Austrian Films - personal recommendations
by maxi13 | created - 13 Jan 2016 | updated - 23 Sep 2016 | PublicThis list is not ranked! it is listed by subjects.
I. Michael Haneke (more adult movies): No. 1-3
II. Michael Haneke (controversial and fierce movies): No. 4+5
III. "Angst": another controversial Austrian film: No. 6
IV. Ulrich Seidl
V. other films; some are even more mainstream
VI. Documentaries (Austrian directors made a lot of extraordinary good docus, so they have to be listed here. Even though i am not so much in this genre, these films are really highlights. internationally!)
VII. typical Austrian comedies (would be good if you are fluent in Austrian german, cause Austrian comedies depend a lot on speech).
VIII. non-Austrian films with extraordinary good performances by an Austrian actor or actress.
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1. Amour (2012)
PG-13 | 127 min | Drama
Georges and Anne are an octogenarian couple. They are cultivated, retired music teachers. Their daughter, also a musician, lives in Britain with her family. One day, Anne has a stroke, and the couple's bond of love is severely tested.
Director: Michael Haneke | Stars: Jean-Louis Trintignant, Emmanuelle Riva, Isabelle Huppert, Alexandre Tharaud
Votes: 105,728 | Gross: $6.74M
Haneke is a director whose films are much more "Arthouse" than entertainment. they are not easy to consume, but this is one of those films which is also not shocking. it has a more adult feeling.
This film got an Oscar, a Golden Globe and the Palme d'Or in Cannes
2. The Piano Teacher (2001)
R | 131 min | Drama, Music
A young man romantically pursues his masochistic piano teacher.
Director: Michael Haneke | Stars: Isabelle Huppert, Annie Girardot, Benoît Magimel, Susanne Lothar
Votes: 71,874 | Gross: $1.90M
Haneke is a director whose films are much more "Arthouse" than entertainment. they are not easy to consume, but this is one of those films which is also not that much shocking, just a little bit. it has a more adult feeling.
This film won 3 prizes in Cannes.
3. The White Ribbon (2009)
R | 144 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Strange events happen in a small village in the north of Germany during the years before World War I, which seem to be ritual punishment. Who is responsible?
Director: Michael Haneke | Stars: Christian Friedel, Ernst Jacobi, Leonie Benesch, Ulrich Tukur
Votes: 77,684 | Gross: $2.22M
Haneke is a director whose films are much more "Arthouse" than entertainment. they are not easy to consume, but this is one of those films which is also not shocking. it has a more adult feeling.
This film was nominated for an Oscar, won a Golden Globe and 4 prizes in Cannes.
4. Funny Games (1997)
Not Rated | 108 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Two violent young men take a mother, father, and son hostage in their vacation cabin and force them to play sadistic "games" with one another for their own amusement.
Director: Michael Haneke | Stars: Susanne Lothar, Ulrich Mühe, Arno Frisch, Frank Giering
Votes: 84,181
"funny games" is really hard stuff. it's shocking and very popular at a younger audience.
was nominated for the Palme d'Or in Cannes.
5. Benny's Video (1992)
Not Rated | 110 min | Crime, Drama
A 14-year-old video enthusiast obsessed with violent films decides to make one of his own and show it to his parents, with tragic results.
Director: Michael Haneke | Stars: Arno Frisch, Angela Winkler, Ulrich Mühe, Ingrid Stassner
Votes: 18,675
"Bennys Video" is also hard stuff and shocking. controversial
6. Angst (I) (1983)
Not Rated | 87 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
A troubled man gets released from prison and starts taking out his sadistic fantasies on an unsuspecting family living in a secluded house.
Director: Gerald Kargl | Stars: Erwin Leder, Robert Hunger-Bühler, Silvia Ryder, Karin Springer
Votes: 13,483
If you like "Funny Games" and "Bennys Video" there is a good chance that you also like this one. also very shocking and controversial, even its not a Haneke film. if you think about the time this one was made, it is VERY progressive. It got banned in many countries.
