Exploring Your Inner Demons: A Sampling of American Underground Cinema (curated and presented by Jack Stevenson 2009)

Martha Colburn: Spiders in Love: An Arachnorgasmic Musical (US 1999).

A programme compiled by Jack Stevenson. Viewed at Cinema Orion, 28 Feb 2009. 16 mm
Jack Stevenson's programme note with my comments in italics.

EXPLORING YOUR INNER DEMONS: A SAMPLING OF AMERICAN UNDERGROUND CINEMA
Presented by Jack Stevenson
"American author and print collector Jack Stevenson has complied an entertaining and thought-provoking program that spans American Underground cinema from the Mid-60’s to the modern day and captures the essence of what personal (aka ‘underground’) filmmaking is all about."
In order of play:
BEHIND EVERY GOOD MAN - 1966, 9 min., by Nikolai Ursin. Home movie style docu-drama about a day in the life of a negro transvestite living in mid-60's Los Angeles. / AA: recovered by Jack from an unmarked cardboard box
HOLD ME WHILE I'M NAKED - 1966, 15 min., color, by George Kuchar. One of the best loved films of the 60s underground, a playful satire of motion picture making: the fantasy of Hollywood glamour collides with the reality of loneliness in the Bronx. /AA: colour ok in GK's most famous film, exploring his own feelings in a mode now familiar from webcams, the diarist format, 0 budget
THE CRAVEN SLUCK, 1967, 23 min. b/w, directed by Mike Kuchar. This film concerns itself with the sordid domestic routines of a typical Bronx married couple, Adel and her goofy salaryman husband, Brunswick, played by Bob. Adel - played with verve by Floraine Connors - seeks escape in the arms of a secret lover, Morton, played by George Kuchar. To complicate matters, Morton is married, to a rotund, pill-popping frump called Florence, played by Bob in a cheap wig. Yet all these complications of the flesh are suddenly rendered inconsequential by a squadron of attacking UFOs that vaporize the leading lady and bring the plot to an unexpected and gloriously implausible halt. The skillful use of music in the Hollywood tradition makes the story come alive. / AA: the fascination with glamour, living in the most unglamourous Bronx, the mixture of horror, melodrama, scifi, 0 budget
ROCKFLOW: 1968, 9 min. color, directed by Bob Cowan. This 9 minute film is constructed largely of footage Bob shot at The Electric Circus (in NYC) in connection with the opening of a boutique there at which the Chambers Brothers rock band played. Mod fashions are on display as folks pack the dance floor, including Donna Kerness (in trademark antenna headgear) and Hopeton Morris (their outfits designed by Hope). But what appears to be a straightforward if experimental fashion/dance/rock document changes mid-point into a psychedelic nightmare as eerie music creates an ominous mood, the images grow more hallucinatory and the editing more rapid-fire. Donna now reappears in a solitary setting in close-up, swinging giant earrings and staring at the camera as if she's casting a spell. The effect is sinister and trance-like as special effects bombard the screen. / AA: a fascinating psychedelic discovery, a fine example of rock music and dance film, a great sense of rhythm
LOVE IT / LEAVE IT: 1970, 15 min., color. This second film by Tom Palazzolo more fluidly weaves sound and image together to create an hallucinatory montage of urban America at the height of anti-war demonstrations. Equal parts totalitarian nightmare and candy-coated consumer fun fair, it is like most of his work: devoid of overt editorial comment and full of ambiguity – a searching to capture the spirit and times and people without imposing the filmmaker’s own political agenda. /AA: a nudist movie juxtaposing militarism and nudism, with a fine musique concrète score
SIAMESE TWIN PINHEADS - 1972, 4 min., b&w, Kurt McDowell and Mark Ellinger do their perverse ‘siamese twin pinhead’ act.The two would stand at the center of San Francisco’s rebellious underground film scene of the 70’s. / AA: the makers of Thundercrack! in an offensive short film of two masturbating imbecile twin pinheads, compared by Jack with Lars von Trier's Idiots
ASTHMA – 1995, 2 min., by Martha Colburn / an early collage film on the subject of smoking. One of her most straight-forward films, it hints at the more frenetic style she would later adopt. / AA: belongs to the music video phenomenon, wonderful, broken, rapid cutting, rhythm, dots, patterns, signs, interesting music by Smoking Jaunties
SPIDERS IN LOVE – 2000, 2.5 minutes, by Martha Colburn / A gloriously chaotic take on sex, spiders and various other hallucinations – handmade annimation and some found footage clips. / AA: belongs to the music video phenomenon, "an arachnorgasmic musical", rapid cutting, penis obsession, death imagery
END

Wild Harvest

Jerry A. Baerwitz: Wild Harvest (US 1961).

