Best Foreign Movies
by Amigo11 | created - 23 Jul 2014 | updated - 20 Dec 2022 | PublicTop 250 Foreign Movies of All Time (The list will be regularly updated)
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1. Diabolique (1955)
Not Rated | 117 min | Crime, Drama, Horror
The wife and mistress of a loathed school principal plan to murder him with what they believe is the perfect alibi.
Director: Henri-Georges Clouzot | Stars: Simone Signoret, Véra Clouzot, Paul Meurisse, Charles Vanel
Votes: 69,366 | Gross: $1.09M
2. Cinema Paradiso (1988)
R | 174 min | Drama, Romance
A filmmaker recalls his childhood when falling in love with the pictures at the cinema of his home village and forms a deep friendship with the cinema's projectionist.
Director: Giuseppe Tornatore | Stars: Philippe Noiret, Enzo Cannavale, Antonella Attili, Isa Danieli
Votes: 282,761 | Gross: $11.99M
3. The Lives of Others (2006)
R | 137 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
In 1984 East Berlin, an agent of the secret police conducting surveillance on a writer and his lover finds himself becoming increasingly absorbed by their lives.
Director: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck | Stars: Ulrich Mühe, Martina Gedeck, Sebastian Koch, Ulrich Tukur
Votes: 410,334 | Gross: $11.29M
4. Incendies (2010)
R | 131 min | Drama, Mystery, War
Twins journey to the Middle East to discover their family history and fulfill their mother's last wishes.
Director: Denis Villeneuve | Stars: Lubna Azabal, Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin, Maxim Gaudette, Mustafa Kamel
Votes: 200,080 | Gross: $6.86M
5. The Secret in Their Eyes (2009)
R | 129 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance
A retired legal counselor writes a novel hoping to find closure for one of his past unresolved homicide cases and for his unreciprocated love with his superior - both of which still haunt him decades later.
Director: Juan José Campanella | Stars: Ricardo Darín, Soledad Villamil, Pablo Rago, Carla Quevedo
Votes: 222,298 | Gross: $6.39M
6. City of God (2002)
R | 130 min | Crime, Drama
In the slums of Rio, two kids' paths diverge as one struggles to become a photographer and the other a kingpin.
Directors: Fernando Meirelles, Kátia Lund | Stars: Alexandre Rodrigues, Leandro Firmino, Matheus Nachtergaele, Phellipe Haagensen
Votes: 800,650 | Gross: $7.56M
7. Downfall (2004)
R | 156 min | Biography, Drama, History
Traudl Junge, the final secretary for Adolf Hitler, tells of the Nazi dictator's final days in his Berlin bunker at the end of WWII.
Director: Oliver Hirschbiegel | Stars: Bruno Ganz, Alexandra Maria Lara, Ulrich Matthes, Juliane Köhler
Votes: 375,080 | Gross: $5.51M
8. Malena (2000)
R | 108 min | Drama, Romance, War
Amidst the war climate, a teenage boy discovering himself becomes love-stricken by Malèna, a sensual woman living in a small, narrow-minded Italian town.
Director: Giuseppe Tornatore | Stars: Monica Bellucci, Giuseppe Sulfaro, Luciano Federico, Matilde Piana
Votes: 111,945 | Gross: $3.45M
9. The Orphanage (2007)
R | 105 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
A woman brings her family back to her childhood home, which used to be an orphanage for handicapped children. Before long, her son starts to communicate with an invisible new friend.
Director: J.A. Bayona | Stars: Belén Rueda, Fernando Cayo, Roger Príncep, Mabel Rivera
Votes: 163,566 | Gross: $7.16M
10. Headhunters (2011)
R | 100 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
An accomplished headhunter risks everything to obtain a valuable painting owned by a former mercenary.
Director: Morten Tyldum | Stars: Aksel Hennie, Synnøve Macody Lund, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Julie R. Ølgaard
Votes: 106,955 | Gross: $1.20M
11. The Edukators (2004)
R | 127 min | Drama, Romance
Three activists cobble together a kidnapping plot after they encounter a businessman in his home.
