Aaltoska orkaniseeraa

Edvin Laine: Aaltoska orkaniseeraa (FI 1949). Aaltoska (Elna Hellman) rejects an applicant (Ida Salmi) to the tenement house. Squatting: Irmeli Lehtinen (Pikku-Annika). Photo: Elonet: Aaltoska orkaniseeraa.

Edvin Laine: Aaltoska orkaniseeraa (FI 1949). In the center: Aaltoska (Elna Hellman), the janitor Aaltonen (Kalle Viherpuu) and the crime reporter "Hawkeye" Lipponen (Hannes Häyrinen). Location: the courtyard of Vaasankatu 14, Harju, Alppiharju, 12th arrondissement of Helsinki. Photo: Elonet: Aaltoska orkaniseeraa.

Edvin Laine: Aaltoska orkaniseeraa (FI 1949). The cast and crew celebrating the end of the shoot at the villa of Edvin Laine at Box, Sipoo. Seated l to r: Jarna Laine, unidentified little girl, Arvo Lehesmaa, Sirkka Kaski, Kalle Viherpuu, Hannes Häyrinen, William Reunanen, Matti Kassila, Aino Mantsas, Heikki Aaltoila, unidentified woman, Elna Hellman, Veli-Matti Kaitala. Standing l to r: Edvin Laine, Mirjam Novero, Kaisu Heikkilä and Oskari Puukko (later Paunama). Photo: Elonet: Aaltoska orkaniseeraa.

Aaltoska i sitt ässe. FI 1949. PC: Suomen Filmiteollisuus. P: T. J. Särkkä. D: Edvin Laine. Assistant D: Matti Kassila. SC: Topias. DP: Osmo Harkimo. AD: Aarre Koivisto. M: Heikki Aaltoila. S: Taisto Lindegren. ED: Armas Vallasvuo. Starring: Elna Hellman (Aaltoska), Veli-Matti Kaitala (Jukka Lehtinen), Hannes Häyrinen (crime reporter Lipponen), Kalle Viherpuu (the janitor Aaltonen), Ritva-Leena (Kaarina Hillevi Mäenpää), Pikku-Annika (Irmeli Lehtinen). 70'. A brilliant safety print viewed at Orion, Helsinki, 31 Aug 2005. 

The producer Särkkä brought his both child stars, Veli-Matti and Little Annika, together in a run-of-the-mill film with surefire ingredients. There is even a theme song, which is sung by Mrs. Aaltonen before the credits and continued by Mr. Aaltonen in the end. The tyrannical janitor's wife reigns in the courtyard, the janitor hardly daring to emerge from the boiler room. It is the era of heavy regulation of rented apartments, and there is an obligation to make spare rooms available for tenants. It is also the era of lots of children and divided households. Veli-Matti is already a clerk at a gas station, and Little Annika gets to deal with the bureaucracy of the apartment regulation. They get lucky with two child tenants who come to school to Helsinki from Nurmijärvi. There is a zealous crime reporter (Hannes Häyrinen) on the trail of shady underground activity. In the end it is revealed that the underground gang is that of "black tenants" with no crime involved. The SF experts, the cinematographer Osmo Harkimo, the art director Aarre Koivisto, conjure expert imagery, and there are some exciting documentary views of contemporary life. But it's a trivial film.

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PS 24 March 2026. Key evidence to the great theme of matriarchy in Finnish culture and the figure of the harridan in Finnish cinema. – 12 years after the shoot I lived as a child on the nearby Neljäs linja and visited Kallion kansakoulu (the Kallio Elementary School). The ambience on the courtyard is recognizable to me.