Kuumaa kiihkoa / Hetsande lidelse. 

    US © 1961 Hollywood Artists Productions. D: Jerry A. Baerwitz. Based on the novel by Stephen Longstreet (1960). DP: Gordon Avil – b&w – 1,85:1. M: Bert Shefter, Paul Sawtell. Narrator: Walter Winchell. Starring Dolores Faith, Arlynn Greer, Kathleen Freeman, Susan Kelly. 78 min. A vintage 35 mm print viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 27 Feb 2009. Introduced by Jack Stevenson. – I watched the start. This is a rare case of an American film with strong social commitment. The subject: the migrant workers of California, harvesting grapes. It is also about the sexual exploitation of the female workers by the male bosses. Belongs thematically with The Grapes of Wrath. There is a grim, vital, sexual energy in this film. Some actors are clumsy, but vitality compensates. It is nice to see Kathleen Freeman, the Jerry Lewis / Frank Tashlin / John Landis regular in a serious role.

...

SUOMEN ELOKUVA-ARKISTO

FINLANDS FILMARKIV

PROGRAM NOTE BY MIKKO PIHKOLUOMA

Wild Harvest

Kuumaa kiihkoa

 

Yhdysvallat 1961. Tuotantoyhtiöt: Hollywood Artists Productions. Tuotannojohto: Hal Klein. Tuottaja: Aubrey Schenck. Ohjaus: Jerry A. Baerwitz. Käsikirjoitus: Sid Harris – Stephen Longstreetin kirjasta. Kuvaus: Gordon Avil. Erikoistehosteet: Howard A. Anderson. Puvut: Oscar Rodriguez. Ehostus: Rudolph Liszt. Musiikki: Paul Stewell, Bert Shefter. Laulut: Sawtell, Shefter, Jack Ackerman, Tommy Cooper. Leikkaus: Peter Zimmer. Pääosissa: Walter Winchell (kertoja), Dolores Faith (Rose), Arlynn Greer (Julie), Kathleen Freeman (Goldie), Susan Kelly (Madge), Dean Fredericks (Whitey), Ralph Camargo (Sam Ludlow), Robert Harrow (Tom Ludlow). Helsingin ensiesitys: 30.10.1964 Astor – VET 64923 – K16 – 2150 m / 78 min 

Siirtolaistyöläiset kerääntyvät Californian viinitarhoille, jotka omistaa Sam Ludlow. Tilanjohtaja Whitey on julma piiskuri, joka pahoinpitelee työläisiä ja hyväksikäyttää heitä seksuaalisesti. Työläiset saavat tarpeekseen ja tilan naiset järjestävät tapaamisen, jossa he kirjoittavat vetoomuksen päästäkseen kunnioittamansa tilanomistajan Samin hoiviin. Madge valitaan vetoomuksen viejäksi. Whitey saa tietää naisten aikeista ja saa Madgen kiinni eristäytyneessä ladossa ja yrittää raiskata hänet. Kuullessaan tapahtumista naiset lähtevät kostamaan Whiteylle henkilökohtaisesti. 

Alun ja lopun "reportaasimainen" kertojaääni yrittää esittää tarinan dokumentaarina siirtolaistyöläisten rankasta arjesta. Mutta totuuden nimissä elokuva on shokeeraava ja epämiellyttävä melodraama. Alussa kehitellään juonikuvioita, joita ei seurata loppuun - tai tunnutaan unohtavan niiden olemassaolo tyystin. Lopun väkivaltaisessa kliimaksissa jää epäselväksi millaisen kohtalon Whitey saa.

- American Film Indexin mukaan Mikko Pihkoluoma 20.2.2009

Jack Stevenson: A Journey Into Grindhouse (lecture)

A lecture in the series of the Film Society of the Helsinki University Students' Union. At Cinema Orion, 27 Feb 2009. With many clips. An exciting lecture with a lot of fertile ideas.

