NY FILM CRITICS 2012 : Best Foreign Film

This crackling thriller is based on the true story of four men in Solidarity who conspire to remove 80 million zlotys from the movement's bank account in the days before a government crackdown.

Representing Poland, which has nine previous nominations.

This costume drama, set in the court of 18th century King Christian VII, tells the true story of the mad monarch, his young bride and her affair with the royal doctor. It was well-received at Telluride and Toronto film festivals.

Representing Denmark, which has three previous wins in this category.

After graduation, three high school friends take one last road trip before two of them emigrate.

Representing Slovenia.

This emotional family drama focuses on a husband coping with the loss of his wife and the effect of this on his teenager daughter who is being bullied at her new school. This film won the Un Regard Section at the Cannes Film Festival.

Representing Mexico, which has eight previous nominations.

A young Malaysian girl heads off to Singapore to fulfill her dream of becoming a famous TV star.
Representing Singapore. 

The story of a married couple, both in their eighties, who are challenged when she suffers an attack. The film won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival.

Representing Austria, which has one previous win in this category.

Set in 1980s East Germany, a doctor is exiled to a small-town hospital as punishment for her beliefs.  The film was well-received at Berlin, Telluride and Toronto film festivals.

Representing Germany, which has two previous wins in this category. West Germany won once.

Set in the 1970s, this touching film follows an unlikely friendship between a deaf-mute boy and an autistic girl.

Representing India, which has three previous nominations.

Inspired by a true story of an exorcism, the film opens with Alina (Cristina Flutur) visiting Voichita (Cosmina Stratan) at the convent where she is about to take her vows. When Alina stays on to convince her to leave the order, things begin to unravel quickly. Cristian Munju, who was snubbed for his last film "4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days" won Best Screenplay while the leads shared Best Actress at the Cannes Film Festival.

Representing Romania.

A tribute to the silent film era, this black-and-white picture transplants the story of "Snow White" to 1920s Andalusia. It won the Jury Prize at the San Sebastian Film Festival.

Representing Spain, which has four previous wins in this category.

The top-grossing film of the year in Portugal, this bleak drama looks at the effects of poverty through the eyes of one family.

Representing Portugal.

A complex story of murder, passion and haunting memories for three estranged brothers and their ailing father.
Representing Malaysia. 

This charming black-and-white film about life in a small village centers on an unlikely friendship between an orphan boy and an elderly man. It won Best Children's Feature at the 2011 Asia Pacific Screen Awards.

Representing Azerbaijan.

This charming comedy drama is about a lonely old gay man and his newfound friend, a stray dog.

Representing the Philippines.

The veteran directors Paolo & Vittoria Taviani won the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival for this black-and-white drama set in a prison where the inmates are rehearsing a production of "Julius Caesar." The use of real-life prisoners caused controversy, as the helmers spoke of the desire to humanize even the most hardened criminals.

Representing Italy, which has 13 previous wins in this category.

A doctor, who becomes addicted to alcohol and drugs, performs illegal abortions for the criminal underworld.

Representing Croatia.

The veteran director Chen Kaige, who helmed Hong Kong's 1993 entry "Farewell My Concubine," draws a stark picture of the powerful effect of the Internet, as people use it to track down those they are convinced of moral lapses.

Representing China, which has two previous nominations.

A TV game show host is told that his wife and child have been kidnapped and to ensure their safe return he must bear his soul on live television.

Representing the Dominican Republic.

Set in the wartorn city in the early 1990s, this raw look at the effects of conflict on children won Special Distinction in the Un Certain Regard section of the Cannes Film Festival.

Representing Bosnia & Herzegovina, which has one previous win in this category.

Inspired by his own childhood, the writer/director tells the story of a family who fled the military dictatorship that rose to power in 1976 only to return three years later to fight in the insurrection.

Representing Argentina, which has two previous wins in this category.

This crime drama follows three young men and their efforts to make money by any means possible.

Representing Morocco.

Reformed drug dealer Andres Lopez co-wrote this intense crime drama about the power of the narcotics cartels in his country.

