I have always loved ‘foreign’ movies, but I have been drawn to them more of late, probably due to my wanderlust. I haven’t traveled in a while, obviously, so glimpses of life abroad fascinate me.

‘Lynn + Lucy’ is set in working class England and is about a pair of friends, Lynn and Lucy. At the start this seems to be a story about friendship, but it is a lot more than that. It is a drama with a social commentary. Fyzal Boulifa wrote and directed this film based on a news report she saw about a young mother who found herself turned by her community after she loses her young child. The same happens to  Lucy (Nichola Burley) here, and the turning makes Lynn (Roxanne Scrimshaw) examine her loyalties. Both actresses are great here, as they portray women who are trapped between life circumstances, their friendship, and societal pressure. The story was absorbing and even had elements of surprise. My only complaint is that some of the accents were very hard to decipher at times. Still, this was a very fulfilling watch.

From Harlow, England, I was off to Berlin for ‘Before We Grow Old.’ (Heute Oder Morgen) This film is about a summer in Berlin. I have read some reviews that sat that watching the film is akin to spending a summer in this German city, and I scratch my head because this film is about a threesome. I guess it speaks of the city’s wild and carefree spirit. A young couple meets a British doctorate student and they become involved with each other, and we see what happens to their relationship once feelings gets involved with the said third party. I liked the film a lot, as it is very raw in. a lot of ways – we see how jealousy and possessiveness rear its ugly head – and how this affects an otherwise steady union.