THE 81ST ACADEMY AWARDS ( FOR FILMS OF 2008)

Nominees & Winners for the 81st Academy Awards

Performance by an actor in a leading role
* Richard Jenkins in “The Visitor” (Overture Films)
* Frank Langella in “Frost/Nixon” (Universal)
* Sean Penn in “Milk” (Focus Features)
* Brad Pitt in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.)
* Mickey Rourke in “The Wrestler” (Fox Searchlight)

Performance by an actor in a supporting role
* Josh Brolin in “Milk” (Focus Features)
* Robert Downey Jr. in “Tropic Thunder” (DreamWorks, Distributed by DreamWorks/Paramount)
* Philip Seymour Hoffman in “Doubt” (Miramax)
* Heath Ledger in “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.)
* Michael Shannon in “Revolutionary Road” (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage)

Performance by an actress in a leading role
* Anne Hathaway in “Rachel Getting Married” (Sony Pictures Classics)
* Angelina Jolie in “Changeling” (Universal)
* Melissa Leo in “Frozen River” (Sony Pictures Classics)
* Meryl Streep in “Doubt” (Miramax)
* Kate Winslet in “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company)

Performance by an actress in a supporting role
* Amy Adams in “Doubt” (Miramax)
* Penélope Cruz in “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” (The Weinstein Company)
* Viola Davis in “Doubt” (Miramax)
* Taraji P. Henson in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.)
* Marisa Tomei in “The Wrestler” (Fox Searchlight)

Best animated feature film of the year
* “Bolt” (Walt Disney), Chris Williams and Byron Howard
* “Kung Fu Panda” (DreamWorks Animation, Distributed by Paramount), John Stevenson and Mark Osborne
* “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Andrew Stanton

Achievement in art direction
* “Changeling” (Universal), Art Direction: James J. Murakami, Set Decoration: Gary Fettis
* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Art Direction: Donald Graham Burt, Set Decoration: Victor J. Zolfo
* “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Art Direction: Nathan Crowley, Set Decoration: Peter Lando
* “The Duchess” (Paramount Vantage, Pathé and BBC Films), Art Direction: Michael Carlin, Set Decoration: Rebecca Alleway
* “Revolutionary Road” (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage), Art Direction: Kristi Zea, Set Decoration: Debra Schutt

Achievement in cinematography
* “Changeling” (Universal), Tom Stern
* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Claudio Miranda
* “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Wally Pfister
* “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), Chris Menges and Roger Deakins
* “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Anthony Dod Mantle

Achievement in costume design
* “Australia” (20th Century Fox), Catherine Martin
* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Jacqueline West
* “The Duchess” (Paramount Vantage, Pathé and BBC Films), Michael O’Connor
* “Milk” (Focus Features), Danny Glicker
* “Revolutionary Road” (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage), Albert Wolsky

Achievement in directing
* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), David Fincher
* “Frost/Nixon” (Universal), Ron Howard
* “Milk” (Focus Features), Gus Van Sant
* “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), Stephen Daldry
* “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Danny Boyle

Best documentary feature
* “The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)” (Cinema Guild), A Pandinlao Films Production, Ellen Kuras and Thavisouk Phrasavath
* “Encounters at the End of the World” (THINKFilm and Image Entertainment), A Creative Differences Production, Werner Herzog and Henry Kaiser
* “The Garden” A Black Valley Films Production, Scott Hamilton Kennedy
* “Man on Wire” (Magnolia Pictures), A Wall to Wall in association with Red Box Films Production, James Marsh and Simon Chinn
* “Trouble the Water” (Zeitgeist Films), An Elsewhere Films Production, Tia Lessin and Carl Deal

Best documentary short subject
* “The Conscience of Nhem En” A Farallon Films Production, Steven Okazaki
* “The Final Inch” Vermilion Films in association with Google.org, Irene Taylor Brodsky and Tom Grant
* “Smile Pinki” A Principe Production, Megan Mylan
* “The Witness - From the Balcony of Room 306” A Rock Paper Scissors Production, Adam Pertofsky and Margaret Hyde

Achievement in film editing
* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall
* “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Lee Smith
* “Frost/Nixon” (Universal), Mike Hill and Dan Hanley
* “Milk” (Focus Features), Elliot Graham
* “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Chris Dickens

