Movies

Mother of Mine (2005)

Finland's entry for Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award 2006, Mother of Mine tells the story of the forced evacuation of 70,000 Finnish children to Sweden, Denmark, and Norway during WWII. Director Klaus Haro focuses on nine-year-old Eero, who struggles to adapt after he is sent to live with a family in Sweden when his father is killed in the war. Watch this movie for its quiet emotion, acclaimed musical score, and commemoration of one of the most overlooked aspects of WWII.

The Man Without a Past (1978)

This Oscar-nominated foreign film follows the life of M, a man who suffers from amnesia after being attacked in a park in Helsinki. Viewers will get an inside look at Finnish culture as M slowly builds a new life in the lower-class outskirts of Helsinki and falls in love with a Salvation Army worker. Finnish pop music adds sparkle to this quiet, thoughtful film.

Leningrad Cowboys Go America (1989)

Follow nine members of a Finnish rock band as they go to America for fame and fortune. The Leningrad Cowboys drive their Cadillac from New York City to Mexico, playing rock, blues, country, salsa, and mariachi in seedy joints along the way. Watch this offbeat flick for its dry humor, fun music, insight into Finnish culture, and critique of American society.

Ariel (1988)

Life is drab and depressing for Finnish coal miner Taisto Kasurinen, who gets laid off, loses his friend to suicide, gets robbed, is framed for a crime he didn't commit, and throughout it all, trudges through life with mute resignation. Director Aki Kaurismaki's film has all the Finnish staples: deadpan humor, gloom, restraint, irony, long stretches of silence, and a silver lining of hope, set against a snowy Finnish landscape.