Finland

  • Mika Kaurismäki – Helsinki Napoli All Night Long (1987)

    1981-1990ComedyCrimeFinlandMika Kaurismäki

    Another good movie from the first period of Mika, with some funny moments and great cameos like Nino Manfredi, Samuel Fuller, Jim Jarmusch, Wim Wenders, Eddie Constantine.

    Quote:
    Alex (Kari Vaananen) is a Finnish cabbie working in Berlin with plenty of problems in this comedy with film noir touches. With two dead men and a suitcase filled with hundred dollar bills, he has difficulty disposing of the bodies. He is chased by the top crime boss (Samuel Fuller) and his crony (Eddie Constantine). Alex’s wife is allergic to the money, so the cabbie endures more than he can handle trying to rid himself of the cash and the corpses.Read More »

  • Veiko Õunpuu – Viimeiset (2020)

    2011-2020DocumentaryDramaFinlandVeiko Õunpuu

    Tradition versus industrialism.
    The world of The Last Ones is set in a small mining village, in the Lapland tundra, filled with tensions between local reindeer herders and miners.
    The struggling mine owner, nicknamed The Fisherman, supplies his workers with drugs so they’ll forget a tough existence. The nearby small community of reindeer breeders also struggles.
    This critique of capitalism unfolds against a Western like landscape, as the film raises questions about the use and worth of the Arctic lands. The story also tackles romantic conflicts and northern melancholy with a touch of dark humor.
    According to director Õunpuu, The Last Ones aims to depict an image of the current state of the world.Read More »

  • Juho Kuosmanen – Hytti nro 6 AKA Compartment No. 6 (2021) (HD)

    2021-2030DramaFinlandJuho Kuosmanen

    As a train weaves its way up to the arctic circle, two strangers share a journey that will change their perspective on life.Read More »

  • Markku Lehmuskallio – Korpinpolska AKA The Raven’s Dance (1980)

    1971-1980DramaFinlandMarkku Lehmuskallio

    Quote:
    With a keen sense of visual beauty, director Markku Lehmuskallio has created a thought-provoking, aesthetic film about a married couple and an old man living in a remote part of Finland. The young husband goes out hunting but only to support himself and his wife, not to kill off hordes of animals. He sets traps, and that gets him in trouble with the police who proceed to ticket him for using the devices. The forest cycles themselves are intimated when an old tree is shown falling to earth — perhaps a reflection on the old man’s passing years. In contrast to these few people living off the land and basically keeping the ecological balance intact, a highway construction crew is shown at work felling trees. Soon the antagonism grows between encroaching civilization and the quiet life of the young couple and elderly man.Read More »

  • Petri Kotwica – Musta jää AKA Black Ice (2007)

    2001-2010DramaFinlandPetri KotwicaQueer Cinema(s)

    Musta jää (Black Ice) has won the Jussi for Best Film of 2007. The film directed and written by Petri Kotwica managed to collect six of the 15 ‘Finnish Oscars’. The prestigious awards were presented in Helsinki during the traditional annual Jussi gala on Sunday night.Read More »

  • Juuso Laatio & Jukka Vidgren – Hevi reissu AKA Heavy Trip (2018)

    2011-2020ComedyFinlandJukka VidgrenJuuso LaatioMusical

    Quote:
    Turo is stuck in a small village and the best thing in his life is being the lead vocalist for the amateur metal band Impaled Rektum. He and his bandmates have practiced for 12 years without playing a single gig. The guys get a surprise visitor from Norway — the promoter for a huge heavy metal music festival — and decide it’s now or never. They steal a van, a corpse, and even a new drummer to make their dreams a reality.Read More »

  • J.-P. Valkeapää – Koirat eivät käytä housuja AKA Dogs Don’t Wear Pants (2019)

    2011-2020DramaFinlandJ.-P. Valkeapää

    Quote:
    The story follows Juha – a successful neurosurgeon – who develops an unexpected but powerful connection with a dominatrix named Mona, following a tragic event in his life that has left him emotionally paralyzed. His dangerous addiction to suffocation is reciprocated by Mona leading them both down a wild and crazy path towards emotional enlightenment. Dogs Don’t Wear Pants is a darkly humorous story of loss, love and the sweet pain of being.Read More »

  • Maija Blåfield – The Fantastic (2020)

    2011-2020DocumentaryFinlandMaija BlåfieldShort Film

    North Korean exiles reminisce their first impressions of watching forbidden foreign films.Read More »

  • Matti Ijäs – Räpsy & Dolly eli Pariisi odottaa AKA Dolly and Her Lover (1990)

    1981-1990ComedyFinlandMatti Ijäs

    Quote:
    Directed by Matti Ijäs and written with Arto Meller, Räpsy & Dolly aka Paris Waits (1990) is a tragicomic love story of a petty criminal and a former cabaret dancer. Detective Karisto (Kari Väänänen) releases Auno “Räpsy” Pirilä (Matti Pellonpää) from prison, who in turn has to calve his childhood friend Börje (Pertti Sveholm) from criminal activities. Alcoholic Dolly (Raija Paalanen) takes Räpsy to live in Kallio, Helsinki, and hopes to move to Paris with her in the spring.Read More »

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