This piece was written by Sir Simon Milligan

Even though countries around the world have been creating films for what seems like forever, it took a long time for many international films to breakthrough in the West. That’s changed in recent years as streaming services have made international films more accessible. Last year, Bong Joon-Ho’s Parasite became the first non-English language film to win Best Picture in Oscar’s 92-year history. It’ll be interesting to see if this is a sign of things to come.

My own personal favorite non-English film is Kung Fu Hustle. Basically, a live-action cartoon or video game, this martial arts comedy could be dismissed as a “kids” film, but it doesn’t hold back on the violence either. It’s filled with fun characters, but for me, the scene-stealer is the short-tempered, chain-smoking, curler-wearing landlady (Yuen Qiu) who – like most characters in the film – isn’t what she appears. The film is just a great time from start to finish…I mean come on, it’s got dancing ax-wielding gangsters!

Prompt: What’s your favorite non-English film?