Nordic/Benelux Challenge

[Buksemannen]

Nordic / Benelux Challenge


Goal: Watch as many movies from the Nordic countries as well as Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg.

Eligible countries

Belgium
Denmark
Faroe Islands
Finland
Iceland
Luxembourg
Netherlands
Norway
Sweden
Åland Islands

Rules:
- A feature film (Anything over 40 minutes) counts as one entry.
- A total of 60 minutes of short films count as one entry.
- For Mini-Series or tv shows (40 minute episodes or longer) each episode counts as an entry.
- For Mini-Series or tv shows with shorter episodes (25 minutes or so), the 60 minutes rule applies.
- Rewatches are welcome (But only once)

Country lists

Multiple-country lists:
UNESCO's Memory of the World: National Cinematic Heritage (official) - Denmark (189-203), Finland (244-258), Norway (509-523), Sweden (684-698)
CFB country polls - Denmark (chapter 6), Sweden (7), Norway (8), Netherlands (23), Belgium (24)
Historical Dictionary of Scandinavian Cinema
Nordic Movies on Official ICM lists
Kenji's A Scrumptious Scandinavian Smörgåsbord (personal list)
8 paduchi's How Scandinavian of Me: Maidanezi Mai Suedezi (personal list)

Belgium:
Belgian submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
Democratic iCM users top 50 of Belgian Films
Kenji's Belgium (personal list)

Denmark:
Dansk Spillefilm Top 100
Danish submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film

Faroe Islands:
Kolar's Faroe Islands (personal list)

Finland:
Yle News' Best Finnish Films of All Time (official)
Helsingin Sanomat's 100 Greatest Finnish Films
Sakari Toiviainen's 100 Finnish Films

Iceland:
Icelandic Movies
Kolar's Iceland: Land of Fire and Ice (personal list)

Netherlands:
Dutch Film Festival Top 50 (2008) (official)
Dutch Film Festival Top 50 (1999)
Dutch submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
Frank W's Essential Dutch Cinema (personal list)

Norway:
Rushprint's The best Norwegian films of all time
Natt & Dag's Greatest Norwegian Films of All Time
100 Norwegian Films You Must See
Norwegian films in official lists
Lars Ole Kristiansen's The Best of New Norwegian Cinema (personal list)

Sweden:
FLM's Best Swedish Films Of All Time (official)
Nöjesguiden's Top 25 Swedish Films
Swedish submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
Moira Sullivan's ....And Now a Word about Swedish Cinema (personal list)
Kolar's Swedish Cinema: The Silent Era (personal list)

Award lists

Belgium: Belgian Film Awards (official)
Denmark: Bodil Award Winners For Best Danish Film (official)
Finland: Jussi Awards
Iceland: Edda Award Best Film (Biomynd arsins)
Netherlands: Nederlands Film Festival - Gouden Kalf (official)
Norway: Amanda Award - Best Film (official)
Sweden: Guldbagge Award (official)

Director filmographies

Aki Kaurismaki Filmography (Finnish)
Alex van Warmerdam Filmography (Dutch)
Carl Theodor Dreyer Filmography (Danish)
Ingmar Bergman Filmography (Swedish)
Jan Troell Filmography (Swedish)
Lars von Trier Filmography (Danish)
Roy Andersson Filmography (Swedish)
Victor Sjostrom Filmography (Swedish)

Eligible 500<400 films

52. Kauas pilvet karkaavat (1996)
66. La vie de bohème (1992)
69. Kjærlighetens kjøtere (1995)
84. Glas (1958)
96. Jakten (1959)
120. De noorderlingen (1992)
122. A Zed & Two Noughts (1986)
125. Varjoja paratiisissa (1986)
128. Regen (1929)
135. Terje Vigen (1917)
138. Motforestilling (1972)
141. Ober (2006)
183. De laatste dagen van Emma Blank (2009)
213. Sult (1966)
290. Daens (1992)
294. Voldtekt (1971)
306. Ni liv (1957)
335. Toto le héros (1991)
346. Berg-Ejvind och hans hustru (1918)
378. Mannen på taket (1976)
397. To mistenkelige personer (1950)
429. De dødes tjern (1958)
444. Elsker dig for evigt (2002)
459. De stilte rond Christine M. (1982)
460. Sound of Noise (2010)
466. Fanfare (1958)
473. Cloaca (2003)
497. Préparez vos mouchoirs (1978)
498. Djävulens öga (1960)

