Last night I finished watching all 5 films I ordered from Finland by director Aki Kaurismäki.
The blu-rays (Finnish imports) I watched were:
Tuesday night:
Calamari Union (1985)
Wednesday night:
I Hired a Contract Killer (1990)
Thursday night:
Drifting Clouds (1996)
Sunday night:
The Man without a Past (2002)
Monday night:
Lights in the Dusk (2006)
Of the 5 films, my favorite by far was
The Man Without a Past (it's an amazing film full of strong characters). The worst one of the bunch in my opinion was
Lights in the Dusk (the story was weak and characters were not engaging). I particularly enjoyed
I Hired a Contract Killer too though, and it was one of his rare English speaking films (shot in England).
Drifting Clouds was a strong film as well and Kati Outinen, one of Kaurismäki's longtime actresses, was wonderful. Finally,
Calamari Union was an early version of
The Leningrad Cowboys films depicting a dozen or so "hipster/rocker" types all named "Frank" as they went on a mission to find a magical town on the other side of the city.
I've noticed that Aki Kaurismäki's earlier films have more comedy and deadpan humor than his later films, that are more serious and somber. I sort of prefer his earlier movies because of their wonkiness and humor but there is a sense of maturity that comes with his later films too, especially for movies like
The Man Without a Past and
Le Havre.
Matti Pellonpää was also one of Kaurismäki's favorite actors before he died in 1995 at the young age of 44. I feel Kaurismäki might have shifted towards more serious stuff after his death as Kaurismäki's output of work diminished dramatically (he only made 4 more films after
Drifting Clouds, a film Pellonpää was supposed to star in). It's a bit depressing how Kaurismäki stopped making films so frequently after the mid 90s.
One thing I've noticed in watching a lot of Aki Kaurismäki's films over the last month or so (before these 5 films I recently watched
La vie de Bohème and the
Proletariat Trilogy of
Shadows in Paradise,
Ariel and
The Match Factory Girl) as well as
Le Havre and the 3 films of
The Leningrad Cowboys trilogy), is that there are several things you'd expect to see in a Kaurismäki film.
Those things are:
1. Guys getting beaten up
2. Dogs
3. Rock bands (or long directorial takes of orchestras/musicians/singers)
4. People being wrongly accused of something
5. Romance that turns tragic or is unfulfilled
6. Cigarettes
7. Loneliness, homelessness and being unemployed
Did I miss anything here?
I still prefer the
Proletariat Trilogy (seen below in the three films) over the
Leningrad Cowboys Trilogy, but I like the "
Finland Trilogy" (of unemployment, homelessness and loneliness) as well.
As of today, the only Kaurismäki feature films I've yet to see are 1999's
Juha (I avoided this due to poor reviews) and 2 other early films (1983's
Crime and Punishment and 1987's
Hamlet Goes Business).
A year ago, I had never seen a single film by this fine director and boy, did I miss out in my life. I realize that I've found a filmmaker who I've resonated with, who provides the type of humor I appreciate and humanism I relish. Kaurismäki's films are morality plays and they are the finest depictions of working class life I've seen from any director. Kaurismäki knows these characters he writes, because he probably is or was one of them himself. His stories are about downtrodden folks, people who have been forgotten about or have been passed over because they don't "fit into" society. His films are character studies as well as stories, taking place on the fringes of urban life as we know it. Yes, they are European in nature, and not very American, but any person can somehow identify with these universal themes of love lost, unjustified tragedy, unforeseen adventure and forgotten people. His films have good intentions and are lessons on the human condition. These aren't epics or blockbusters or have the sweeping grandeur of a Malick movie, but these films on ordinary stories about ordinary people with ordinary lives are relatable, realistic and reverent. I am reminded by Korean filmmaker Lee Chang Dong (
Secret Sunshine) who tends to make films about "ordinariness".
Kaurismäki is one of the best things about the Criterion Collection and I'd love to see even more of his films come to it.
Jim Jarmusch, a fellow friend of his, competed with Kaurismäki's films. They both are and were allies and challengers of one another. They influenced one another. For those of you who don't know, just watch movies by both of these fine filmmakers and you will see the similarities. I will end this posting with a quote from Jarmusch from a 1999 interview with The Guardian, about his love for Aki Kaurismäki.
"He's one of my favourite film-makers. I love his films, I love the simplicity of them, I love the dry sense of humour of them, I love the bleakness. Here is a film-maker who uses limitations as a strength, and that's something I've tried to learn to do myself. I get very moved by Kaurismaki's films.
There's a scene in one, Ariel, where the guy meets a girl and they're in bed together having a cigarette after making love and she says, "Does that mean you will love me forever and ever?" and he says, "Yes." (Laughter)"
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