How to Watch Foreign Language Cinema at Home
Foreign language cinema has always taken the world by storm. Whether it’s recent Oscar winning titles such as Alfonso Cuaron’s ‘Roma’ and Bong Joon-ho’s ‘Parasite’ or poetic classics such as Roberto Benigni’s ‘Life is Beautiful’, they appeal to our tastes for far away places and differing cultures.
Foreign cinema also plays a keen part in history, showcasing different viewpoints and experiences on world events. And with so many streaming services so readily available, gone are the days of searching through DVD stores or waiting for a delivery, in order to watch these gems of cinema. However, too often we only see the films offered by the streaming services we are so regularly in contact with.
Those using a Sky TV package have a whole section of on-demand movies and cinema available dedicated to foreign cinema. 4OD have a regular supply of interesting and diverse foreign content, especially through their ‘Walter Presents’ collection.
Netflix and Amazon Prime have become front runners in streaming popular and mainstream foreign language titles and series; bringing these easily and effectively to the masses. However, whilst these more well-known streaming services have some amazing foreign language films and series on offer, it’s often exciting to see just how much is available if you ‘shop around’ and consider other services.
Which is exactly what we’re all able to do, given the recent lockdown…
MUBI
MUBI’s film collection works on a rotational basis, to keep the selection of titles fresh. Heavily influenced by European cinema, but showing global offerings too with a selection of subscription offerings. At the time of writing, subscription is £9.99 a month if you pay monthly and £7.99 a month if you sign up to a yearly plan. This gives viewers access to a curated selection of 30 films at a time, each available for 30 days; in addition to the Library of classics and favourites.
The curated collections often take their inspiration from recent festivals or current political and global events, with a recently curated selection being focused around the Black Lives Matter movement by featuring films created by and starring BIPOC artists.
It’s also interesting to note that the curated collection of MUBI is different in different regions and countries, so by watching on a portable device, your membership allows you access to this different content if you choose to watch abroad.
MUBI also prides itself on being a ‘community’. ‘Notebook’, MUBI’s daily film publication provides news, interviews and criticism; whilst their ‘Community’ page allows you to access and engage in reviews, ‘best of…’ lists, discussions and other user generated content. One thing I found particularly useful about the service, alongside the fact that you can find many films that are ‘forgotten gems’ is the fact that you can pause your membership at any time, for up to three months.
At the point of writing this, one of MUBI’s curated features was Julian Schnabel’s ‘The Diving Bell and The Butterfly’- a favourite of mine and a film I was keen to re-watch.
Curzon
Curzon offers foreign language cinema for those who don’t want the commitment of a subscription package. Registering is free and users rent films on a pay per view basis. Once paid for, users have 48hours to watch their films, but films can be viewed as many times as you like within this time. Members are also offered a free film from a given selection once they have joined.
Through the service, films are priced between £3.99 - £11.99 according to when they were released and there are further reductions if you become a Curzon Cinemas Member. With this option, prices range from £2.55 - £10.20, although there is a yearly fee for this membership. There are also discounts available if you stream and purchase through Amazon Fire TV or Apple TV.
If you’re a Curzon cinemas member, you have instant free access to ‘Curzon 12’- a collection of 12 films which are updated each month. Curzon is a renowned arthouse cinema and it shows in their titles available to stream. From cult classics to a stylish range of current releases, some of their titles are available to view through streaming alongside their cinematic release.
Some directors and creators provide special showings of their films for release on the platform, such as Bong Joon-ho’s black and white version of ‘Parasite’ which is currently on the platform for £9.99. Curzon also have an ‘events’ section on their platform, allowing you to watch live features such as Q&A events through their YouTube, Twitter, Facebook or Home Cinema platforms. You can also past events in this way.
BFI Player
BFI Player has a well thought out platform to cater to all budgets and interests, something you’d expect from the British Film Institute. There are three ‘levels’ to the platform: free, subscription and rentals. The free selection of films are mainly British, but do showcase a variety of films about other cultures and diversity.
Rentals are priced from £2.50 upwards and include films that are currently in cinemas, with a discount for members of the BFI. Subscriptions to the platform are priced at £4.99 with a 14 day free trial and it is here where foreign cinema shines.
There is a collection of ‘Italian Classics’ including titles such as ‘La Notte’, horror classic ‘Suspiria’ and the beautiful, neo-realistic ‘The Tree of Wooden Clogs’. Federico Fellini has his own curated collection here, showcasing classics such as the beautiful ‘La Dolce Vita’. In addition, the Observer’s Mark Kermode selects and introduces an assortment of films on the platform, explaining why it is essential viewing.
Festival Scope
Festival Scope is a much more niche affair and is more widely used by those working in the film industry itself. This is one for those of you who like to stay so up to date with the arts and cinema scene, that you’re actually ahead of it in many ways.
The service gives access to films currently on offer at international festivals, meaning the number of films available at any one time are largely dependent on the festivals themselves. However, the festivals taking part are not small time affairs, with Cannes Directors’ Fortnight being one of the key players.
It is free to register to the service and once you have, a limited number of tickets for each film are available, however these are usually free of charge. Once you have selected a title it is available on your account for 5 days and once you have started watching it you have 30 hours to watch it as many times as you like.
A current favourite on there at the time of writing is the Romanian title from 2007 ‘4 months, 3 weeks and 2 days’ the story of two Romanian students who share a dormitory during the last years of Communism, one of whom is pregnant at a time when abortions are illegal.
My French Film Festival
https://www.myfrenchfilmfestival.com/en/
This is more of an honorary mention, as it is not available all year round, but is worth note if you are really into new foreign language cinema. My French Film Festival aims to bring new filmmakers to light and to the attention of cinema-goers in an interactive format.
The competition presents a series of films and short films, with those registered to the service able to watch them online for free and give their reviews and ratings in the comments section. As well as being online, the service also showcases films in certain cinemas during the festival run. It is now in its tenth year, showing that engagement with the concept is strong.
The films are grouped into categories with quirky names, such as this year’s ‘Is This Real?’ category and there is a diverse selection with films to suit every taste, from animation to horror. The service gives one of the largest playback times of streaming services, with titles available for up to 30 days, with a playback time of 72 hours.
During the lockdown, the service introduced it’s ‘Stay Home’ edition, which saw 20 feature length films from the last decade of festivals brought back to the service until the 25th May, with the website claiming to provide those stuck at home with some ‘solace, distraction and entertainment’.
Whatever platform you use, the importance of foreign language cinema is increasingly being recognised and as a result more widely shared. Whether you’re getting into it as a new interest; a way to educate yourself or simply because it’s outside of the recognised mainstream, there’s something for everyone.
Furthermore, whilst there’s nothing wrong with the selection on offer through services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime, it’s amazing to see the diverse foray available if you’re willing to look just slightly beyond the more well-known streaming channels.
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Written by Jenna Tomlinson