Director: Hans Weingartner | Stars: Daniel Brühl, Julia Jentsch, Stipe Erceg, Burghart Klaußner
Votes: 32,374 | Gross: $0.18M
12. Very Big Shot (2015)
107 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Intending to smuggle drugs across the borders, a small-time Lebanese drug-dealer slyly manipulates public opinion with the help of an underrated filmmaker.
Director: Mir-Jean Bou Chaaya | Stars: Alain Saadeh, Fouad Yammine, Wissam Fares, Tarek Yaacoub
Votes: 1,545
13. The Man from Nowhere (2010)
R | 119 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A quiet pawnshop keeper with a violent past takes on a drug-and-organ trafficking ring in hope of saving the child who is his only friend.
Director: Lee Jeong-beom | Stars: Won Bin, Kim Sae-ron, Kim Tae-hoon, Kim Hee-won
Votes: 74,826 | Gross: $0.01M
14. West Beirut (1998)
PG-13 | 105 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
In April, 1975, civil war breaks out; Beirut is partitioned along a Moslem-Christian line. Tarek is in high school, making Super 8 movies with his friend, Omar. At first the war is a lark: ... See full summary »
Director: Ziad Doueiri | Stars: Rami Doueiri, Naamar Sahli, Mohamad Chamas, Rola Al Amin
Votes: 4,859 | Gross: $0.34M
15. Where Do We Go Now? (2011)
PG-13 | 110 min | Comedy, Drama
A group of Lebanese women try to ease religious tensions between Christians and Muslims in their village.
Director: Nadine Labaki | Stars: Claude Baz Moussawbaa, Nadine Labaki, Yvonne Maalouf, Layla Hakim
Votes: 13,502 | Gross: $0.53M
16. Nine Queens (2000)
R | 114 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Two con artists try to swindle a stamp collector by selling him a sheet of counterfeit rare stamps (the "nine queens").
Director: Fabián Bielinsky | Stars: Ricardo Darín, Gastón Pauls, Graciela Tenenbaum, María Mercedes Villagra
Votes: 57,098 | Gross: $1.22M
17. The Intouchables (2011)
R | 112 min | Comedy, Drama
After he becomes a quadriplegic from a paragliding accident, an aristocrat hires a young man from the projects to be his caregiver.
Directors: Olivier Nakache, Éric Toledano | Stars: François Cluzet, Omar Sy, Anne Le Ny, Audrey Fleurot
Votes: 928,907 | Gross: $13.18M
18. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2009)
R | 152 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A journalist is aided by a young female hacker in his search for the killer of a woman who has been dead for forty years.
Director: Niels Arden Oplev | Stars: Michael Nyqvist, Noomi Rapace, Ewa Fröling, Lena Endre
Votes: 223,312 | Gross: $10.10M
19. Amélie (2001)
R | 122 min | Comedy, Romance
Despite being caught in her imaginative world, Amelie, a young waitress, decides to help people find happiness. Her quest to spread joy leads her on a journey where she finds true love.
Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet | Stars: Audrey Tautou, Mathieu Kassovitz, Rufus, Lorella Cravotta
Votes: 793,975 | Gross: $33.23M
20. Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
R | 120 min | Crime, Drama, Romance
A teenager from the slums of Mumbai becomes a contestant on the show 'Kaun Banega Crorepati?' When interrogated under suspicion of cheating, he revisits his past, revealing how he had all the answers.
Directors: Danny Boyle, Loveleen Tandan | Stars: Dev Patel, Freida Pinto, Saurabh Shukla, Anil Kapoor
Votes: 877,567 | Gross: $141.32M
21. Destiny (1997)
135 min | Comedy, Drama, History
The story is set in the 12th century in Arab-ruled Spanish province Andalusia, where famed philosopher Averroes is appointed grand judge by the caliph and his liberal court judgments are ... See full summary »
Director: Youssef Chahine | Stars: Nour El-Sherif, Layla Olwi, Mahmoud Hemida, Safia El Emari
Votes: 3,199
22. Rust and Bone (2012)
R | 120 min | Drama, Romance
Put in charge of his young son, Alain leaves Belgium for Antibes to live with his sister and her husband as a family. Alain's bond with Stephanie, a killer whale trainer, grows deeper after Stephanie suffers a horrible accident.
