You have decided to watch movies beyond Hindi, your regional language and Hollywood. You ask your parents, friends, relatives, movie buffs on social media for suggestions. Boom… lands a list so big that your brain asks for a break from it all. You go back to your TV stuff.

C’mon, don’t let that be you. Life’s like that. It offers you choices galore, and asks you to be the responsible one. To pick the right book, get the right movie DVD, choose the right answer… but we aren’t getting philosophical over here. At least, not today. Today, we will simplify life by choosing five films that opens up a new world and lets you see life in a much larger frame. The stories are simple. The actors, intense and dazzling. The emotions are so close to your heart that you may think that the story could have been written by you. That’s the power of good films. It makes you feel like you are one of the characters of the film you are watching. Coming back to the list, in no particular order, here’s why these movies are good choices for you as a beginner…    

Life is Beautiful (1997)

Director: Roberto Beningni

Country: Italy
Why you should watch this film: Do you believe in stories? The power of storytelling? The days when you were young and your grandparents made up the most unbelievable of stories that took you to another world, and you forgot about that bruise on your knee or that scolding from mom? Life was good again. If it wasn’t, you knew it would be when tomorrow comes. You should watch this film to see how far a father would go to let his child, in a concentration camp, believe that life, indeed, is beautiful when there are good stories to be told, with love. 

The 400 Blows (1959)

Director: François Truffaut

Country: France

Why you should watch this film: A semi-autobiography of one of the greatest directors the world has ever seen, this black and white gem takes you on life’s journey along with its protagonist 12-year-old Antoine Doinel. Have you ever felt no one truly understands you? That you mean well, but end up doing the wrong things? That be it your belligerence or silliness, they are all masks to protect you from feeling the pain within? Truffaut’s masterpiece will never leave you once you’ve watched it. Whoever you are, whatever your background, wherever you stay, you’ll feel a bit of Antoine living deep within you. Concentrate on the cinematography, the camera frames and the silences.    

The Intouchables (2011)

Director: Olivier Nakache, Eric Toledano

Country: France

Why you should watch this film: Simply put, to laugh. If you’ve had people tell you that foreign films are ‘intellectual stuff’ that you can’t enjoy, then go for this one. Pronto. Inspired from a true story, this delightful tale of a caretaker from the different side of the fence taking care of a rich, aristocrat quadriplegic, will take you through a roller-coaster ride that makes you wish this movie doesn’t end.

Cinema Paradiso (1988)

Director: Giuseppe Tornatore

Country: Italy

Why you should watch this film: This one is one of the best movies about cinema, and the love of cinema. In the age of multiplxes, Netfilx and TV shows that on gets to see on a daily basis, the Italian gem takes you back to the days when the magic of movies rested in the hands of the cinema hall owner and one magician with a projector. Well, not literally a magician, but close to one because of the kinds of world he could open for you. A tear-jerker, this masterpiece by Tornatore can make even the steeliest heart break down.

Children of Heaven (1997)

Director: Majid Majidi

Country: Iran

Why you should watch this film: You just should. I could give you all the reasons in this world but nothing would be enough to tell you about the sheer force of emotions that will jolt you out of your mundane life, and make you thank your lucky stars for all that you’ve received in this life. This is one of those films that’s so good you want to watch it again and again but the thought of raw emotions that overwhelm you keeps you from taking that particular DVD out. But once in a while, you still do. Because there’s a lot of things you can run from in this world, Majidi’s magic isn’t one of them.