Kuningas lähtee Ranskaan / The King Goes Forth to France

Kungen beger sig till Frankrike. FI 1986. PC: Reppufilmi. P+D: Anssi Mänttäri. ASS.D.: Pauli Pentti. SC: Paavo Haavikko, Anssi Mänttäri, Heikki Katajisto - based on the play (1974) and the radioplay (1975) by Haavikko. DP: Heikki Katajisto - b&w - 1,66:1. Gaffer: Aki Kaurismäki. AD+COST: Pertti Hilkamo, Tuula Hilkamo. M: Anssi Tikanmäki. Songs by Anssi Tikanmäki to the lyrics of Paavo Haavikko performed by Susanna Haavisto, Paavo Piskonen, Paavo Haavikko and the "singing soldiers". S: Timo Linnasalo. ED: Irma Taina. LOC: Hämeenlinna: the Sirola Institute, Aulanko, Laajasalo, Vantaanjoki Falls, Suomenlinna, the ruins of the Karjalohja Church, Yyteri, the Raasepori Fortress, Vantaanjoki by Königstedt. CAST: Paavo Piskonen (The King), Susanna Haavisto (Caroline The Merry One), Kati Outinen (Caroline The Mare's Hair), Riitta Havukainen (Anne The Stripper), Kylli Köngäs (Anne The Thief), Harri Nikkonen (The Prime Minister), Lasse Pöysti (The Equester), Kalevi Kahra (The Blind King of Bohemia), Matti Pellonpää (The Earless Man), Markku Toikka (The Young Knight), Heikki Paavilainen (The Young Prime Minister), Pertti Sveholm (The Soldier of the King of Bohemia), Heikki Ortamo (Froissart, The Secretary), Tupuna Vaissi (The Queen), Timo Toikka (The English Knight), Martti Syrjä (A Singing Soldier), Pantse Syrjä (A Singing Soldier), Saku Kuosmanen (A Singing Soldier). A vintage print viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 17 June 2009.

Paavo Piskonen was watching the film in the audience. - A brilliant black and white print. - Based on an absurd radioplay by Paavo Haavikko, which has also been adapted as an opera by Aulis Sallinen. - The equester of the Prince of England predicts that the Prince will cross the English Channel as a King on horseback by July. His spouse will be called Anne or Caroline. However, the Emperor of Japan has caused global freezing in the summer of 1945 by ordering a taxi. The Prime Minister warns against going to France, because this would mean war. According to the Prince this would be the only war which would start because there is no reason, and that is why it is unavoidable. The blind King of Bohemia is on his way to the battle of Crécy, but his troops are going around in circles. Finally, one of the soldiers executes the blind king. The Queen arrives and follows the troops to the South. By spring the King orders protection to eggs of cranes, because a wedge of cranes is his only compass. - Eccentric, ambitious, bewildering, boring, mad. - The stark cinematography is often impressive. - The actors play their crazy lines straight. - Reportedly, Paavo Haavikko approved.

Viimeiset rotannahat / [The Last Rat Skins] / Rare, Medium, Well Done

Viimeiset rotannahat. Impressio / De sista skinnena. FI (c) 1985 Filmiauer. P+D+SC: Anssi Mänttäri. DP: Heikki Katajisto - 1,66:1 - colour and b&w - lab: Johan Ankerstjerne. M: "Bad Morning Blues" (comp. Anssi Mänttäri, arr. Asko Mänttäri), "Uni tulee, uni tulee" (trad.) pres. A. Köster (voc) and Kollage. "Best With Beer" (Asko Mänttäri). CAST: Anssi Mänttäri (the man in the white suit), Sarina Röhr (the woman with a sound sleep), Taina Saikkonen (young intellectual woman), Riitta Havukainen (lecturer in semiotics), Eero Tuomikoski (Nuutinen, drunk CEO), Sanna-Kaisa Palo (Irma Manner, the woman who never stops talking), Aki Kaurismäki (Ville, son of the man in the white suit), Sallamaari Muhonen (Redhead), Marja Packalén (the ex-wife of the man in the white suit), Matti Pellonpää (father of the man in the white suit), Elina Hurme (Kaisa, the young moralistic woman), Eeva Eloranta (female theologist), Heikki Peltonen (male theologist), Ilkka Kylävaara (Väisänen, successful businessman), Titta Antti-Poika (Tiina, the woman with the car), Erkki Saarela (Pera, the good-natured man), Paavo Piskonen (Harri, the conceited man), Kristiina Repo (Seija Pikkaranen, the woman who hates poverty), Pirkko Hämäläinen (Riitta, the bitchy woman), Jyrki Kovaleff (the honest working man), Sanna Fransman (the woman next door), Kari Väänänen (psychiatrist), Ann-Cathrine Fröjdö (not just a skin). Viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 3 June 2009.