Best foreign language film of the year
* “The Baader Meinhof Complex” A Constantin Film Production, Germany
* “The Class” (Sony Pictures Classics), A Haut et Court Production, France
* “Departures” (Regent Releasing), A Departures Film Partners Production, Japan
* “Revanche” (Janus Films), A Prisma Film/Fernseh Production, Austria
* “Waltz with Bashir” (Sony Pictures Classics), A Bridgit Folman Film Gang Production, Israel

Achievement in makeup
* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Greg Cannom
* “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), John Caglione, Jr. and Conor O’Sullivan
* “Hellboy II: The Golden Army” (Universal), Mike Elizalde and Thom Floutz

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score)
* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Alexandre Desplat
* “Defiance” (Paramount Vantage), James Newton Howard
* “Milk” (Focus Features), Danny Elfman
* “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), A.R. Rahman
* “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Thomas Newman

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song)
* “Down to Earth” from “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Music by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman, Lyric by Peter Gabriel
* “Jai Ho” from “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Music by A.R. Rahman, Lyric by Gulzar
* “O Saya” from “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Music and Lyric by A.R. Rahman and Maya Arulpragasam

Best motion picture of the year
* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), A Kennedy/Marshall Production, Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall and Ceán Chaffin, Producers
* “Frost/Nixon” (Universal), A Universal Pictures, Imagine Entertainment and Working Title Production, Brian Grazer, Ron Howard and Eric Fellner, Producers
* “Milk” (Focus Features), A Groundswell and Jinks/Cohen Company Production, Dan Jinks and Bruce Cohen, Producers
* “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), A Mirage Enterprises and Neunte Babelsberg Film GmbH Production, Anthony Minghella, Sydney Pollack, Donna Gigliotti and Redmond Morris, Producers
* “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), A Celador Films Production, Christian Colson, Producer

Best animated short film
* “La Maison en Petits Cubes” A Robot Communications Production, Kunio Kato
* “Lavatory - Lovestory” A Melnitsa Animation Studio and CTB Film Company Production, Konstantin Bronzit
* “Oktapodi” (Talantis Films), A Gobelins, L’école de l’image Production, Emud Mokhberi and Thierry Marchand
* “Presto” (Walt Disney), A Pixar Animation Studios Production, Doug Sweetland
* “This Way Up” A Nexus Production, Alan Smith and Adam Foulkes

Best live action short film
* “Auf der Strecke (On the Line)” (Hamburg Shortfilmagency), An Academy of Media Arts Cologne Production, Reto Caffi
* “Manon on the Asphalt” (La Luna Productions), A La Luna Production, Elizabeth Marre and Olivier Pont
* “New Boy” (Network Ireland Television), A Zanzibar Films Production, Steph Green and Tamara Anghie
* “The Pig” An M & M Production, Tivi Magnusson and Dorte Høgh
* “Spielzeugland (Toyland)” A Mephisto Film Production, Jochen Alexander Freydank

Achievement in sound editing
* “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Richard King
* “Iron Man” (Paramount and Marvel Entertainment), Frank Eulner and Christopher Boyes
* “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Glenn Freemantle and Tom Sayers
* “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Ben Burtt and Matthew Wood
* “Wanted” (Universal), Wylie Stateman

Achievement in sound mixing
* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce and Mark Weingarten
* “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Lora Hirschberg, Gary Rizzo and Ed Novick
* “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Ian Tapp, Richard Pryke and Resul Pookutty
* “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Tom Myers, Michael Semanick and Ben Burtt
* “Wanted” (Universal), Chris Jenkins, Frank A. Montaño and Petr Forejt

Achievement in visual effects
* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton and Craig Barron
* “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Nick Davis, Chris Corbould, Tim Webber and Paul Franklin
* “Iron Man” (Paramount and Marvel Entertainment), John Nelson, Ben Snow, Dan Sudick and Shane Mahan

Adapted screenplay
* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Screenplay by Eric Roth, Screen story by Eric Roth and Robin Swicord
* “Doubt” (Miramax), Written by John Patrick Shanley
* “Frost/Nixon” (Universal), Screenplay by Peter Morgan
* “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), Screenplay by David Hare
* “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Screenplay by Simon Beaufoy