Representing Colombia.

The director Rama Burshstein reveals much about the world of the Hasidic with this emotional family drama about a teenage girl obliged to marry her brother-in-law after her sister dies giving birth.

Representing Israel, which has 10 previous nominations.

Based on a true story, this film recounts the incredible life of Ivan Dodoka, who went from WWII air ace to German POW, and from Soviet political prisioner to chief of one of the first peoples of Canada.

Representing Ukraine.

This last film from the acclaimed writer/director Humayun Ahmed follows a group of teenage boys who are part of a theatrical tradition.

Representing Bangladesh.

Based on Anatole France's novel, this film, told in three parts, explores the lasting myth of Lilith.

Representing Latvia.

A thriller with a twist as a police officer turned paid killer is struck by a single bullet that turns his world upside down.

Representing Thailand.

Made to celebrate the 20th anniversary of independence, this intense drama revisits the conflict with neighboring Azerbaijan over disputed territory.

Representing Armenia.

Set in 1953 Prague, when Czechoslovakia was a Soviet satellite, an honest police officer is caught up in corruption and crime.

Representing the Czech Republic, which has one previous win in this category. The Czechoslovakia won twice.

A coming of age story set in the wilds of this Arctic country.
Representing Greenland. 

This fictionalized version of the true story of a string of murders in the Gypsy community won the Jury Grand Prize at the Berlin Film Festival.

Representing Hungary, which has one previous win in this category.

The acclaimed documentarian makes his feature debut with this moving film about a shy young boy who finds a friend in an abandoned bird. The film won Best First Feature at the Berlin Film Festival.

Representing the Netherlands, which has three previous wins in this category.

This charming comedy is about a group of impoverished mothers competing in a beauty pageant.

Representing Georgia, which has one previous nomination.

Historical drama following Thor Heyerdahl's Kon-Tiki expedition.

Representing Norway, which has four previous nominations.

Set against the backdrop of the recent financial crisis, this film ties together the fates of a banker, a police officer and a criminal.

Representing Hong Kong, which has two previous nominations.

A highly emotional film that opens with a little girl left for dead after being beaten and the woman who goes to any length to rescue her.

Representing South Africa, which has one previous win in this category.

In 1945 Germany, five children travel hundreds of miles to their grandmother's house after their parents are taken into custody by the Allies.

Representing Australia.

Khauv Sotheary wrote and stars in this true story about her mother, whose father, husband and four other children, were among the 2 million Cambodians killed by the Khmer Rouge during their 1970s campaign of terror.

Representing Cambodia.

A grim look at the descent of a young woman from factory worker to prostitute, with several scenes played out in animation.

Representing Slovakia. Czechoslovakia previously won this category twice.

A politician at the center of a scandal goes missing on the day that a journalist goes in pursuit.

Representing Estonia.

This historical epic is set in the 17th century and depicts the valiant struggle of the Kazakhs against the Zunghar Kanate who had ruled their homeland for the better part of a century.

Representing Kazakhstan, which has one previous nomination.

A moving drama about a young actor who moves to the big city with dreams of stardom but gets caught up in the seamier side of life.

Representing Kenya.

This political thriller stars Gael Garcia Bernal as a political neophyte drafted into the 1988 referendum campaign to oust dictator Augusto Pinochet. The film won the Directors Fortnight prize at the Cannes Film Festival.

Representing Chile.

Emile Dequenne won Best Actress in the Un Certain Regard section of the Cannes film festival for playing a mother who kills her five children.

Representing Belgium, which has six previous nominations.

Following up on her documentary "Dear Pyongang," director Yong hi-Yang continues to explore the role of Koreans in Japanese society. Exiled to North Korea, a man returns to Japan for medical treatment after a 25-year absence only to discover he does not really belong in either country.

Representing Japan, which has won this category four times.

Following the death of his mother, a young man returns from America and works as a pharmacist in his father's medical practice. He woos one of his nurses causing a strain between the two generations.

Representing Albania.

