BooksandMovies World Tour

I just came across this challenge and find this a very intriguing challenge that I am going to try. I have decided to include other forms of literature besides books and include movies and TV shows. Because of the sheer volume of the challenge, I have decided to include items I have read or viewed in the last few years. At present I am basing country from based on where published. In cases of movies or TV shows I am basing on where IMDb considers country of origin.

I have also decided that not only should it be created in a particular country but also take place in that country. So I get a flavor of that counrty.

For now skipping the following countries, until I have viewed first hand content from.
Afghanistan
Albania
Algeria
Andorra
Angola

Antigua and Barbuda
* The Benjamin Sisters@thebenjaminsisters8881‧

Argentina
* Muñeca Brava
* Rebelde Way

Armenia skipping for now

Australia
* Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries --- TV show based off a book series. Centers around Miss Fisher whom lives in Melbourne, Australia during the 1920s. Prior to the storyline she grew up poor, served as a nurse during World War I, and then inherits money. During the first episode due to circumstances she decides to become a private detective, which is very rare for a woman at this time. Because of her past she lives for the day and pushes societal standards of the time through her dress and actions. Through these actions and reactions from characters do you see what what is deemed as "appropriate" at the time. Lots of twists and turns to the mysteries, great outfits, witty banter, and music of the time keeps viewers interested enough to have a spin off movie a few years after the show concluded.

* Ladies in Black --- Movie about a group of ladies that work in a department store in Sydney during the late 1950s. With each of these ladies it shows them at work and in their personal lives. In some respects it reflects the societal expectations regarding dress of the time through their floral cheerful tea -length dresses and Bermuda shorts that they wear outside of work to the black fitted black dresses they wore at work. However the story quickly shifts to each of their life obstacles many of which are timeless. Although, this movie is a celebration of women it is not at the expense of the guy characters. Yes there is miscommunication and misunderstanding, but most of the guy characters want to see the women in their lives genuinely happy in the end.

* Muriel’s Wedding --- Movie that centers around main character of Muriel Heslop during the 1990s who dreams of escaping her town and family that makes her feel insignificant and ultimately getting married. In her case and the some of her friends case they are so set on having the perfect dress and wedding that they don't consider the guys they choose and married life afterwards. Along they way there is some unexpected twists to Muriel's journey and personal growth.

* The Living Room ---- Lifestyle TV show that is from Australia that discusses a variety of topics including pets, renovations, gadgets, cooking, and etc. Through its calm witty dialog back and forth and their topics do you see how modern Australians strive to be. Through their format it is undstandable why it has been successful through its over 10 seasons, various Australian nominations, and its syndication outside of Australia.

* The Newsreader --- TV show that centers around TV journalists during the 1980s. Many of the news stories being reported on were real events and you get a feel about how Australian society during that time must have followed which types of stories more. Through the characters and storyline do you see each of the characters driven to further their careers while being weighed down by the different obstacles that each of them faced and how society at that time must have viewed these obstacles. These obstacles ranged from the older established night anchor whom felt like his previous accomplishments were not appreciated and he was being driven out, to the lady anchor whom felt like she always has to prove herself but not to be too aggressive and be still viewed as feminine, to the young character whose personal dating preference he decides to hide because of current society norms and in the process accidentaly hurts friends around, to the young lady who is trying to find her balance between being Australian and her heritage, to the sports anchor that jokes around to try to ease the underlining tension and whom secretly wants to be taken more seriously. Through its developed characters its understandable why this is a hit show in Australia. For me however the intensity of these characters is not a relaxing show to unwind to and makes this a show that I just watch occasionally when I want a high intensity drama.

* Love in Bloom --- Movie that centers around a brides maid (sister of the bride) and best man (best friend) that is roped into planning the wedding of their loved ones. With it being planned in a smaller Australian area and it being a smaller wedding, you get to see more of the characters as well as Australian culture in everyday life. Although very predictable storyline, the overall sweetness of the story makes it a good movie to watch.

The Dressmaker --- Movie that takes place in rural

* The Doctor Blake Mysteries

* A Place to Call Home

Promised

Honorable mentions --- The following although was fimed in Australia did not show Australian culture, but was still good.
* A Royal in Paradise
* One perfect match

Austria
* Sissi
* Plachutta: Classics of Viennese Cuisine
* Neujahrskonzert der Wiener Philharmoniker

Looking at list of current United Nations. Have not read or viewed any content from the below listed nations and skipping these nations for now and will come back later to them.