Director: Jacques Audiard | Stars: Marion Cotillard, Matthias Schoenaerts, Armand Verdure, Céline Sallette
Votes: 70,283 | Gross: $2.06M
23. The Sea Inside (I) (2004)
PG-13 | 126 min | Biography, Drama
The factual story of Spaniard Ramon Sampedro, who fought a 28-year campaign in favor of euthanasia and his own right to die.
Director: Alejandro Amenábar | Stars: Javier Bardem, Belén Rueda, Lola Dueñas, Mabel Rivera
Votes: 85,241 | Gross: $2.09M
24. Apocalypto (2006)
R | 139 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
As the Mayan kingdom faces its decline, a young man is taken on a perilous journey to a world ruled by fear and oppression.
Director: Mel Gibson | Stars: Gerardo Taracena, Raoul Max Trujillo, Dalia Hernández, Rudy Youngblood
Votes: 331,160 | Gross: $50.87M
25. The Big Blue (1988)
PG | 168 min | Adventure, Drama, Sport
The rivalry between Enzo and Jacques, two childhood friends and now world-renowned free divers, becomes a beautiful and perilous journey into oneself and the unknown.
Director: Luc Besson | Stars: Jean-Marc Barr, Jean Reno, Rosanna Arquette, Paul Shenar
Votes: 55,086 | Gross: $3.50M
26. The Hidden Face (2011)
R | 97 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Shattered by the unexpected news of their irreversible break-up, an aspiring orchestra conductor is puzzled by his girlfriend's mysterious and seemingly inexplicable case of disappearance. But can he look beyond the facts?
Director: Andrés Baiz | Stars: Quim Gutiérrez, Martina García, María Soledad Rodríguez, Jose Luis Garcia
Votes: 46,273
27. Oldboy (2003)
R | 120 min | Action, Drama, Mystery
After being kidnapped and imprisoned for fifteen years, Oh Dae-Su is released, only to find that he must track down his captor in five days.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Choi Min-sik, Yoo Ji-tae, Kang Hye-jeong, Kim Byeong-Ok
Votes: 635,404 | Gross: $0.71M
28. Le Dîner de Cons (1998)
PG-13 | 80 min | Comedy
A few friends have a weekly fools' dinner, where each brings a fool along. Pierre finds a champion fool for next dinner. Surprise.
Director: Francis Veber | Stars: Thierry Lhermitte, Jacques Villeret, Francis Huster, Daniel Prévost
Votes: 44,331 | Gross: $4.07M
29. 13 Tzameti (2005)
Not Rated | 93 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A man takes over a dead man's task without realizing the horror it entails.
Director: Géla Babluani | Stars: George Babluani, Aurélien Recoing, Pascal Bongard, Fred Ulysse
Votes: 18,030 | Gross: $0.12M
30. Run Lola Run (1998)
R | 80 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
After a botched money delivery, Lola has 20 minutes to come up with 100,000 Deutschmarks.
Director: Tom Tykwer | Stars: Franka Potente, Moritz Bleibtreu, Herbert Knaup, Nina Petri
Votes: 206,936 | Gross: $7.27M
31. The Crimson Rivers (2000)
R | 106 min | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
A murder detective must follow the footsteps of a brutal killer within the secrets of a classist college.
Director: Mathieu Kassovitz | Stars: Jean Reno, Vincent Cassel, Nadia Farès, Dominique Sanda
Votes: 65,608 | Gross: $0.63M
32. The Girl Who Played with Fire (2009)
R | 129 min | Action, Crime, Drama
As computer hacker Lisbeth and journalist Mikael investigate a sex-trafficking ring, Lisbeth is accused of three murders, causing her to go on the run while Mikael works to clear her name.
Director: Daniel Alfredson | Stars: Noomi Rapace, Michael Nyqvist, Lena Endre, Peter Andersson
Votes: 98,488 | Gross: $9.08M
33. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest (2009)
R | 147 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Lisbeth is recovering in a hospital and awaiting trial for three murders when she is released. Mikael must prove her innocence, but Lisbeth must be willing to share the details of her sordid experiences with the court.
