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Welcome to our foreign films page, featuring foreign movies in video and DVD format in languages from a host of countries. Note: unless stated otherwise, all videocassettes are in VHS and NTSC format, and all DVDs are for players that support Region 1 encoding (United States and Canada) and are in NTSC format. Check our DVD Compatibility FAQ for more information about region encoding, television formats, and other specifications. If you can't find what you need, please email us.
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The Element of Crime Lars von Trier Winner of the Technical Grand Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, Lars von Trier's supremely stylish thriller was shot entirely in sepia tone, with occasional streaks of light blue. Michael Elphick plays a cop assigned to the Lotto Murders--a diabolical slaughter of young girls. Traumatized by grotesque visions of a post-apocalyptic Europe, the policeman becomes obsessed with the criminal mind he is investigating. A surreal, intelligent and, at times, amusing psychological mystery from one of the boldest talents of contemporary cinema. The DVD is letterboxed, closed-captioned. Includes Stig Bjorkman's documentary, Tranceformer: A Portrait of Lars von Trier; original theatrical trailer. In English. Denmark, 1984, 104 mins. DVD | $59.95
The Boss of It All Lars von Trier Comedy is not the first thing that comes to mind when you think of the dogmatic Dane Lars von Trier, but that's the most economical way to describe The Boss of It All. Instead of harping on America, the director focuses his cynicism on his homeland. Ravn (Peter Gantzler), the owner of an IT firm in Copenhagen, wants to sell to an Icelandic company. They insist on meeting the company's nonexistent president first, so Ravn hires an unemployed actor (Jens Albinus) for the part and the farce begins. "The mere idea of an actor convincingly impersonating a C.E.O. is inherently and deliciously disrespectful of the sacred capitalistic system" (Andrew Sarris, The New York Observer). In Danish and Icelandic with English subtitles. Denmark/Sweden/France/Italy, 2006, 100 mins. DVD | $44.95
Dancer in the Dark Lars von Trier Few films have inspired as passionately divided critical reaction as Lars von Trier's unusual musical melodrama about a factory worker, rapidly going blind, who finds escape in the fantasy world of Hollywood musicals. The highly original singer-songwriter Bjork, in only her second dramatic feature, won Best Actress honors at Cannes for her deeply felt performance as the film's tragic heroine. Shot on digital video (reportedly with over 100 cameras), the movie maintains a rough-hewn look even when it departs from scenes of stark realism for its offbeat musical production numbers. Bjork also wrote or co-wrote the original songs (with the director contributing to many). Like von Trier's Breaking the Waves, this is a story of a woman's almost unrelenting suffering, and the intent of the emotional tone of the film has been read in many ways by different reviewers. Winner of the Palme d'Or at Cannes. With Catherine Deneuve, David Morse, Peter Stormare, Jean-Marc Barr and Joel Grey. Letterboxed, closed-captioned, and includes filmmakers' and choreographer's audio commentaries, two behind-the-scenes documentaries, theatrical trailer, alternate scenes, Bjork's song commentaries, and more. In English. Denmark/Sweden/France, 2000, 141 mins. DVD | $44.95
Dogville Lars von Trier Enigmatic director Lars von Trier continues the examination of the United States he began in Dancer in the Dark with this dark account of a woman (Nicole Kidman) on the run in Depression-era America, who takes refuge in a small mining town. Sanctuary is short-lived, though, as the town slowly turns on her. Using the barest essentials - a minimalist set on a near-blank soundstage with few props, von Trier masterfully evokes the beauty, horror and rage born from her stay and creates a powerful statement on man's lack of humanity. Also stars Paul Bettany, Stellan Skarsgard, Lauren Bacall, Blair Brown, Patricia Clarkson, Jeremy Davies, Ben Gazzara, Chloe Sevigny and Philip Baker Hall, with narration by John Hurt. Includes a commentary by Lars von Trier and cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle; closed-captioned. In English. Denmark, 2003, 177 mins. DVD | $37.95
The Five Obstructions Lars von Trier/Jorgen Leth Notorious director Lars von Trier (Dogville, Breaking the Waves) dons the devil's mask and puts one of his idols, Danish filmmaker Jorgen Leth, to the test in this ingenious pseudo-documentary. Calling himself the Obstructor, von Trier challenges Leth to remake his 1967 short, The Perfect Human, five times and sets bizarre, arbitrary constraints to limit Leth's creativity, including shooting in locales around the world, using animation, shooting one film with no shot longer than 12 frames, and more. A brilliant examination of the nature of cinema, art and the creation process. "Watching The Five Obstructions is at once like witnessing two chess masters playing dominoes and like spying on a series of therapy sessions" (A.O. Scott, The New York Times). Includes Jorgen Leth's 1967 short, The Perfect Human; a commentary by Leth; and the theatrical trailer. Denmark, 2004, 90 mins. DVD | $44.95