Azerbaijan
Bahamas
Bahrain
Bangladesh
Barbados
Belarus
Belgium
Belize
Benin
Bhutan
Bolivia
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Botswana
Brazil
Brunei
Bulgaria
Burkina Faso
Burundi
Cambodia
Cameroon

Canada
* Red Green Show --- is a comedy TV show that is a mixture of sitcom and sketch. This show centered around a group of members of the fictional mens lodge referred to as Possum Lodge. The comedy centers from their communication between each other and their rough looking do it your self projects. Through out the show they are subtly making fun of themselves and each other and often times questioning how their wives can put up with them. The viewer gets various perspectives about how outdoorsy Canadian guys like to view themselves and how they view each other. Due to how it was written the viewer can easily skip around and not worry about missing episodes. Also rarely does it get political so this is a late night show that young teens could watch with their family. With their successful comedic delivery this show had a long run of 15 seasons in Canada and reruns contine to run in syndication outside of Canada as well.

* Murdock Mysteries -- is a drama detective show based on the Detective Murdoch book series that takes place in Canada during the late 1800s to early 1900s. Through its show you see Toronto (where it is set) and Canada as a whole change with the constant technological, mechanical, and societal changes. You see various Canadian perspectives about Canadian society and I assume part of these perspectives still exist. Furthermore you see that although times and clothing change, human nature as a whole does not change. Through its captivating mysteries and interesting characters this show continues to be a long running show with over 17 seasons so far.

* Design Inc. --- is a design show that follows Sarah Richardson and her design team as they work on redesigning various types of rooms for clients of Sarah's business in Canada. Through this show various decorating ideas can be optained especially in color and proportional balance. Whatever your budget or decorating style the viewer can borrow tips from this show. From a Canadian cultural perspective the viewer sees many of the same type of scenario seen in many metropolitan cities with more choices, however the cost of real-estate drives prices on everything higher.

* Glen and Friends Cooking --- is a YouTube channel hosted by a Canadian couple whom records their recipe trials. This couple has many different series on their channel. One unique series is their series featuring historic cookbooks that they try making from Canada and the United States. Through their show you get a feel for unique Canadian recipes and recipes that are shared between Canada and the United States. Even if you are not interested in cooking, this is interesting to watch from a stictly societal historic perspective.

* Anne of Green Gables series directed by Kevin Sullivan including Anne of Green Gables, Anne Of Green Gables - The Sequel, and Anne of Green Gables: The Continuing Story these movies are based on the most beloved Canadian Anne of Green Gables book series. Through Anne's journey you see her journey from orphane, to beloved ornery adopted daughter. You also her being driven by her romantic dreams but her fierce determination to achieve as much as for a female living during her time. Through her story you see how orphanes must have typically been viewed by many during that time as well as how Canadian village life during that time. You also see that although her adopted family had high standards they also supported and unconditionally loved each other when mistakes were made. Although this book series has been adapted into movies various times, this version resonates with many fans even with the disputes over deviationm on the 2nd and 3rd movies from the books.

* Rookie Blue --- is a drama police show that is set in present day Toronto, Canada. This show centered around several rookie cops as they encountered various situations on the job and also showed the interactions between the cops. Through this show was so much along the lines of crime shows and drama shows when it aired. Numerous people including myself thought it like a Grey's Anatomy, but maybe not quiete as dramatic sometimes. (More to write)

* Bomb Girls

* When Calls the Heart

* Endgame

*Wildcards

* King

* Carter

Skipping several countries I have not viewed or read content from those regions.
Cape Verde
Central African Republic
Chad
Chile
China
Colombia
Comoros
Congo, Democratic Republic of the
Congo, Republic of the
Costa Rica
Croatia
Cuba
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Djibouti
Dominica
Dominican Republic
East Timor
Ecuador
Egypt
El Salvador
Equatorial Guinea
Eritrea
Estonia
Eswatini
Ethiopia
Fiji
Finland

France
* Amelie
* Heartbreaker L'arnacoeur
* Priceless Hors de prix
* Je ne suis pas un homme facile
* Le retour du héros. Return of the Hero
* Love is in the Air (aka Amour et turbulences)

