Your New Year's Resolution: A Movie A Week (Part 7 of 7)

To read Part 1, click here. Read Part 2 here. Read Part 3 here, Part 4 here, Part 5 here and Part 6 here.

A dozen International films to choose from — but no heavy lifting, no spinach. The Monkey doesn't do spinach (although I do eat spinach from time to time).

Nosferatu (1922). Horror (Germany). A vampire relocates to the big city and samples the local cuisine. Dir. F.W. Murnau. Starring Max Schreck, Alexander Granach. More German Expressionism: The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920), Der Golem, Waxworks, Faust, Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans, The Man Who Laughs, Pandora's Box, Vampyr. See also M and Fritz Lang.

M (1931). Crime (Germany). A serial killer preys on children on the eve of Hitler's rise to power. Dir. Fritz Lang. Starring Peter Lorre. More Lang: Dr. Mabuse the Gambler, Metropolis, The Testament of Dr. Mabuse, You Only Live Once, Scarlet Street, The Big Heat.

Rashomon (1950). Drama (Japan). Witnesses to a murder — including the killer and the ghost of the victim — tell conflicting stories about the event. Dir. Akira Kurosawa. Starring Toshiro Mifune, Takashi Shimura. More Kurosawa: Ikiru, Seven Samurai, The Hidden Fortress, Yojimbo, Sanjuro, Ran.

Tokyo Story (1953). Drama (Japan). An aging couple's children don't have time for them. Dir. Yasujiro Ozu. Starring Chishu Ryu, Chieko Higashiyama, Setsuko Hara. More Ozu: I Was Born But, Late Spring, Early Summer, Floating Weeds, Late Autumn.

The Seventh Seal (1957). Fantasy Drama (Sweden). A medieval knight plays chess against Death with his life riding on the outcome. Dir. Ingmar Bergman. Starring Max von Sydow, Bengt Ekerot. More Bergman: Smiles of a Summer Night, Wild Strawberries, Persona, Cries and Whispers, Scenes from a Marriage, Fanny and Alexander.

The 400 Blows (1959). Drama (France). Ignored by his parents, a boy slides into delinquency. Dir. Francois Truffaut. Starring Jean-Pierre Leaud, Albert Remy, Claire Maurier. More French New Wave Cinema: Hiroshima Mon Amour, Breathless, Shoot the Piano Player, Lola, Last Year at Marienbad, Cleo from 5 to 7, Jules and Jim, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg.

La Dolce Vita (1960). Comedy Drama (Italy). A debauched tabloid reporter spends seven wild days and nights in the fleshpots of Rome. Dir. Federico Fellini. Starring Marcello Mastroianni, Anita Ekberg, Anouk Aimee. More Movies From Italy: Ossessione, Rome Open City, Bicycle Thieves, Umberto D., La Strada, L'Avventura, Rocco and His Brothers, 8½, The Leopard, The Gospel According to St. Matthew, The Conformist.

Wings of Desire (1987). Romantic Fantasy (Germany). An angel sacrifices immortality to become human. Dir. Wim Wenders. Starring Bruno Ganz, Solveig Dommartin, Otto Sander, Curt Boise, Peter Falk. More Movies From Germany: Aguirre the Wrath of God, Ali: Fear Eats the Soul, Das Boot, Run Lola Run, Downfall, The Lives of Others, The White Ribbon.

In the Mood for Love (2000). Romance (Hong Kong). Two lonely people with cheating spouses meet and fall in love. Dir. Wong Kar-wai. Starring Tony Leung, Maggie Cheung. More Movies From Hong Kong: The Way of the Dragon, Fist of Fury, Drunken Master, The Killer, Hard Boiled, Chungking Express, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Infernal Affairs.

Amelie (2001). Comedy Fantasy (France). A shy waitress helps lonely people in a candy-colored Paris. Dir. Jean-Pierre Jeunet. Starring Audrey Tautou, Mathieu Kassovitz, Serge Merlin. More Comedies From France: Le Million, A Nous La Liberte, Boudu Saved from Drowning, Zero for Conduct, L'Atalante, The Rules of the Game, Monsieur Hulot's Holiday, Mon Oncle, Playtime, La Cage aux Folles.

Spirited Away (2001). Animation (Japan). When her parents are magically transformed into pigs, a ten year old girl takes a job in the spirit world to set them free. Dir. Hayao Miyazaki. More Japanese Anime: Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, Akira, Grave of the Fireflies, My Neighbor Totoro, Porco Rosso, Ghost in the Shell, Princess Mononoke.

Pan's Labyrinth (2006). Dark Fantasy (Spain/Mexico). In Franco's Spain, a ten year old girl enters a labyrinth leading to the underworld. Dir. Guillermo del Toro. Starring Ivana Baquero. More Spanish Language Cinema: Los Olvidados, The Exterminating Angel, The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, Like Water for Chocolate, Y Tu Mama Tambien, Volver, Roma.