Original screenplay
* “Frozen River” (Sony Pictures Classics), Written by Courtney Hunt
* “Happy-Go-Lucky” (Miramax), Written by Mike Leigh
* “In Bruges” (Focus Features), Written by Martin McDonagh
* “Milk” (Focus Features), Written by Dustin Lance Black
* “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Screenplay by Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon, Original story by Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter

http://www.oscars.org/awards/81academyawards/nominees.html

Fire and Ice

Fire and Ice. The Winter War of Finland and Russia. / Talvisota: tuli ja jää! USA 2006. (c) 2005 MasterWork Media LLC. P+D+SC: Ben Strout. DP: Michael Bowie. M: Jamie Lawrence. ED: Kurt Poole. Dvd, 1,85:1, DD 5.1, 79 min. Russian and Finnish comments with English subtitles. Masterworks Media dvd, American release, received as a gift from my American relatives in St. Paul, Faye and Ken LeDoux. [There is also a Finnish dvd release: Karelia Klubi.] Viewed at home in Helsinki, 22 Feb 2009.

A many-sided documentary with modern Finnish-Russian war enactments, newsreel footage, interviews, quotes from vintage testimonies, some animation. American, Finnish, and Russian views make up a balanced picture of the amazing war. The author and poet Eeva Kilpi, a refugee from Karelian Hiitola, has a strong presence. So has John F. "Jack" Hasey, Volunteer, Iroquois Ambulance Corps. We see F.D. Roosevelt denouncing USSR on news footage. League of Nations banishes USSR. The Terijoki puppet government. Mannerheim's considerations. The interviewees include William Trotter (author, Frozen Hell), Gunnar Laatio (veteran, Mannerheim line), Major Mauno Uoti, Erkki Palosuo (veteran pilot), Aulikki Olsen (veteran, Lotta Svärd), Dr. Tomas Reis, Dr. Ohto Manninen, Inkeri Kilpinen, Minister Max Jakobson, Pasi Kesseli, Ermei Kanninen, Niilo Halkola (Suomussalmi veteran), Mauno Laaksonen, Lemmetty veteran; Anna Tukia, Lotta Svärd veteran; Tami Leinonen, Karelian refugee; Marko Seppänen, Suomussalmi, Raatteen Portti Museum; Raino Kurtti, Suomissalmi veteran; Mauno Uoti, Parola Tank Museum. The Molotov-Ribbentrop pact is examined. The German Blitzkrieg on Poland. The Finnish specials: the Molotov cocktail, the satchel charges, jamming a log into a tank's treads, the "motti" blocking tactic, snipers: "the white death". The feats of Taipale, Summa, Lahde, Tolvajärvi (the first victory). The sausage war. Suomussalmi, the Raate road. The meaning of Winter War not only for Finland which was not occupied but also for the Red Army which Stalin had to rebuild.

Joensuu 1685: Crystal Light

A music video. Finland 2009. PC: Bare Bone Business. P: Asko Keränen. D+ED: Mika Taanila. DP: Mika Taanila (16mm, 8mm), Leo Taanila (8mm), Martti Jämsä (8mm). FEAT: Mikko Joensuu, Markus Joensuu, Risto Joensuu. 7'30". - The strong flicker can cause headache, malaise, or migraine. - The music video was first screened in Cinema Orion, Saturday 14 Feb 2009, but I missed it as I was in Berlin. - Viewed at home on dvd 21 Feb 2009. - A flicker video. Big water. Waterfalls. Blue. Ultra rapid cutting. Acceleration. Performance footage: hard rhythmic electric metal sound, first instrumental, then with vocals. Time lapse. Negative. Leader. Holes on film. Red colour. Yellow colour. Extreme close-ups. Fire. Flowers. Back to the waterfalls, back to big water. - Pure elementary observations.

Pasi Nyyssönen: The Beginning of New Hollywood (lecture)

A lecture in the U.S. Independent lecture series of the Film Society of the Helsinki University Students' Association at Cinema Orion, 20 Feb 2009. With many video clips.

Humain, trop humain

Louis Malle: Humain, trop humain (FR 1974).

FR 1974. PC: NEF. D: Louis Malle. DP: Etienne Becker - looks like 16 mm blown up to 35 mm - colour. ED: Suzanne Baron. S: Jean-Claude Laureux. 73 min. AFF / CNC beautiful restored 35 mm print with e-subtitles in Finnish by Lena Talvio [but there is no commentary nor significant dialogue]. Viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 19 Feb 2009.

