I second [bold]The Daytrippers[/bold] (I love these kinds of dysfunctional families) and [bold]The Station Agent[/bold] (also quirky loners like these). You might also like:
[bold]Unhook the Stars[/bold] - Gena Rowlands as an older woman at a loss when her kids move out and she has no one to care for like she's used to all her life, so she becomes involved in the troubled life of a younger neighbour among others. Marisa Tomei is good in this.
[bold]Italian for Beginners[/bold] - Charming Danish film about the lives of a group attending the same Italian language class.
In the same spirit, small, charming and funny, [bold]Waking Ned Devine[/bold]. Film about the inhabitants of a remote Irish village who win the lottery.
[bold]The Best of Youth[/bold] - With the turbulent backdrop of Italian history the 60's to the present, this epic revolves around two brothers and the radically different paths their lives take following a single incident. It does flirt with cheesy at some points but, overall, a major triumph. Almost 8 hours of your life, but well spent.
Spanish films [bold]Bad Education[/bold] and [bold]Talk to Her[/bold] - Viva Pedro Almadovar. Enough said.
[bold]La Haine[/bold] - Gritty French film from the nineties predating the riots from a few years ago.
Again, [bold]The Celebration[/bold], - This Danish film about a family reunion that turns ugly manages to tackle a serious subject yet remain strangely funny. One of my favourite films ever.
Is [bold]High Fidelity[/bold] with John Cussack and Jack Black(I know) a "hidden gem"? - I so identified with Cussack's character and liked it better than [bold]About a Boy[/bold] also adapted from a Nick Hornby book.
[bold]Depatures[/bold] - Japanese film about a man who is forced to return to his small home town and unexpectedly gets into the business of preparing dead bodies for funerals.
[bold]Crazy in Love[/bold] - Documentary about the really strange and scary love story of an elderly New York jewish couple (people really are weird).
I've mentioned [bold]Capturing the Friedmans[/bold] - which really isn't that "hidden" but, for me, the best documentary of it's kind.
[bold]The Class[/bold] - French gem set in a school in one of Paris' rougher districts.
Two French masterpieces: [bold]The Piano Teacher[/bold] and [bold]The School of Flesh[/bold] - Isabelle Hupert, not Meryl Streep, is truly the greatest actress of our time.
[bold]Mysterious Skin[/bold] - Greg Araki's only palatable film, if you ask me. And what a masterpiece it is. Difficult subject handled expertly. Joseph Gordon-Levitt didn't get the accolades he deserves.
and finally,
"The Son's Room" - Touching Italian gem about a Genovese upper middle class family and how they deal with the loss of their son.
These, I saw within the last year and I could go on and on, but have to accept we all have varied tastes and people might even think these are crap. But I really liked them. and honestly think they should more like these.
And thanks for the suggestions, I'm hearing very good things about [bold]The Maid[/bold] and [bold]Weekend[/bold] and can't wait to see them.