By Brendan Zimmerman

Foreign films and documentaries are not the most popular of genres, yet they can often be the most profound. They lie just outside of the mainstream in American cinema, but they are genres rich with creativity, inspiration, and emotional stories of the human experience. 

Most people are not normally exposed to these types of films. But fortunately, the Fiske Public Library in Wrentham offers a monthly movie program that focuses on both foreign films and documentaries. Run by the Chair of the Fiske Library Trustees, Maureen Osolnik, the library’s film program shows one foreign film and one documentary a month for any interested residents in the community. 

The program has been running for around ten years according to Osolnik, and it all began with a showing of the classic Italian film, “The Bicycle Thief.” Though that film in particular is a heavy, dramatic film, the program aims to show a wide range of stories from those that are uplifting and lighthearted to dramatic and emotional. 

And, in order to keep things a little more interesting and relevant, the program shows movies recently released as well as classic films that are decades old. There usually isn’t any group discussion regarding the film before or after the showing. Instead, it is meant to be just a viewing of the movie and a chance to see films that one would not normally encounter. For residents interested in attending a viewing, there are no virtual viewing options as they take place in person at the Fiske Public Library. 

At press time, the films lined up for December included “Xmas Without China,” a documentary about one family that tries to have Christmas without any Chinese-made products, and another family that struggles with what it means to be Chinese-American. The other film was “Rabbit-Proof Fence,” a foreign film from Australia that follows three half-white, half-Aboriginal children in the 1930s that are taken from their families and sent to training camps in order to be reeducated and assimilated into white society. They promptly escape and try to find their way back home by following fencing that keeps rabbits out of settlements. 

The next foreign film showing will be on January 26 at 7 p.m., while the next documentary showing will be on January 18, also at 7 p.m. Both films have yet to be decided at the time of the writing of this article.