The Kingdom Lars von Trier Lars von Trier's audacious and inspired soap opera is set in Copenhagen's Kingdom Hospital, which is ailing. Once a respected site of healing, it has become a carnival of horrors. A restless ghost haunts its corridors crying for redemption. Patients try seances while doctors turn to exorcism and voodoo. Despite these efforts, the terrible secret at the heart of The Kingdom remains and continues to ensnare the innocent. This film mixes a range of influences from the erotic to the sardonic in an unforgettable hybrid of comedy and terror. 2-DVD set. Danish with English subtitles. Denmark, 1994, 265 mins. DVD | $37.95
The Kingdom II Lars von Trier Almost three years after the original airing of his cult soap opera, Riget, writer-director Lars von Trier returned with this sequel. Once again, dark comedy and supernatural horror prowl the hallways of Copenhagen's Kingdom Hospital. The birthing of a notorious murderer's child has doctors on edge. Chief Resident Helmer, played by the late Ernst-Hugo Jaregard, knows the perfect way to ease his staff--he'll turn them into zombies with a Haitian voodoo potion, naturally. "As outrageous as it is inexhaustibly inventive" (The New York Times). 2-DVD set. Includes documentary, audio commentary, bloopers and more. In Danish with English subtitles. Denmark, 1997, 291 mins. DVD | $37.95
The Kingdom I & II Lars von Trier This set includes Series One and Series Two of Lars von Trier's audacious and inspired soap opera set in Copenhagen's Kingdom Hospital, which is ailing. Once a respected site of healing, it has become a carnival of horrors. A restless ghost haunts its corridors crying for redemption. Patients try seances while doctors turn to exorcism and voodoo. Despite these efforts, the terrible secret at the heart of The Kingdom (Riget, 1994, 265 mins.) remains and continues to ensnare the innocent. Almost three years after the original airing of his cult soap opera miniseries, writer-director Lars von Trier returned with the sequel, The Kingdom II (Riget II, 1997, 291 mins.). Once again, dark comedy and supernatural horror prowl the hallways of the hospital. The birthing of a notorious murderer's child has the doctors on edge. Chief Resident Helmer, played by the late Ernst-Hugo Jaregard, knows the perfect way to ease his staff--he'll turn them into zombies with a Haitian voodoo potion, naturally. "As outrageous as it is inexhaustibly inventive" (The New York Times). 4-DVD set. In Danish with English subtitles. Denmark, 1994/1997, 556 mins. DVD | $65
Lars von Trier's Epidemic Lars von Trier The second entry in Lar von Trier's Europa trilogy, this early, experimental film reveals much of the stylistic vision of the Danish artist/filmmaker who would go on to direct Zentropa, Dancer in the Dark and Dogville. Von Trier stars as a film director who, along with a fellow writer, creates a screenplay about a plague that engulfs Europe, only to see the invented scenario manifest itself. Alternating between grainy 16mm and crisp, majestic scenes filmed in 35mm, Von Trier creates a dark and strangely funny film whose horror lies in its own mysteries with a disturbing ending that must be seen. Co-stars Udo Kier. In Danish and English with English subtitles. DVD is letterboxed, and includes a commentary by Lars von Trier, a filmography, liner notes with an interview with Von Trier, and the documentary, Freedogme, with Von Trier and Wim Wenders. Denmark, 1987, 106 mins. DVD | $44.95
Manderlay Lars von Trier This controversial shot across the bow is the second in Lars von Trier's proposed trilogy of films to cynically skewer American hypocrisy. Shot in the same skeletal, stage-bound manner as Dogville, the film picks up where that screed left off, with Grace (now played by Bryce Dallas Howard) and her father (Willem Dafoe) wandering into an early 20th century Southern community that still embraces slavery. Grace pleads for fair treatment for the workers, and ends up becoming central to the town's uneasy lurch forward. The star-studded cast includes Isaach de Bankole, Danny Glover, Lauren Bacall, John Hurt, Udo Kier, and Chloe Sevigny. "[von Trier's] most streamlined and subversive provocation to date" (Premiere). Denmark, 2005, 139 mins. DVD | $37.95
Medea Lars von Trier Lars von Trier claimed to be in psychic communication with the late Carl Theodor Dreyer (The Passion of Joan of Arc) on whose screenplay the film is based during the shooting. This brilliantly original exploration of the dark passions of a woman scorned unfolds in shimmering North Sea marshlands and gloomy subterranean passageways. Von Trier (Dancer in the Dark) has created a haunting work of mythic realism. Loosely adapted from the play by Euripides. "Exhilarating" (Chicago Reader). In Danish with English subtitles. Denmark, 1987, 76 mins. Videocassette | $44.95 DVD | $44.95