Director: Daniel Alfredson | Stars: Michael Nyqvist, Noomi Rapace, Lena Endre, Annika Hallin
Votes: 74,543 | Gross: $5.43M
34. 22 Bullets (2010)
Not Rated | 117 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A retired mobster goes on a revenge spree after being left for dead with 22 bullets in his body by his former childhood friend.
Director: Richard Berry | Stars: Jean Reno, Kad Merad, Jean-Pierre Darroussin, Marina Foïs
Votes: 36,404
35. Tell No One (2006)
Not Rated | 131 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
An accidental discovery near a doctor's estate stirs up some painful memories eight years after his wife's hideous murder, and now, things are bound to take a turn for the unexpected. Does the good doctor know more than he's letting on?
Director: Guillaume Canet | Stars: François Cluzet, Marie-Josée Croze, André Dussollier, Kristin Scott Thomas
Votes: 57,970 | Gross: $6.18M
36. The Postman (1994)
PG | 108 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
A simple Italian postman learns to love poetry while delivering mail to a famous poet, and then uses this to woo local beauty Beatrice.
Directors: Michael Radford, Massimo Troisi | Stars: Massimo Troisi, Philippe Noiret, Maria Grazia Cucinotta, Renato Scarpa
Votes: 38,996 | Gross: $21.85M
37. Caramel (2007)
PG | 95 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A romantic comedy centered on the daily lives of five Lebanese women living in Beirut.
Director: Nadine Labaki | Stars: Nadine Labaki, Joanna Moukarzel, Gisèle Aouad, Yasmine Al Massri
Votes: 14,599 | Gross: $1.06M
38. The Invisible Guest (2016)
TV-MA | 106 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A successful entrepreneur accused of murder and a witness preparation expert have less than three hours to come up with an impregnable defense.
Director: Oriol Paulo | Stars: Mario Casas, Ana Wagener, Jose Coronado, Bárbara Lennie
Votes: 192,460
39. The Gendarme of Saint-Tropez (1964)
90 min | Comedy, Crime
Gendarme Ludovic Cruchot is re-assigned to the French Riviera seaside resort town of Saint-Tropez where petty criminals and his own daughter give him a hard time.
Director: Jean Girault | Stars: Louis de Funès, Geneviève Grad, Michel Galabru, Christian Marin
Votes: 13,832
40. Parasite (2019)
R | 132 min | Drama, Thriller
Greed and class discrimination threaten the newly-formed symbiotic relationship between the wealthy Park family and the destitute Kim clan.
Director: Bong Joon Ho | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Lee Sun-kyun, Cho Yeo-jeong, Choi Woo-sik
Votes: 958,340 | Gross: $53.37M
41. Drunken Master II (1994)
R | 102 min | Action, Comedy
A young martial artist is caught between respecting his pacifist father's wishes or stopping a group of disrespectful foreigners from stealing precious artifacts.
Directors: Chia-Liang Liu, Jackie Chan | Stars: Jackie Chan, Ho-Sung Pak, Lung Ti, Anita Mui
Votes: 48,906 | Gross: $11.55M
42. The Body (2012)
Not Rated | 112 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A detective searches for the body of a femme fatale which has gone missing from a morgue.
Director: Oriol Paulo | Stars: Jose Coronado, Hugo Silva, Belén Rueda, Aura Garrido
Votes: 72,434
43. The Vanishing (1988)
Not Rated | 107 min | Mystery, Thriller
Rex and Saskia, a young couple in love, are on vacation. They stop at a busy service station and Saskia is abducted. After three years and no sign of Saskia, Rex begins receiving letters from the abductor.
Director: George Sluizer | Stars: Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu, Gene Bervoets, Johanna ter Steege, Gwen Eckhaus
Votes: 44,133
44. God's Crooked Lines (2022)
TV-MA | 154 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Follows a woman checking into a psychiatric ward to investigate a homicide.
Director: Oriol Paulo | Stars: Bárbara Lennie, Eduard Fernández, Loreto Mauleón, Javier Beltrán
Votes: 22,700
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