Results:

01. Buksemannen 32
02. jajusu 31
03. kisbye 26
04. bjorman 21
05. mjf314 20
06. ataraxic 19
07. ryebass 13
08. 3eyes 12
09. Lonewolf2003 12
10. cinephage 9
11. jvv 7
12. Fergenaprido 6
13. Rad82 5
14. globetrotter 4
15. Dolwphin 3
16. Daviddoes 2
17. Gershwin 2
18. allisoncm 1
19. edkrak 1
20. jgwr 0
21. Melvelet 0

[Melvelet]

I'm in (mostly for Nordic countries).
500<400 films (there are quite a few Norwegian films!), Bergman, Some 60s films from the FLM list.

[edkrak]

I guess I have some films from those countries in my backlog, so I'm in.
Any recommendations for Åland Islands?

[Gershwin]

I'm in.

And guys, don't forget to watch some Nanouk Leopold films. Especially her last film is quite good.

[3eyes]

I'm in. Am to get my Tin Star (25%) on the Norway list.

So disappointed that I can't watch Død snø 31 times and get credit for it.

Just to be clear: The Dardenne Brothers count? French-language Belgian films, that is?

[Buksemannen]

Just to be clear: The Dardenne Brothers count? French-language Belgian films, that is?

French is an official language in Belgium so yes!

[Buksemannen]

01. Det sjunde inseglet (1957) Re-watch

[mjf314]

Any recommendations for Åland Islands?

I can't find anything on IMDb, but there are some videos on Youtube that were made in the Aland Islands.

Edit: I found 2! Unfortunately, they don't seem to be available. Edit: Iris is available on Amazon.

Iris (2011) - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1606618/reference (trailer)
Lärjungen (2013) - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2194988/reference

[3eyes]

More filmographies:
http://www.icheckmovies.com/lists/carl+ ... phy/bal3x/
http://www.icheckmovies.com/lists/victo ... phy/bal3x/
http://www.icheckmovies.com/lists/jan+t ... cc+baxter/
http://www.icheckmovies.com/lists/roy+a ... cc+baxter/

[mjf314]

I'm in. I'll add some more lists to the first post tomorrow.

[Daviddoes]

I'll try to watch a handful.

[3eyes]

1.&#65279; Ingenjör Andrées luftfärd / The flight of the Eagle (Swe 82)
Dramatization of a failed Swedish attempt to reach the North Pole by balloon in 1897.

[jgwr]

I'll be focusing on the documentary challenge this month, but I might find time for a few of these.

[funkybusiness]

I'll be focusing on the documentary challenge this month, but I might find time for a few of these.

Hows about some Nordic documentaries? add ?tags=genre%3Adocumentary to the end of an icm list url and you might find some. There are a few in the first few lists I checked.

[Fergenaprido]

I'll give this one a go. It's a shame that of all these countries I've only seen one Danish and one Dutch film (though I may be missing a few French-Belgian coproductions). I've got a few films on my laptop already, so I'll aim to watch those first: Patrik 1.5, Fanny och Alexander, Festen, Zwartboek, & Død snø.

Actually, that's almost one from each country, so maybe that will be my goal. Now to see if my library has anything from Finland, Iceland, Belgium, Luxembourg, or the Faroes.

Edit: I discovered that I have indeed seen one Belgian film, bringing my total now to 3!

Previously seen films before the challenge

Le huitième jour (1996 Belgium) dir. Jaco von Dormael 7/10
Voor een verloren soldaat (1992 Netherlands) dir. Roeland Kerbosch 7/10
Jagten (2012 Denmark) dir. Thomas Vinterberg 9/10

Not sure if they fall under 'Nordic/Benelux'
Kukusha (2002 Russia) dir. Aleksandr Rogozhkin 7/10 - imdb lists it as solely a Russian production, but the dialogue is trilingual: Russian, Finnish, Sami
Tous les papas ne font pas pipi debout (1998 France/Belgium TV) dir. Dominique Baron 7/10 - imdb lists France first, so perhaps it counts more as a French rather than a Belgian production

P.S. How do I get accents to work properly here? Unicode? Okay so html-code seems to be the way to go, unless there's a simpler way.

[Rad82]

Fanny och Alexander, Festen, Zwartboek

Those are great films m8.

I envy you, since I've already seen them.

This is a good chance for people to also watch the belgian "Broken Circle Breakdown" and the danish "The Hunt" which were amazing foreign language oscar nominees during the last year. Loved both of them for too many reasons to explain...

