Why can't they make more films like this? I don't think I've seen a more endearing, funny, tragic and hopeful film all year. Kaurismäki doesn't make fast-moving films (now that's an understatement) but while this film could have been unendurably boring, it's not because he suffuses it with love and caring. We completely feel for the main character who's lost his memory, and for the woman he falls in love with. We follow his path toward his re-birth with joy and hope. Along the way, we encounter characters that are side-splittingly funny and at the same time completely believable. The style of his filmmaking may put some people off -- it is very deadpan and may seem to some to be forced. I find it the perfect vehicle for the film's tragic humor. If you like this film, you'll very much enjoy his earlier film, Ariel, about a guy and a convertible. Really.
original title: Mies Vailla Menneisyyttä
year: 2002
length: 97 min.
rating: 3.5
IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0311519/combined
Friday, May 30, 2003
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