Skipping for now
Gabon
Gambia
Georgia

Germany
* Doctor's Diary
* Rabit without Ears
* Hedi (a kids translation in English)
* Metamorphosis

India
* Action Replayy
* Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge
* Hum Tum
* Ragas Hameer & Gara

Italy
* The Space Between
* Cenerentola
* Italian recipe book blog

Jamaica
*A YouNique Journey blog

Japan
* Howls Moving Castle
* Journey's to Japan
* The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering…
* Mischievous Kiss: Love in Tokyo
* Switch Girl

I haven't wanted to interrupt your setup, and I can delete this message if you like, but I didn't want you to think no one was following. I love how you are customizing this challenge to include books and movies. I'm enjoying reading your lists and hope you share some thoughts on the movies in particular as I watch very few and would be interested. Welcome to the Challenge!

>8 labfs39: Thank you so much labfs39 for welcoming me to the challenge!

I was debating back and forth whether to include movies and TV shows to my challenge. However, I decided since often times this provides firsthand insight into a country's culture to include these as well. Also as has been the case with books from around the world being more accessible, TV shows and movies from around the world are also more accessible through streaming services (some of which are free ad driven services).

I will definitely start to write some thoughts on what I list, since I know there is a least one person viewing my posting. ;)

Thanks again for the welcome.

>9 BooksandMovies: I agree. I became interested in Korean culture and literature through my daughter's interest in Kpop. I have now watched many Korean dramas and movies, as well as some from China and Japan. I'm still reading from these countries as well, but I love learning about the language, manners, gestures, etc. and it seems easier for me to pick up when watching a movie. I've even started learning some Korean! So, long story short, I too like the coupling of both forms of media for learning about other places.

Do you have another thread on LT, or is this the best place to follow you?

Welcome from me too!

>10 labfs39: Yeah I got in a kick a while back with the Korean shows, so I totally understand about that. Currently this is the only thread I have and occasionally comment on other threads on LT.

>11 Jackie_K: Thanks Jackie_K

Norway
Tre nøtter til Askepott

Another follower! I'm doing a purely book based tour, but am fascinated by your approach, and am hoping for some good leads for world cinema, an area I enjoy but know little about. I'll be especially interested in what you come up with for the Pacific island nations, a group which I've found particularly difficult to resource!

>15 Willoyd: Thanks Willoyd for following. Agreed I it is harder to find cinema from the Pacific island nations or even to stumble across.
Taiwan which some consider an independent nation and some consider part of China has some interesting shows I have watched in the past. Not really ground breaking shows but does give some insite into work, family, and gender dynamics. It did not really go into political viewpoints. It has been about 10 years since I have seen these shows so I am going to have to skim over to remember my impressions of the shows. I came across many of these Taiwan shows and other Asian on Viki.com. Many of the shows that have been out for a while are other streaming services now, but unfortunately these services don't usually specify the specific country is from.

>16 BooksandMovies: I subscribed to Viki once I realized that many of the other streaming services are bootleg, something that was not always readily apparent to me. I've been interested in following Netlix's relationship with Asian dramas and movies. They have gone from being solely a distributer to investing in creation. AppleTV is following suit.

>17 labfs39: You do have to be careful. (For me so far I have watched many of the Asian shows through Viki, Netflix, Tubi, etc..) Yeah I'll be curious about the original content on Netflix and Amazon. I also think that Roku is steadily distributing more International shows. I think in a few years they will also be in the game of creating more original content.

I did make some observations I did while summarizing the Australian cinema I viewed (and trying to recall all that I saw). There is a lot of Australia actors, actresses that act in the American film industry that are very good and many of them ocassionaly have parts in Australian cinema. So between these blockbuster actors and actresses and the many other trained there is a high acting and story development standard, so the cinema and TV shows are usually enjoyable to watch. Surprisingly however, I have seen very few Australian cinema or TV shows overall. When I looked up a list on IMDB of cinema and TV shows from Australia I did not recognize many. Not sure if this was because film studios in Australia do not have connections in the USA or thought it would not have success here so do not release. The few things I did see were things that I had seen advertisements and were types of movies or shows that would be well received by at least a small demographic. I am hoping with streaming that more Australian becomes available.

Adding a few items in my above list under Canada. There are some great mystery shows in recent years.

I have not written the full description. (After writing 50 plus emails a day to support my other primary functions of my job, my mental bandwidth is limited by the end of the day. :) )