Count me also in, though I'll probably just watch a few since there's a Roger Ebert challenge during the same month unfortunately...

PS : And it's a really hot SUMMER coming as it seems !!

[mjf314]

Actually, that's almost one from each country, so maybe that will be my goal. Now to see if my library has anything from Finland, Iceland, Belgium, Luxembourg, or the Faroes.

If it's a good library, you'll probably be able to find a Kaurismaki film for Finland and a Dardenne film for Belgium. I think the most famous Faroese film is Bye Bye Blue Bird but I haven't seen it so I don't know if it's good.

[Buksemannen]

02. Reprise (2006)
03. Kalde spor (1962)

Nordic/Benelux progress

01. Det sjunde inseglet (1957) (Re-watch)
02. Reprise (2006)
03. Kalde spor (1962)

[jajusu]

Count me in. Going to watch some Nordic movies.

[ryebass]

In.

[Lonewolf2003]

Count me in. Now the World Cup is in it's end phase and the school year is over, I will have more time again to watch some movies.

[Buksemannen]

It would have been cool if those who wants could choose 1 film that they would like to recommend for the challenge, preferably an obscure film with few checks, just to spice things up a little. Non-participants is also welcomed to recommend a film. I could add them to the first post. What do you guys think of this idea?

[mjf314]

It would have been cool if those who wants could choose 1 film that they would like to recommend for the challenge, preferably an obscure film with few checks, just to spice things up a little. Non-participants is also welcomed to recommend a film. I could add them to the first post. What do you guys think of this idea?

It might also be useful to have a list of eligible films on the 500<400 list. Here are the search links. If someone wants to make a ranked list, that would be even better. A few of these films are co-productions so not all of them are eligible.

Belgium: http://www.imdb.com/search/title?countr ... s056918013
Denmark: http://www.imdb.com/search/title?countr ... s056918013
Finland: http://www.imdb.com/search/title?countr ... s056918013
Netherlands: http://www.imdb.com/search/title?countr ... s056918013
Norway: http://www.imdb.com/search/title?countr ... s056918013
Sweden: http://www.imdb.com/search/title?countr ... s056918013

[Gershwin]

Does Belgium vs USA count? It was quite long, but highly entertaining. I won't give any spoilers, but one of them wins in the end. 9/10.

[mjf314]

I added some more lists to the first post. I also added a list of eligible 500<400 films. There were a few co-productions that I wasn't sure about, so let me know if you think something on the list should be removed.

[3eyes]

2. &#65279;Lorna's silence (Belg 08)

[ryebass]

Ahhhhh yes USA Belgium...real tearjerker (depending of course upon your allegiance) and the last 15 minutes on edge of seat...still recovering.

[jajusu]

1. Maria Larssons eviga ögonblick (2008)

[Rad82]

I also wanted to note this small favorite list of mine I found in icheckmovies by random searching, with particularly decent choices from Scandinavian cinema, it's unofficial yes, but I liked it quite a bit to get more ideas.

So it could also serve as a good recommendation list for those searching for such films:
http://www.icheckmovies.com/lists/51+be ... rnar+ingi/

PS : Yes it's actually missing some greats, but it's still pretty good.

[Gershwin]

I added some more lists to the first post. I also added a list of eligible 500<400 films. There were a few co-productions that I wasn't sure about, so let me know if you think something on the list should be removed.

You might want to add the Alex van Warmerdam filmography I added to iCM. He's by far the most respected Dutch arthouse director at the moment.

[jvv]

Well, I've seen way too few movies from my own country, so I might as well join this.

1. De vierde man (1983) - 7.5/10

Overly heavy on symbolism, but apparently this was intentional by Verhoeven (as a joke on the critics).

[3eyes]

It would have been cool if those who wants could choose 1 film that they would like to recommend for the challenge, preferably an obscure film with few checks, just to spice things up a little. Non-participants is also welcomed to recommend a film. I could add them to the first post. What do you guys think of this idea?

OK, here's a Norwegian film from my Oddball favorites list (3 checks):

http://www.icheckmovies.com/movies/mendel/

[jvv]

I'd like to suggest some Dutch documentary shorts by Bert Haanstra and Joris Ivens :

Zoo (1962) - 10 min.
Glas (1958) - 11 min.
Spiegel van Holland (1950) - 10 min.

Nieuwe Gronden (1933) - 36 min.
Regen (1929) - 14 min.
De Brug (1928) - 11 min.