The image in the print varied from good to grainy. - A fascinating Bukowskian odyssey starring the director himself as the man in the white suit, who conquers almost any woman in a series of superficial relationships. With witty dialogue, the film is constantly interesting, and with a hidden despair beneath. - The framing story reveals the burned-out old man giving his account to a video camera. The white suit is now folded on the chair. - It is a satire on a life based on easy gratification, short attention span, self-centeredness, about always taking the easy way out. - This film was not a success at its time, but it has stood the test of time well. There is not a dull moment in it.

[The Making of Kuningas lähtee Ranskaan]

[The Making of A King Goes Forth to France]. FI 1986. D: Timo Linnasalo. 8 mm footage edited and projected on dvd. [Some 20 min?]. Viewed at Cinema Andorra, Helsinki, 16 May 2009. - Part of the Anssi Mänttäri tribute weekend. - Interesting behind-the-scene footage, on different locations, in various seasons. Several cinematographers, including a vignette shot by Aki Kaurismäki of three shoes.

Jeanne d'Arc (2009)

FI (c) 2009 Sputnik. P: Aki Kaurismäki. D+SC: Lauri Timonen. DP: Olli Varja - b&w. S: Tero Malmberg. ED: Timo Linnasalo. CAST: Nuppu Koivu (Jeanne d'Arc), Timo Aarniala, Juuso Hirvikangas, Matti Kuortti, Erkki Lahti, Elena Leeve, Leena Lepistö, Velipekka Makkonen, Anssi Mänttäri, Jorma Markkula, Minna Maskulin, Heikki Metsämäki, Jyrki Näsänen, Päivi Paldan, Esa Pälve, Eeva Putro, Sakari Salko, Rain Tolk, Esko Valtaoja, Markku Varjola, Peter Wright. 22 min. Viewed at Cinema Andorra, Helsinki, 16 May 2009. - Part of the Anssi Mänttäri weekend programme. - The synopsis by the film-makers: "A young woman recovering from a suicide attempt arrives at a city at war and gets employed as a waitress in a bar. Jeanne becomes friendly with a drunken writer who has fallen out of favour, but fate has other plans for them... ". - Bitter, iconoclastic, non-believing remix of Jeanne d'Arc motifs in an Anssi Mänttäri style bar milieu (see Palkkasoturi / Soldier of Fortune). - Jeanne d'Arc is a heroin addict and a virgin who gets burned at the stake. - Stark black and white imagery.

Morena

Morena - blues [Title card on film]. FI 1986. PC: Reppufilmi. P+D+SC: Anssi Mänttäri. [Finnish and English translation by Mikko Lyytikäinen, n.c.] Ass. D: Mika Kaurismäki. Prod. M: Pauli Pentti. DP: Heikki Katajisto - Agfacolor - 1,66:1. M: Jukka Hakoköngas, Costas Papanastasiou, Asko Mänttäri, Claes Andersson, Robert Schumann, Nanook, Black Sheep, Anssi Mänttäri, Pentti Lahti, Mikko Mattila, W.A. Mozart. S: Aki Kaurismäki, Juuso Hirvikangas. ED: Raija Talvio. LOC: West Berlin
- around the bar Ruine in Kreuzberg
- Café Belmont, Budapester Strasse
- restaurant La Bocca, Marburger Strasse
- restaurant Land's End, Kreuzberg
CAST: Anssi Mänttäri (Red Beard), Caroline Krüger (Morena), Claes Andersson (Red Beard's big brother). Original in English, with Finnish subtitles. 65 min. A KAVA print viewed at Cinema Orion, 15 May 2009. - In the presence of Anssi Mänttäri and Heikki Katajisto interviewed by Markku Varjola. - OK print, OK colour. - "During Berlin Film Festival we frequented the restaurant La Bocca because of its beautiful waitress Morena. When we returned to make the film dedicated to her we learned that she had been sent back to Italy to protect her from us. The film was a purely Finnish production. A German company worked as our contractor. Together with Mika Kaurismäki we financed the film by drawing weekly cash on our Visa cards, taking turns. In Germany I became known as Rotbärtich. Commenting Pauli Pentti's telegram from Cannes: Susanne was white wine and Crème de Menthe. Besides, there was Susanne on the jukebox." MV commented that in this film the collaboration of the director and the cinematographer was at its best. Claes Andersson was happy to act in the film. AM: "He said that 'That has always been my greatest fear and dream'. If you do something cheaply you must not do it too well. K.J. Koski wanted to see how I do it. If you don't plan too well you are free to change everything." Filmtotal was the basement which Villealfa, Reppufilmi, and Giron-Filmi shared. "We had common equipment. We worked in each others' teams without pay."

