Academy Award for Best International Feature Film — Full List

The Secret in Their Eyes is a mystery-thriller from director Juan José Campanella. The tight screenplay is full of suspense and surprises, and the film’s show-stopping centerpiece is a long take which begins as an aerial shot before sweeping down into a stadium and transitioning seamlessly into an impressively coordinated foot chase sequence.

The Secret in Their Eyes was made in Argentina and became the country’s second film to win the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar.

Amarcord is a comedy from acclaimed director Federico Fellini. The film is comprised of a series of vignettes that look back on 1930s Italy from the modern viewpoint of the early 1970s. Much of the film’s plot comes from director Federico Fellini reflecting on his own memories of childhood.

Amour is a French language film from Austrian director Michael Haneke. Haneke is known for directing films in multiple languages and covering diverse subject matter. Amour closely examines the relationship of an elderly couple as one of them suffers a stroke, altering their loving dynamic.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is a martial arts epic set in a fantastical 19th century China. The film belongs to the Wuxia genre, long-celebrated in China but fresh and new to most international audiences at the time.

The film features stunning sword fights and gorgeous cinematography in beautiful locations. Find out where Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon ranks on our list of the best martial arts fight scenes ever.

South Korean filmmaker Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite became the first winner of the newly renamed ‘Best International Film’ Oscar. Parasite also earned the high-honor of being the first foreign language film ever to win the overall Best Picture Oscar. And one more ‘first’, Parasite was the not only the first South Korea Oscar winner but also the country's very first nomination at the Oscars despite an impressive list of films coming from South Korea’s film industry.

Fanny and Alexander is the second Ingmar Bergman film on our list of the greatest foreign language film Oscar winners but not the last. The film is an autobiographical drama looking back at Bergman’s own childhood. Fanny and Alexander exists as two distinct versions, one a televised miniseries that totals 312 minutes, and the other a trimmed down 188 minutes in length.

The shortened cut of Fanny and Alexander is the version that was honored by the Academy Awards.

Life is Beautiful is an Italian comedy-drama about a Jewish father hiding the horrors of the holocaust from his young son even as they suffer through it. The film is heartwrenching and, true to the title, a beautiful cinematic expression. Director, co-writer, and star Robert Benigni’s celebration upon winning the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar is one of the most memorable moments in the entire history of the Oscars ceremony.

Japanese director Akira Kurosawa’s Rashomon won an honorary award the 1952 Academy Awards for ‘Outstanding Foreign Language Film.’ It would be a few more years before the Oscars added an official ‘Best Foreign Language Film’ category. Rashomon was considered groundbreaking upon release for its complex framing and structure, and for its subjective narrative as a group of characters each recount a different version of the same events.

The Salesman is a drama from Iranian director Asghar Farhadi. It became the director’s second film to win the prestigious award. The film focuses on a married couple dealing with trauma following an assault as they attempt to put on a theatrical performance of Arthur Miller’s The Death of a Salesman. The performances are incredible and the drama drills deep into the characters.

All About My Mother is a drama from acclaimed Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar. The film also won the foreign language prize at the Golden Globes and the BAFTAs. The film remains one of the best in his long and impressive filmography and stands proudly as one of the first successful films to earnestly depict transgender women in a non-prejudiced or hateful light.

Son of Saul is a Hungarian WWII film from director László Nemes. The film is extremely heavy and uncompromisingly bleak. The story follows the titular Saul as he navigates the concentration camp that holds him captive in an attempt to provide a proper burial to a child who he believes may have been his son but he cannot be certain. 

The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie is a surrealist masterpiece from Spanish director Luis Buñuel. Buñuel is often credited as the father of cinematic surrealism and is a master of the strange and unexplainable. The film has very little in terms of a narrative through-line, focusing instead on a series of dream-like episodes following the same middle-class characters having their dinner party interrupted in escalating, bizarre ways.

Through a Glass Darkly is the third and final Ingmar Bergman film on our list of the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar winners of all time. The master filmmaker’s 1961 drama follows a woman as she loses touch with reality after believing she has been visited by God shortly after exiting a mental hospital.

A Separation earned Iranian filmmaker Asghar Farhadi his first Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, followed by a subsequent win with The Salesman a few years later. A Separation features a complex plot told in the most humanistic way possible. The characters are all incredibly deep and every performance shines from the talented cast giving it their all.

8 ½ is a surreal masterpiece from Italian director Federico Fellini, his second film on our list following Amarcord. The plot of 8 ½ is left somewhat open to interpretation. At a base level, the film follows Guido Anselmi, a stressed filmmaker attempting to put together a new motion picture. The surreal visuals and dream-like atmosphere are second to none in 8 ½.