There are so many foreign films out there. Chances are someone you know can suggest one you've never seen. That happened to me a couple weeks ago. I was at my local video store, Burning Paradise, with a couple of friends. I picked out a movie that I had wanted to see, Micmacs. It's a french movie by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, the man behind Delicatessen and Amelie. One of my friends asked if I had seen another one of his films, The City of Lost Children. I hadn't. It turns out she owned it, so the following week she let me borrow it. I ended up watching two french films by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, made 14 years apart, in a week. It was great!
Bazil survives, but is stuck with a bullet in his head. Since he was in the hospital for a long time, Bazil loses his job and apartment. While living on the streets, Bazil is taken in by a group of quirky scavengers who live in a dump. The group includes a contortionist, a human cannonball and a master of numbers.
While out scavenging one day, Bazil comes across two companies that are across the street from each other. It turns out one is the manufacturer of the land mine that killed his father, the other the manufacturer of the bullets that hit Bazil. He decides to exact revenge on them by pitting the two weapons dealers against each other. With the help of his friends, he is able to sabotage both companies while leading each CEO to believe they are fighting each other. There are many clever pranks that Bazil and his crew pull, and it makes for a fun time to watch. Of course things do get complicated, but you'll just have to watch the movie to find out more.
Anyway, they go on an adventure to save One's brother and the other kidnapped children. It is an interesting movie with a clever depiction of a fantastical city. There are several creative "gadgets" that appear throughout the film that prove how imaginative this film really is. It's obvious that the same person is behind both this and Micmacs. If you've seen either Amelie or Delicatessen, then these two films are right up your ally. The City of Lost Children is definitely the darker of the two, but they have a similar style. Jeunet also directed Alien: Resurrection as his only Hollywood film, but I wouldn't judge him on that.
On IMDB, I rated both Micmacs and The City of Lost Children a 7 out of 10. Also, go see Amelie if you haven't yet. That's a personal favorite of mine.