Tilinteko

Uppgörelse / The Final Arrangement / [Un règlement de comptes] / [The Final Account]. FI (c) 1987 Villealfa. P: Aki Kaurismäki. D: Veikko Aaltonen. SC: Veikko Aaltonen, Aki Kaurismäki. DP: Timo Salminen - Eastmancolor - 1:1,85.
Live performance: Markus Allan: "Syyspihlajan alla".
Oldies records: "Rattaanpyörä" perf. Ilkka Rinne and Rytmi-yhtye. "Harmaat silmät" perf. Henry Theel. "Pieni kukkanen" perf. Laila Kinnunen. "You Are My Thrill" perf. Billie Holiday. "Pojat" perf. Laila and Ritva Kinnunen.
Jussi Björling tracks: "Du är min hela värld", "Tra voi belle".
Hymn at the church: Hymn 440 "Jo vääryys vallan saapi".
Filming locations: Suodenniemi, Kankaanpää, Lavia (in the middle between Tampere and Pori).
Cast: Juhani Niemelä (Kalervo Mäkinen, "Nieminen"), Esko Nikkari (Timo Varjola, mayor), Kaija Pakarinen (Leena Palo), Seppo Mäki (Reidar). 72 min. An excellent vintage print with perfect colour. At Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 17 Dec 2008. - Two men commit grand burglary. Varjola murders the two drivers of the mail bus and tries to kill his companion, Nieminen. Seven years after, Nieminen, on leave from the prison, returns to the town where Varjola is now mayor, a father, and a pillar of society (church, Lions Club, etc.). - An interesting film in the Villealfa canon. Veikko Aaltonen has a good grip on the ironic, laconic, antirealistic Melville style of the crime movie. There is a good steady cinematic drive all through the picture. The collaboration with the cinematographer Timo Salminen is perfect and functional. There are also affinities and touches common to the Villealfa school, such as 1) the terse, telegraph-style dialogue, 2) the almost autistic passivity of the male protagonist, 3) the man is also passive towards the woman, 4) the imagery and the colour scale are strong and recognizably like Salminen's work with Aki Kaurismäki, 5) the importance of music records and the jukebox, 6) Kekkonen, 7) the final insane act of violence of the passive protagonist. - The most lively figures are Esko Nikkari as the former robber and murderer, now a pillar of the society, soon promised a career as a minister of justice, and Kaija Pakarinen as the hairdresser who needs to take the initiative in seeking male company. - Veikko Aaltonen, himself, has stated that the screenplay was unfinished. The film was shot in ten days. - Well made but does not finally quite make enough sense.