An industrial documentary film shot in July 1972 at the Citroën factory in Rennes, Bretagne and at a Car Fair in Paris. All phases of the car assembly. The steel plates arrive on rolls. They are cut. The assembly line principle. The assembly of the body. Grinding and sanding. Washing. The assembly of the motor. The cable systems. Long tracking shots to give a full view of the whole process. A film without commentary, without dialogue; the hardly audible words belong mainly to the soundscape. The endless rows of cars waiting by the railway station. The women soldering. The seats. The finishing. The polishing. Welding. The sounds of the factory: musique concrète. Qf. Tati: the machine world, the mechanical world, cybernetic. Qf. Chaplin: Modern Times. The final episode: a young woman turning steel plates. A freeze frame on her face, her look. The noise goes on.

A remarkable and original vision of the factory world.

Soy Cuba

SU/CU 1964. PC: Goskino / ICAIC. D: Mihail Kalatozov. SC: Enrique Pineda Barnet, Jevgeni Jevtushenko. DP: Sergei Urusevski - b&w - 35mm - 1,37:1. M: Carlos Farinas. 141 min. A Mr. Bongo print of the Cuban version, via MK2, with English subtitles. Viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 19 Feb 2009. - Revisited: the opening of the amazing film of Communist propaganda rejected by everyone at the time and only returning to wide awareness outside Cuba since Telluride 1992. - Astounding opening with a helicopter view of the Cuban jungle. Infrared lenses catch a wild and marvellous vision of the village. The camera moves irresistibly from the rooftop of the hotel inside the pool. This is a camera adventure of Cuba, following the Bazinian philosophy of forbidden montage. "Loco amor" sung by the Platters crooner. - A thrilling, inspiring film. I do not see it as an apology of tyranny, on the contrary, it is a rebellious film, and that certainly was a main reason to the shelving in the USSR.

Laurel & Hardy: the Birth of the Comedy Duo

Fred Guiol: The Second Hundred Years (US 1927), Hal Roach Studios, produced by Leo McCarey, photographed by George Stevens and starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy.

The Second Hundred Years / Toiset sata vuotta / De andra hundra åren. US 1927. 16 mm, 20 min
Big Business / Joulukuusikauppiaat / Svindlande affärer. US 1929. 35 mm, 20 min
Liberty / Vapaus / Friheten. US 1929. 35 mm, 20 min
    PC: Hal Roach Studios. EX: Hal Roach. P: Leo McCarey. DP: George Stevens.
    Bonner Kinemathek prints with e-subtitles in Finnish by Aretta Vähälä and piano interpretation by Joonas Raninen.
    Viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 18 Feb 2009.

The starting programme of our Leo McCarey retrospective. McCarey was with Stan Laurel the co-creator of the concept of the Stan and Ollie comedies at Hal Roach Studios. It was good to see on screen the full-length The Second Hundred Years, and 35 mm screenings (good prints, too) of Big Business and Liberty, so familiar from home viewing. Comedy at its best, funniest, laughingest.

The Last Movie

Dennis Hopper: The Last Movie (US 1971).

US © 1971 Universal Pictures / Alta-Light. D: Dennis Hopper. DP: Laszlo Kovacs. ED consultant: Alejandro Jodorowsky. Starring Dennis Hopper, Stella Garcia, Julie Adams, Tomas Milian, Roy Enger, Samuel Fuller. 109 min. A Théâtre du Temple print avec sous-titres français viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 17 Feb 2009. – Print ok, a slighly duped look. – Revisited: the beginning only. An acid trip. Strong energy. A sense of disaster. Kris Kristoffersson's "Me And Bobby McGee" effective (a special recording for this film?). Samuel Fuller's signature role.

Berlin, 12-15 February, 2009

I visited Berlin 12-15 February, 2009 during the Berlinale, the Berlin Film Festival, but the days were so packed with meetings that I missed the films altogether!

Calcutta

FR 1969. PC: NEF. P: Louis Kastner. D+SC+commentary reader: Louis Malle. DP: Etienne Becker - 16mm blown up to 35mm. ED: Suzanne Baron. S: Jean-Claude Laureaux. AFF / CNC restored print, e-subtitles Lena Talvio. Viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 10 Feb 2009. - I viewed the beginning. The print not as brilliant as The Phantom India. - The bathers in the holy river Ganges. The cameraman as Peeping Tom. Plunging into a reality that is different from ours. The endless bustle of humanity. The long start of the film without dialogue, without commentary. Goats in the city traffic. The music starts. Beggar children. An elephant being washed. People staring at the camera. The poor ones of the street. At 15 minutes, Malle's voice is heard. The story of a man. The chamber of death. The hit songs of popular movies. In 1967 in Bengal, a coalition government, a demonstration, vive la révolution. The gorgeous statues of Saraswati.

