foreign musical films.

So... I am doing a project for FIlm in school where I am comparing hollywood musicals to foreign musicals. I was simply wondering if any-one has seen any foreign musicals that they would like to recommend or anything. If not... I'm sorry for wasting a thread.

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Bollywood puts out about 100 a year.

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I want to second The Umbrellas of Cherbourg. It is an absolute delight and Catherine Deneuve is entrancing in her role.

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Nota bene: this is all from memory.

I think it was East Germany or the USSR that used to do musicals that extolled the virtues of the communist state. There was a documentary called something like "East Side Story" that was a montage of these films. This would be 10-12 years ago.

I remember this doc played the Film Forum in NY. You could email them. Google "Film Forum NYC" and see if there is a contact.

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Foreign musical films do not always follow the format of the American Musical Theatre.
To give you some examples:

Rembetiko (Greece)
Vengo (Spain, but produced in France)
Latcho Drom (multi national, produced France)
Los Tarantos (Spain, Spain's answer to West Side Story, in fact)

or the biopic Camarón (Spain, my first film appearance as a background dancer, & "scenery role")

Otherwise, I do second with what has been posted here. Bollywood has a wealth of musicals. try Devdas

Lagaan

Thank you all so much!

I am going to check these all out.

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One of the interesting things about The Young Girls from Rochefort is that it was a French film that combines both English and French languages and actors. The films stars Catherine Deneuve shortly after her success in Umbrellas of Cherbourg, but also features George Chakiris of West Side Story fame and Gene Kelly. And the score contains my favorite Legrand song, Chanson des Jumelles (The Twin Song), which is also used in 8 Women.

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