7. Dog Days (2001)
R | 121 min | Drama
In the tomb-like quiet of their ranch-style purgatory, a divorced husband and wife fight a wordless war while mourning an unspeakable mutual loss. A sadistic lover's ritual humiliation spawns both tenderness and revenge.
Director: Ulrich Seidl | Stars: Maria Hofstätter, Christine Jirku, Viktor Hennemann, Georg Friedrich
Votes: 6,548 | Gross: $0.01M
Ulrich Seidl is the second very important director in Austria today. The feeling of his movies is very much an Austrian or sometimes even eastern european one. this one is mostly about austrian white trash people.
You like it - or you hate it! hard to consume and very unique. I've chosen 2 films which i think are good to get an insight in his works.
Ulrich Seidls films are somewhat misanthropic, so if you are someone who loves and need happy ends and if you are just optimistic and never pessimistic you maybe shouldnt even try his films
This film won the Grand Special Jury Prize in Venice.
8. Import Export (2007)
Not Rated | 141 min | Drama
A nurse from Ukraine searches for a better life in Central Europe, while an unemployed security guard from Austria heads East for the same reason.
Director: Ulrich Seidl | Stars: Ekateryna Rak, Lidiya Oleksandrivna Savka, Oksana Ivanivna Sklyarenko, Dmytro Andriyovich Gachkov
Votes: 6,310
Ulrich Seidl is the second very important director in Austria today. The feeling of his movies is very much an Austrian or sometimes even eastern european one. You like it - or you hate it! hard to consume and very unique. I've chosen 2 films which i think are good to get an insight in his works. Ulrich Seidls films are somewhat misanthropic, so if you are someone who loves and need happy ends and if you are just optimistic and never pessimistic you maybe shouldnt even try his films
9. The Counterfeiters (2007)
R | 99 min | Crime, Drama, History
The story of the Operation Bernhard, the largest counterfeiting operation in history, carried out by Germany during World War II.
Director: Stefan Ruzowitzky | Stars: Karl Markovics, August Diehl, Devid Striesow, Martin Brambach
Votes: 47,186 | Gross: $5.48M
this film got an Oscar, so it is somewhat entertaining and much more easy to watch than the most others listed here.
10. Revanche (2008)
Not Rated | 121 min | Crime, Drama, Romance
Ex-con Alex plans to flee to the South with his girl after a robbery. But something terrible happens and revenge seems inevitable.
Director: Götz Spielmann | Stars: Johannes Krisch, Irina Potapenko, Andreas Lust, Ursula Strauss
Votes: 15,966
its a mixture of mainstream and arthouse, so it sits between these chairs, which is a problem, but its a good movie and you have to be concentrated to realize the picture language he is sometimes using. very european/austrian
This film was nominated for an Oscar.
11. Slumming (2006)
Not Rated | 100 min | Comedy, Drama
Two yuppies play mean tricks on one another until one joke has fatal consequences.
Director: Michael Glawogger | Stars: Paulus Manker, August Diehl, Michael Ostrowski, Pia Hierzegger
Votes: 869
"Slumming" must be listed here, even if it would be just for the first scene which is so intense and great. though the film isn't that strong as the first scene is, its still a very good movie. very european/austrian
12. Breathing (2011)
Not Rated | 94 min | Drama
Through his work at a morgue, an incarcerated young man trying to build a new life starts to come to terms with the crime he committed.
Director: Karl Markovics | Stars: Thomas Schubert, Karin Lischka, Georg Friedrich, Gerhard Liebmann
Votes: 3,024 | Gross: $0.00M
arthouse/underground audience can give this one a try. very european/austrian
13. The Dark Valley (2014)
Not Rated | 115 min | Action, Drama, Western
Through a hidden path, a lone rider reaches a little town high up in the Alps. Nobody knows where the stranger comes from, nor what he wants there. But everyone knows that they don't want him to stay.
