Coming out of Fantastic Fest this year, one of my biggest surprises was how much I enjoyed a film I had heard very little about called Elite Squad 2: The Enemy Within.  The fact that it was a sequel had me weary. Why would I drop in the middle of a story?  But then the buzz picked up, and I heard multiple people recommend it without the pretense of seeing the first film.  Luckily enough, director Jose Padilha‘s political thriller gives you enough of a foothold to not feel lost while also providing a living, breathing world filled with corruption and violence.  So when I had the chance to speak with the director I had to accept. After the break you can read the complete transcript as we talk about the hype surrounding the film now, the disparity between the first film’s ticket sales and the second, the extreme measures they took to protect the film, how he struck a balance between a message and entertainment, and whether Elite Squad 3 is a possibility.

The domestic trailer for Elite Squad: The Enemy Within is now online.  The movie premiered in Brazil last October and became the nation’s highest-grossing film of all time.  Director José Padilha has been touring the festival circuit with the Elite Squad sequel throughout the year to a positive reception (check out our Fantastic Fest review here), which led him to a plum gig directing the Robocop remake.  And as of this writing, The Enemy Within is rated #242 on the IMDB Top 250.  With those expectations set before it, Elite Squad 2 will finally get a theatrical release in the U.S. on November 11.

Wagner Moura, Irandhir Santos, André Ramiro, Maria Ribero, and Seu Jorge star in the thriller about a police captain who takes on the gangs of Rio de Janeiro and corrupt politicians: “Although his methods are violent, he’s very good at his job.”  Watch the spastic (yet well-cut) trailer after the jump.

As you may or may not know, every country is only allowed to submit one movie for consideration.  It’s a little weak that a country can have multiple Oscar-worthy films but can only submit one and I think it would be better if each country could submit three to five films (unlimited submissions would be unfeasible).  The full list of eligible contenders for this year’s Best Foreign-Language Film Oscar has been announced and it features some notable submissions that have already picked up some buzz.  Brazil submitted its highest-grossing film of all-time, The Elite Squad: The Enemy Within, directed by RoboCop reboot helmer Jose Padilha.  Mexico has chosen the acclaimed crime thriller Miss Bala as its submission, Germany put forward Wim Wenders’ snooze-fest Pina, and China has selected Zhang Yimou’s historical drama The Flowers of War starring Christian Bale

Hit the jump for the full list.  Only five of the films will receive nominations for Best Foreign-Language Film.  Oscar nominations will be announced on January 24, 2012, and the winners will be announced at the 84th Academy Awards on February 26, 2012.

So, by this point, you’ve probably heard a thing or two about Jose Padilha’s Elite Squad: The Enemy Within (formerly Elite Squad 2: The Enemy Within).  I’d heard about the film all the way back during Sundance, when a friend of mine raved about the film endlessly for weeks after seeing it.  Since then, I’ve heard through the grapevine that Padilha’s film was one of the best action films ever made (no, really), and so I knew—the moment I saw the film on the Fantastic Fest schedule—that I’d have to make an effort to see the flick.  Did it live up to the hype?  Find out after the jump, folks.

Yesterday, we reported the films playing in-competition at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival.  Today, Sundance has announced the films playing in the out-of-competition lineups for “NEXT(<=>)”, Spotlight, Native Showcase, and Park City at Midnight.  Among the films playing are Hobo with a Shotgun, the critically-acclaimed Submarine, Lucky McKee’s new horror film The Woman, and Meek’s Cutoff starring Michelle Williams and Paul Dano. Each lineup has its own mission statement that relates to the films selected.  The festival will also be showing Richard Linklater’s Slacker at part of its “From the Collection” lineup.

Hit the jump to check out the new films announced.  The 2011 Sundance Film Festival runs from January 20 – 30th.