The last decade has been a little low-key for international movies, although that does not mean there are not plenty of critically acclaimed foreign films to see. Over the last 10 years, Spanish cinema has flourished, with some of the world's top filmmakers coming from Spain and Mexico. However, that isn't the only place to find world-class international movies.
The past decade also saw several high-quality animated films from Japan, critically acclaimed horror and action movies from Hong Kong, and some groundbreaking dramas from other Asian countries as well. Here is a look at the 10 best international films of the last decade.
Updated on May 30, 2020, by Shawn S. Lealos: While looking at great international movies, there are so many to choose from. Cutting it down to 10 is a crime for anyone who loves world cinema. When looking at the best of the best, there is everything from horror and dramas to comedies and even comic book adaptations and thrillers. With so much to choose from, movie fans might want to find more movies from all over the world to enjoy, from Korea and to everywhere in between.
TRAIN TO BUSAN (2016)
Just when fans thought the zombie genre was tired and played out, Yeon Sang-ho created the amazing Train to Busan. Released in 2016, the film follows a father and daughter as the zombie apocalypse starts. The two are growing apart due to the divorced father being a workaholic and the young daughter wanting to spend her birthday with her mother instead. As he takes her to the train station for her trip to Busan, the outbreak starts and the two find themselves on the train, fighting for their lives.
BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOR (2013)
Blue is the Warmest Color was released in 2012 out of , and what many people might not realize is that the story is based on a comic book. In a world of superheroes or otherwise otherworldly threats, Blue is the Warmest Color instead is a drama about a French teenage girl who discovers ion and desire when she meets an aspiring female painter and they start a relationship that leads them into their adult lives. The film won the Palme d'Or at Cannes.
AMOUR (2012)
Released in 2012 by Michael Haneke, Amour was a 2012 romantic tragedy from . The film is about an elderly couple, Anne and Georges, who are both retired music teachers. Their daughter lives abroad and when Anne suffers a stroke that paralyzes the right side of her body.
With a promise not to send her to a nursing home, Georges begins to care for her while she comes to the realization she no longer wants to live. The film won Best Foreign Language Film at the 2013 Academy Awards and also received a nomination for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress, and Best Original Screenplay.
INCENDIES (2010)
Released in 2010 by director Denis Villeneuve, Incendies is a thriller film that was adapted from a stage play of the same name. The story follows two Canadian twins who travel to the Middle East to discover their mother's past during a bloody civil war. The film received a nomination for Best Foreign Language Film at the Oscars and set out Villeneuve for massive success, as he followed it up with films like Prisoners, Arrival, and Blade Runner 2049.
13 ASSASSINS (2010)
Not all critically acclaimed foreign-language films need to be dramas. 13 Assassins was a samurai martial arts film released in 2010 directed by iconic Japanese film director Takashi Miike. It is a remake of a 1963 film by the same name and sets the events in the year of 1844 where 12 samurai assassins and a hunter plot to assassinate the leader of a clan. The film picked up 10 nominations at the Japan Academy Prize and won four of them.
ROMA (2018)
Alfonso Cuaron made his labor of love Roma in 2018 thanks to the rise of Netflix in the movie world. Much like Scorsese in 2019 with The Irishman, Cuaron was unable to find financing until Netflix came along for what was a semi-autobiographical film about his childhood upbringing in Mexico City.
Shot in beautiful black and white, the film was a massive success. It won the Golden Lion in Venice and then went on to pick up 10 Oscar nominations, almost unheard of for an international movie. It was the first Mexican film to win Best Foreign Film, and Cuaron also won Best Director.
THE SKIN I LIVE IN (2011)
A second world-class Spanish filmmaker on this list, Pedro Almodovar directed the movie The Skin I Live In in 2011. This film starred Antonio Banderas as a plastic surgeon who developed an artificial skin resilient to burns but is discredited when the truth arises that he used unethical experimenting.
However, the surgeon has hidden a lot more than anyone ever could have believed. The film picked up a Golden Globe nomination for Best Foreign Language Film and proved that Almodovar might be the Spanish equivalent of Alfred Hitchcock.
THE HANDMAIDEN (2016)
Park Chan-wook is a South Korean director that has released some of the greatest international movies since he broke out in the 2000s with the Vengeance trilogy. However, in 2016, he went for something a little more psychologically disturbing with The Handmaiden.
This international film was based on the novel Fingersmith, with the location changed from Britain to Korea. The film focuses on two women, a Japanese Lady on a secluded estate, and her handmaiden, planning to defraud her of her inheritance.
YOUR NAME (2016)
Always count on Japan to release an animated film that will end up as one of the top international movies of the decade. In the last decade, the best of the best was the Makoto Shinkai movie Your Name. This film hit in 2016 and told the story of two high school students who swap bodies.
Switching bodies creates a spiritual connection between them, which becomes complicated when they decide to meet each other in person. Only Spirited Away made more money in Japan, and it has a high 97% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
THE INTOUCHABLES (2011)
Released in 2011, The Intouchables is a French comedy-drama about a quadriplegic, wealthy aristocrat named Philippe who hires a young man named Driss to be his caregiver. While Driss turned out to be an ex-convict, Phillipe keeps him on because he doesn't treat him with pity.
Based on a real relationship between two men, the movie showed how unorthodox treatment might be the best therapy. The film sat in the top spot on the French movie charts for 10 weeks, and broke the record in the United States as the highest-grossing foreign-language film.