A raw film about the crippling effects of poverty. A loan shark comes to accept the woman claiming to be his mother, only to pay a price in the end. The film won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival over "The Master."

Representing South Korea.

During the post-WWII Soviet occupation of Estonia, two women are forced to confront their pasts.

Representing Finland, which has one previous nomination.

This stirring documentary follows a 75-year-old wrestler as he faces his biggest challenger -- loneliness.
Representing Lithuania. 

Set in Caracas, this domestic drama intercuts between two families as their lives lead into conflict with each other.

Representing Venezuela.

This family drama explores the world of a young boy forced to steal from guests at a ski resort to support himself and his sister. The film won the Silver Bear at the Berlin Film Festival.

Representing Switzerland, which has won this category twice.

Director Valeri Yordanov headlines this intimate look at the journey of six souls from Sofia to the seaside.

Representing Bulgaria.

A darkly comic story of a young girl who convinces herself she will die on the day her brother is born.

Representing Peru, which has one previous nomination.

Selton Mello wrote, directed and stars in this box office hit about a circus performer who breaks away from the family business.

Representing Brazil, which has four previous nominations.

Set in the 1960s during a time of political unrest, this is a love story between a young soldier and a girl destined to be a dancer. It won Best Picture at the Indonesian Film Awards.

Representing Indonesia.

This intense film tells the true story of a fisherman marooned on a volcanic island.

Representing Iceland, which has one previous nomination.

This domestic drama explores the length to which a single mother will go to care for her aging father.

Representing Uruguay.

A young woman avoids one man, marries another, and runs away to the big city on her wedding night.
Representing Kyrgyzstan.

This deft crime drama about a detective and doctor who work together to track down a murderer on a rampage is from a two-time Best Director nominee ("My Life as a Dog," "The Cider House Rules") who returned to his native country.

Representing Sweden, which has three previous wins in this category.

Based on a true story, this heartwarming film tells the story of the unlikely friendship that develops between Philippe, a wealthy quadraplegic (Francoise Cluzet), and Driss, a poor young man (Omar Sy), who is hired as his live-in carer. All-time box office champ in France.

Representing France, which has 12 previous wins in this category.

Rahimi adapted his novel about a young woman in a wartorn country who falls in love with a solider while nursing her injured husband.

Representing Afghanistan.

This intense drama revisits a key 1972 battle between North Vietnam and the United States.

Representing Vietnam, which has one previous nomination.

Set in Nazi-occupied Macedonia, this intense film revisits the Holocaust by telling the story of a Jewish football coach.

Representing Macedonia, which has one previous nomination.

Blind piano prodigy Yu Hsiang plays himself in this first film from TV helmer Rong-ji.

Representing Taiwan, which has one previous win in this category.

This crime drama has elements of comedy as it follows a police detective on the trail of some missing money.

Representing Greece, which has five previous nominations.

This raw look at the world of child soldiers in the Congo is told through the eyes of an expectant teenage mother who recounts her story to her unborn child. Won Best Narrative Feature at Tribeca Film Festival.

Representing Canada, which has one previous win in this category.

A man is forced to confront his past when the discovery of a buried box at the site of a concentration camp reveals the complicity of his parents in the Holocaust.

Representing Serbia.

Set in a refugee camp in 1967 Jordan, the film follows the efforts of one young boy to be reunited with his father.

Representing the Palestinia territories, which have one previous nomination.

Working from his own script, this stark drama is the third in a trilogy by Gunes that explores our violent world. Here, a father plots to kill his teenage daughter who is pregant. The film won both Best Film and the Critics' prize at the Montreal Film Festival.

Representing Turkey.

Set in WWII, this fantasy film pits one Russian soldier against a German tank that has no crew but continues to kill.

Representing Russia, which has one previous win in this category. The Soviet Union won three times.

This biopic, released on the golden anniversary of the country's hard fought independence from France, traces the life of freedom fighter Ahmed Zabana, whose execution in 1956 galvanized the resolve of others.

Representing Algeria, which has one previous win in this category.