Director: Andreas Prochaska | Stars: Sam Riley, Tobias Moretti, Paula Beer, Thomas Schubert
Votes: 14,313
is an Austrian alps Western. Its a mainstream film, but nice to watch, though its not an extraordinary amazing Western, you will be entertained enough. i wouldnt say its a favorite of mine, but there should be at least one easy to consume film and this one is a good/okay film
14. We Feed the World (2005)
Not Rated | 96 min | Documentary
A look at how the world's food is produced and how mass production changes the environment and the lives of people.
Director: Erwin Wagenhofer | Stars: Jean Ziegler, Peter Brabeck, Karl Otrok
Votes: 2,478
15. Empire Me - Der Staat bin ich! (2011)
100 min | Documentary
Handmade utopias - a filmic search for the worldwide phenomenon of the micronation movement. Do-it-yourself states that have distanced themselves from the economic and political ... See full summary »
Director: Paul Poet | Stars: John Rinaldi, Paul Poet, Caledonia Curry, James Bates
Votes: 159
16. Darwin's Nightmare (2004)
107 min | Documentary
A documentary on the effect of fishing the Nile perch in Tanzania's Lake Victoria. The predatory fish, which has wiped out the native species, is sold in European supermarkets, while starving Tanzanian families have to make do with the leftovers.
Director: Hubert Sauper | Stars: Elizabeth 'Eliza' Maganga Nsese, Raphael Tukiko Wagara, Dimond Remtulia, Marcus Nyoni
Votes: 5,663 | Gross: $0.20M
was nominated for an Oscar
17. Megacities (1998)
Not Rated | 90 min | Documentary
A look at the people who live precariously, but with an unusual level of resourcefulness and imagination, in four gigantic urban agglomerations: Mumbai, New York City, Moscow and Mexico City.
Director: Michael Glawogger
Votes: 1,028
18. Plastic Planet (2009)
TV-G | 95 min | Documentary
Werner Boote presents an up-close and personal view of the controversial and fascinating material that has found its way into every facet of our daily lives: plastic. He takes us on a ... See full summary »
Director: Werner Boote | Stars: Werner Boote, John Taylor, Peter Lieberzeit, Marques Brown
Votes: 1,233 | Gross: $0.00M
19. Let's Make Money (2008)
110 min | Documentary
Most of us don't know where their money is. However, one thing is for certain, it's is not in the bank to which we entrusted it. The bank and our money is already a part of the cycle of the global money market.
Director: Erwin Wagenhofer | Stars: Mark Mobius, Mirko Kovats, K. Sujatha Raaju, Gerhard Schwarz
Votes: 1,753
20. Der Bockerer (1981)
104 min | Drama, History
A politically naïve Viennese butcher (Bockerer) manages to survive the unification of Germany and Austria and the Second World War.
Director: Franz Antel | Stars: Karl Merkatz, Alfred Böhm, Hans Holt, Marte Harell
Votes: 1,027
I am afraid that all this 3 films ("Bockerer", "Muttertag" and "Immer nie am Meer") are not understandable by non german speakers. I dont even know if there exist subtitles. All 3 are more or less comedies and these Austrian films are depending very much on the language. Anyway! You can give it a try if you are really interested in Austrians soul and (unique) humor.
21. Mother's Day (1994)
95 min | Comedy
A satirical take on the life of a family in a public-housing complex in Vienna as they prepare for Mother's Day.
Director: Harald Sicheritz | Stars: Alfred Dorfer, Reinhard Nowak, Andrea Händler, Eva Billisich
Votes: 2,204
I am afraid that all this 3 films ("Bockerer", "Muttertag" and "Immer nie am Meer") are not understandable by non german speakers. I dont even know if there exist subtitles. All 3 are more or less comedies and these Austrian films are depending very much on the language. Anyway! You can give it a try if you are really interested in Austrians soul and (unique) humor.