Macbeth (Pauli Pentti 1987)

Macbeth / Macbeth. FI 1987. PC: Villealfa. P: Aki Kaurismäki. D+SC: Pauli Pentti - based on Shakespeare's play (1606). DP: Olli Varja. M: Mikko Mattila, Tapio Siitonen (synthetizators). Verdi: Aida. "Love Me Or Leave Me" performed by Mari Rantasila (voc), Eero Raittila (piano). ED: Timo Linnasalo. Starring Markku Valtonen (Macbeth), Pirkko Hämäläinen (Lady), Antti Litja (Dunkku / Duncan), Pertti Sveholm (Bankko / Banquo), Paavo Piskonen (porter). 66 min. Viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 14 September 2008. - In the presence of Pauli Pentti interviewed by Markku Varjola. PP had known Aki Kaurismäki since the school days, both always avid film buffs. There was the playful idea of a Shakespeare trilogy, of which Aki directed Hamlet Goes Business, and Pauli, Macbeth. The third project, Mänttäri's Lear, never got off the ground. It was a consciously downgraded project. Markku Valtonen as Macbeth was famous from the Sleepy Sleepers (soon to be transformed into Leningrad Cowboys) and the Radio City show Pullakuskit (Bun Drivers). - Deadpan modernization turning the Macbeth plot into the present-day gangster world in Finland, shot in Helsinki, Savonlinna Opera Festival, and London. The anti-realistic gangster ambience is based on the films of Melville and Godard. The blunt dialogue is intentionally comic and made the audience laugh in the right places. The men carry sunglasses at all times. - The Lady goes mad and walks into the sea. Macbeth has been warned that the Pihlajasaari island will attack him, and finally, a vessel masked as a forest approaches. - This is one of the Villealfa films which had a similar ambience with the later Tarantino films (his company called A Band Apart, both companies' names are tributes to Godard).

Calamari Union

FI 1985. PC: Villealfa. D+SC: Aki Kaurismäki. 82 min. Viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 13 September, 2008. In the presence of Timo Eränkö (Frank), Pertti Sveholm (Frank), and Markku Toikka (Paavo) interviewed by Eero Tammi. All in character, perfect. - I revisited the start only of this weird film, in one scene of which the Franks visit Cinema Orion and see the eyes of Ivan Mozzhuhin as Father Sergius. Cinema Orion became the Film Archive cinema in 1984. - The cinema was full, Calamari Union having become a cult film. There is even a Calamari Union Fan Club which had also toured the other locations of the film.

Leningrad Cowboys: Thru The Wire

FI 1987. D: Aki Kaurismäki. 6 min. A 35mm print viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 13 September 2008. - From the year Leningrad Cowboys was formed out of the cult band Sleepy Sleepers

Huhtikuu on kuukausista julmin / April is the Cruellest of Months

April är grymmast av månader. FI 1983. PC: Reppufilmi. P: Anssi Mänttäri. D+SC: Suvi-Marja Korvenheimo (= Mänttäri). Ass. D+co-DP: Heikki Katajisto. DP: Eero Salmenhaara. Theme song: J. Karjalainen. M also: Erik Satie, P.I. Tchaikovsky. Starring: Antti Litja (Olli), Markku Toikka (Unto), Marianne Anttila (Sari Helkama), Paavo Piskonen (Leevi), Liisa Halonen (Raija), Olli Tuominen (critic Veiviäinen), Mikko Majanlahti (artist professor Mikkonen), Aki Kaurismäki (Ville Alfa), Lauri Kanerva (provincial author Maaselkä), Rea Mauranen (woman expressing grief), Jone Takamäki (policeman), Päivi Istala (radio journalist). 74 min. Viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 12 September 2008.

In the presence of Anssi Mänttäri, Heikki Katajisto, Paavo Piskonen, Päivi Istala.

AM, HK: The annoying visual look was based on Eero Salmenhaara overdoing his concept of a soft lens, distancing himself from naturalism. - AM: there were no makings for a trilogy in the Suvi-Marja Korvenheimo films. - AM: The Women's Rights Society Union's director was reportedly delighted by the vision of the "woman director": "when a woman makes a film we all get to see what pigs men are".

AA: The film is a parody of certain cultural circles of Helsinki, and some of the characters have obvious models. Olli is based on Hannu Salama, Leevi on Leo Lindsten, and Mikkonen on Mikko Niskanen. I could not help laughing at the juicy performance of Mikko Majanlahti as Mikkonen. The film got a good laughing response from the audience. - In the final scene on the deserted beach Ville Alfa (Aki Kaurismäki) asks about the secret of success from the alcoholic pig Olli (Antti Litja). The answer: "Booze and short sentences".