´óÏó´«Ã½

In the run-up to the 2011 Academy Awards - the climactic moment in Hollywood's film-year - we've been asking cinema-experts around the world to argue the case for the contenders for Best Foreign Language film...

Dogtooth

A darkly funny but deeply sinister film about three children taught to fear and shun the world outside by their deceitful and controlling father. Movie critic Dimitris Danikas sees it as a serious social and political warning about the direction of western society.

Biutiful

Directed by the Mexican Alejandro Gonzàlez Iñárritu and set in Spain, 'Biutiful' stars Javier Bardem as a grifter called Uxbal, a man ducking and diving on the edges of Barcelona's underworld. The Spanish film curator Joana Granero Sanchez sings the praises of this Spanish language film.

Incendies (Fires)

Directed by the multi-award-winning Quebecois director Denis Villeneuve, the film is a tragedy - told in both French and Arabic - about a family from Montreal on a journey to uncover their roots in the Middle East. Canadian film critic Malcolm Fraser explains why it deserves to win.

In a Better World

Co-written and directed by Susanne Bier, this Danish film tells a story of multiple conflicts - including a love-drama and a culture-clash between Europe and Africa. Neils Frid champions Denmark's offering.

Hors La Loi (Outside The Law)

Hors La Loi is a controversial one... a post-World War II story about three Algerian brothers in 1945 who go on to become freedom fighters inside France. When it was premiered at the Cannes Film Festival last year - police in riot gear were deployed in case things got out of hand. Guy Austin told us why he'd like French-Algerian director Rachid Bouchareb to take the top prize.