds Film Difficulty Ranking: 2

Are you looking for a big film for a bit of entertainment? With music, melodrama, and some epic shots? Look no further than Majid Majidi’s Beyond the Clouds. This Iranian director is one of the best at making great family films (check out Children of Heaven). Plus, if you liked Slumdog Millionaire (another great Mumbai film made by a foreigner) you’ll love this. It’s pure entertainment.

Image result for beyond the clouds

Why Watch Beyond the Clouds?

To be entertained! There’s big sweeping shots and beautiful colours! You’ll notice the echoes of Slumdog Millionaire
For the music composed by A R Rahman (it’s not a musical, but you’ll notice the Bollywood touch)
To learn to appreciate the NHS (and all other countries with public healthcare)
See the melting pot of Indian diversity – in this film you’ll hear Hindi, Tamil, and bits of English

The Breakdown

Beyond the Clouds opens with a wide shot of a highway bridge in Mumbai. The camera tracks downwards to show us life under the highway. As Majid Majidi (the director) states, he wanted to get under the skin of the city, and right from the start he focuses on life that has escaped modernisation.

There’s a lot going on in each shot. We meet our protagonist walk-dancing along an empty path with his friend. They both hop on the back of a motorbike and zoom off down an empty straight road like cowboys riding towards the sunset. The sweeping camera movements and dance steps make it feel like you’re watching a big film. This is pure entertainment.

You’ll also be led by Majidi’s use of colours and darkness. When Amir visits his sister, she recounts all her traumas from the shadowed darkness of her bedroom. She has been ignored, emphasised by the darkness she is left in. Likewise the white sheets left to dry outside the busy clothes washers are a perfect symbol of innocence. Innocence that is fated to be stained…

Conclusion

This is why you go to watch films on the big screen. It has the wide sweeping shots, vivid colours, music, and plenty of melodrama. Yes, there’s a little cheesiness, but not enough to put you off. If you want to be entertained for a few hours, you can’t much go wrong watching Beyond the Clouds.

The Rocket – Cheer for the Family Underdog

The Rocket Film Difficulty Ranking: 2

If you always like supporting the underdog, you’ll enjoy following ‘Little Balls’ in The Rocket. As he was born a twin, his family think he’s cursed and destined to bring bad luck to the family. What they don’t see is that he’s the future of their traditional way of life. The more they blame him, the more distant their link to their heritage becomes.

From: Laos, Asia
Watch: Trailer, Free on Vudu, Rent on Amazon, Buy on Amazon
Next: Whale Rider, The Boy who Harnessed the Wind, The Eagle Huntress

La Yuma – Just a Girl Trying to Make it Out the Hood

La Yuma Film Difficulty Ranking: 2

You’ve probably seen Boyz in the Hood and 8 Mile, and you might have seen Kidulthood and Menace II Society. They’re all ‘hood’ films. Each of them features young men growing up in ‘the hood’, trying to make it despite all the bad influences around them. La Yuma is another ‘hood’ film, but what makes it different is that instead of starring a young man dealing with machismo, gangsters, and bad parents, it stars a young woman dealing with the same things. Introducing our star (and aspiring boxer): La Yuma.

From: Nicaragua, North America
Watch: Trailer, Kanopy, JustWatch
Next: Amor y Frijoles, A Fantastic Woman, Do the Right Thing

What Did You Do In The War Thanasi? (Greece)

What Did You Do In The War Thanasi? Film Difficulty Ranking: 2

Time for a Greek comedy! What Did You Do in the War Thanasi is all about the extremely energetic and slapstick Thanasi. As much as he tries not to, you just know that trouble is going to end up finding him. For a fun and easy night in, watch this film with a free trial on Amazon Prime Video.

Image result for what did you do in the war thanasi

Why Watch this Film?

For something light and funny (something we need more of on FilmRoot)
It’s our first Greek film set in Greece (see The Lobster for more Greek films)
If you liked Life is Beautiful or Closely Watched Trains and want to see another WW2 comedy
Experience some Greek humour (the main character is extremely energetic and melodramatic)

The Breakdown

It’s WW2 and the Nazis and Italians have occupied Greece. A bunch of the locals are queuing up for some rations; a big bowl of gruel. Back at home a family is listening to the forbidden BBC radio news trying to give the Greeks hope that the occupation will end.

From what you can see, the occupation looks brutal. Locals are scavenging for any food on the streets and people are starving (like the people in Germany as you’ll see in Little Dieter Needs to Fly). In addition, the German and Italian military occupation is obvious. Guards are watch the streets from watch towers whilst soldiers chase and shoot Greek rebels.

Thanasi, our protagonist, is our comic hero. He tries to avoid all association with the Greek resistance for fear of being caught by the Nazis. Typically, as this is a comedy, he always ends up being in the wrong place at the wrong time (kind of like Forrest Gump’s knack for ending up in famous historical moments).

Conclusion

What Did You Do in the War Thanasi is one of the best war comedies I have seen. It is driven by Thanasi’s constant high energy and melodrama (a bit like Guido in Life is Beatiful). Well worth a watch if you are looking for a good Greek film or a nice comedy.

The Battle of the Volcano – Experience the Chaos of Urban Warfare

The Battle of the Volcano Film Difficulty Ranking: 2

If you want to experience the chaos of urban warfare, you’ve come to the right place. The Battle of the Volcano relives the chaos of the Salvadorean Civil War through a mixture of live footage and re-enactments from the survivors. Parts of it are surreal and parts are shocking, as kids with guns take on the Capital City and the El Salvadorean government.

From: El Salvador, North America
Watch: Trailer, IMDB
Next: The Look of Silence, Winter on Fire, Monos

Read The Full Review