Vagabond
After reading the David Laderman chapter he talks about how road films in the U.S. are different from films in Europe. I've always enjoyed foreign films more than American film, but was never sure why. Upon reading his words I recognized that we do indeed have different perspectives. These differing perspectives create better/worse films. Of course this is only my opinion.
Mona was a woman who wanted a different life, so she went out on the road. She was happy with the way she lived even though she didn't have much. The men around her saw her many times as vulnerable ad rarely took advantage of her. In American cinema, I feel there would have been many more sexual advances toward her. This film took a look at the vagabond lifestyle and how she had to survive. It was a narrative of her life, and not much more. Some subtle hints were intertwined to let us know, even though we already did, that she was going to die in the end. One example of this was " when they die, think of me", she said this when referring to the sick trees.
Personally, I enjoy European/foreign cinema more because of the narrative, the way it is artfully put together and the different viewpoints. American Indie films also have the same feel to them.