They're not even all favorites of mine, but I think they do capture some quintessential Dutchness (and you can use them in the documentary challenge as well).

[bjornam]

You might want to add the Alex van Warmerdam filmography I added to iCM. He's by far the most respected Dutch arthouse director at the moment.

I've seen none of his. Are they all comedies? Unsure of dutch humour... Any tips for a good starting point?

[Dolwphin]

I'm waiting for my new glasses, but I'll see some titles starting next week. I already have some interesting titles available (I'll list them in spoiler below to make it easier for myself later) and looking forward to exploring the cinema of my region. In term of recommendations; I'd suggest seeing Land of Dreams, Songs from the Second Floor & You, the Living, and Hets. Also don't forget seeing some of Sucksdorff's short films like Trut! which have been read as an allegory of Nazism. No subtitles for that short unfortunately though.

Spoiler: click to toggle

Belgium: Akerman (Hôtel Monterey, La Chambre, News from Home, Nuit et jour)

Netherlands: Haanstra (Glas, Zoo, Fanfare), Keuken (De platte jungle, Face value, I love $, Spring Time: 3 Portraits, Four Walls, The Wall, Velocity 40-70), Apon (Golven)

Norway: Breien (Hustruer, Voldtekt), Lochen (Motforestilling),

Sweden:
Den vita sporten (Grupp 13)

Abramson (Ormen)
Bergman (Sånt händer inte här, Kvinnodröm, Törst, Nära livet, Saraband)
Brunius (Havets melodi)
Carlsten (Ett farligt frieri)
Ekman (Dårskapens hus, Första divisionen, Ratataa, Excellensen, Lilla märta kommer tillbaka)
Halldoff (Det sista äventyret)
Hyltén-Cavallius (Äktenskapsleken)
Mattsson (Yngsjömordet, Damen i svart, Mannekäng i rött, Ryttare i blått, Mördaren - en helt vanlig person, Den gula bilen)
Nelson (Light Years, My Name Is Oona), Moon's Pool)
Nilsson (Anonym, Bläckfiskens dagbok, Passageraren, etc.)
Sjöberg (Domaren)
Sjöman (Syskonbädd 1782, Jag är nyfiken - gul, 491, En handfull kärlek, Jag är nyfiken - blå, Ni ljuger)
Sjöström (Karin Ingmarsdotter)
Stiller (Vingarne, Sången om den eldröda blomman)
Sucksdorff (Det stora äventyret, Copacabana is my home, En djungelsaga, En kluven värld + 7 other short films)
Troell (Här har du ditt liv)
Widerberg (Mannen från Mallorca, Heja Roland!)

[mjf314]

You might want to add the Alex van Warmerdam filmography I added to iCM. He's by far the most respected Dutch arthouse director at the moment.

I've seen none of his. Are they all comedies? Unsure of dutch humour... Any tips for a good starting point?

I was planning to watch The Northerners for this challenge. I already downloaded it but I didn't realize it was a comedy. It's featured on KG.

[jajusu]

2. Tillsammans (2000)

Spoiler: click to toggle

1. Maria Larssons eviga ögonblick (2008)
2. Tillsammans (2000)

[Buksemannen]

I added some more lists to the first post. I also added a list of eligible 500<400 films. There were a few co-productions that I wasn't sure about, so let me know if you think something on the list should be removed.

Thanks for the help, the first post looks much better now Will mainly focus on movies from my own country (Norway) for this challenge. At least a silver on the Amanda award list.

[mjf314]

I added some more lists to the first post. I also added a list of eligible 500<400 films. There were a few co-productions that I wasn't sure about, so let me know if you think something on the list should be removed.

You might want to add the Alex van Warmerdam filmography I added to iCM. He's by far the most respected Dutch arthouse director at the moment.

Added. Btw you misspelled filmography in the title. http://www.icheckmovies.com/lists/alex+ ... /gershwin/

[Buksemannen]

04. Faa meg paa, for faen (2011)
05. Alt om min far (2002)
06. Ofelas (1987)
07. Mannen som elsket Yngve (2008)
08. Budbringeren (1997)

Nordic/Benelux progress

01. Det sjunde inseglet (1957) (Re-watch)
02. Reprise (2006)
03. Kalde spor (1962)
04. Faa meg paa, for faen (2011)
05. Alt om min far (2002)
06. Ofelas (1987)
07. Mannen som elsket Yngve (2008)
08. Budbringeren (1997)