22. Forever Never Anywhere (2007)
88 min | Comedy, Drama
Never at the sea.
Director: Antonin Svoboda | Stars: Christoph Grissemann, Dirk Stermann, Heinz Strunk, Philip Bialkowski
Votes: 1,149
I am afraid that all this 3 films ("Bockerer", "Muttertag" and "Immer nie am Meer") are not understandable by non german speakers. I dont even know if there exist subtitles. All 3 are more or less comedies and these Austrian films are depending very much on the language. Anyway! You can give it a try if you are really interested in Austrians soul and (unique) humor.
23. Contact High (2009)
Not Rated | 98 min | Comedy
An episodic comedy that follows the lives of four men living in Vienna.
Director: Michael Glawogger | Stars: Michael Ostrowski, Raimund Wallisch, Alexis Santiago Hernandez, Victor Varnado
Votes: 1,276
24. Inglourious Basterds (2009)
R | 153 min | Adventure, Drama, War
In Nazi-occupied France during World War II, a plan to assassinate Nazi leaders by a group of Jewish U.S. soldiers coincides with a theatre owner's vengeful plans for the same.
Director: Quentin Tarantino | Stars: Brad Pitt, Diane Kruger, Eli Roth, Mélanie Laurent
Votes: 1,585,494 | Gross: $120.54M
Christoph Waltz as the Nazi Lauda was maybe the most astonishing actors performance in the last decades. If you have seen this movie you will never forget this character. amazing!
25. M (1931)
Passed | 99 min | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
When the police in a German city are unable to catch a child-murderer, other criminals join in the manhunt.
Director: Fritz Lang | Stars: Peter Lorre, Ellen Widmann, Inge Landgut, Otto Wernicke
Votes: 168,539 | Gross: $0.03M
Peter Lorre was THE villain in cinema.
(btw.: the director of this film was also Austrian before he moved to the USA)
26. Mephisto (1981)
Unrated | 146 min | Drama
In early-1930s Germany, a passionate stage actor faces a dilemma: renounce his apolitical stance and comply with the Reich's doctrine, or face oblivion. But, Faustian bargains never end well. What is the price of success?
Director: István Szabó | Stars: Klaus Maria Brandauer, Ildikó Bánsági, Krystyna Janda, Rolf Hoppe
Votes: 11,600
Klaus Maria Brandauer is a famous Actor in Austria. Internationally he is for sure much more famous for his role in "Out of Africa" (nominated for an Oscar) but his mask in this film is just unforgettable and reminds on his career as theater actor.
27. The Cardinal (1963)
Approved | 175 min | Drama, History, War
A young Catholic priest from Boston confronts bigotry, Nazism, and his own personal conflicts as he rises to the office of cardinal.
Director: Otto Preminger | Stars: Tom Tryon, John Huston, Romy Schneider, Carol Lynley
Votes: 2,907
Romy Schneider got international attention with this, though there are a lot of remarkable films by her
(btw.: Otto Preminger, the director of this film, was also Austrian before he moved to the USA)
28. Fahrenheit 451 (1966)
Not Rated | 112 min | Drama, Sci-Fi
In an oppressive future, a fireman whose duty is to destroy all books begins to question his task.
Director: François Truffaut | Stars: Oskar Werner, Julie Christie, Cyril Cusack, Anton Diffring
Votes: 45,437
Oskar Werner is an incredible actor, though its maybe not his best film its the one i like most. You have to hear his original german voice! though… i think he is not dubbed in the english version of this film. don't know! i love the german one.
29. Goodnight Mommy (2014)
R | 99 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Twin boys move to a new house with their mother after she has face-changing cosmetic surgery, but under the bandages is someone the boys don't recognize.
Directors: Severin Fiala, Veronika Franz | Stars: Lukas Schwarz, Elias Schwarz, Susanne Wuest, Hans Escher
Votes: 59,811 | Gross: $1.17M
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