Moana (1926) (1980 Monica Flaherty music edition) (16 mm print viewed in 2009)

Robert J. Flaherty & Frances H. Flaherty: Moana (US 1926).

Moana – auringon poika. US © 1926 Famous Players-Lasky. D+SC+DP: Robert Flaherty – Akeley. With Frances Flaherty and David Flaherty. LOC: Safune village at Savai'i, Polynesia. WITH: Ta'avale, Fa'amgase, Tu'ugaita, Moana, Pe'a. Copyright renewed by Paramount (1953). The Monica Flaherty music version © 1980, 16 mm print of Sami van Ingen, 70 min. Viewed at KAVA Pursimiehenkatu screening room, 9 Feb 2009.

Revisited, I had seen this version before on 13 October, 1985 at Arsenal in Berlin, presented by Monica Flaherty. She utilized early May rebellion songs recorded by David Flaherty. She remembered also Samoan songs from her childhood there. Three principal actors (Moana, Faangese, Pea) were still alive in 1975. Robert Flaherty always wanted Moana in sound, and Monica realized his wish.

A print stretched in all sequences with human motion and equipped with soundtrack. The film was apparently shot at 18 fps, every third frame doubled in the human motion scenes. The sound was recorded in 1975 in Samoa by Monica Flaherty and Richard Leacock. – The original negative was burned by Paramount maybe already in the 1940s. This print is based on the Stockholm dupe. – This masterpiece is the film that was the first to be called a work "of documentary value" in the English language (by Grierson).

The harvest. Fa'angase, the highest maiden. Beautiful harvest songs. The only dangerous animal: the wild hog. The hunting song. Setting the trap. Water out of the tree trunk. The song of returning from the woods. The songs are gentle and tender. Pua a tele! – it's big! The lethal fangs of the hog. A beautiful song as the hog is carried on bars. The sea. The long boat for three. Swimming in the clear water. Fishing with a sharp stick. Peeling the tree bark. Tanning the bark. The manufacture of the Tava cloth from bast (the inner bark) of the mulberry tree.

How the cloth is made. – The interest in little gestures, how hands are moving. – Sandalwood seeds to produce colour. A beautiful sandalwood song. – Lavalava: the national dress. – The boat at sea: sharpening the sticks. – Climbing high to the top of the cocoanut tree in a memorable long shot. – The storm, the big waves. The blow-holes. The rainbow. – The song of the boatmen. Rowing against the waves, falling into the water. The giant splashes. – Expressive close-ups. – The strange animal hiding in the rockpile. – Making fire by rubbing two pieces of wood against each other. – The boy smokes the the coconut crab out of the rockpile. (Expressive close-ups).

The boys hunting the giant turtle. Magnificent reflections. The song of the turtle hunters. The song of the turtle shell. – Faangese cannot eat the oyster but loves raw small fish. – Cocoanut milk out of the cocoanut. The palusami dessert. Baked inside leaves. Breadfruit. A long montage on food. Taro, qf. dioscorea (in Finnish: jamssi). – Green bananas. – A volcanic island. – Faamgase & Moana, at the end of the day, Faamgase decorates Moana with flowers. Massage with cocoanut oil. Age-old rite. Tinkling shells in the ankle. Soft drumming, chorus singing, harmony. – A dance sequence: the pride of beauty and strength. The art, the worship, the courtship of the race. The mating dance. Music imitating birdsong. – Rhythmic music. – The ritual of the tattoo, three weeks, painful. The bone nail. The old-style clothes. Little by little. At great pain. The tattoo music. Light up your oven. Add colour. Dance music: the encourage Moana. Manhood through pain. Beautiful tattoo chorus music. In three weeks, the whole body is tattooed. – Let the kava be prepared. – The kava is prepared in a big bowl. The virgin of the village, the princess, makes the kava. Youth comes into its own. Dances. Harmonious song. Beautiful music as the little boy falls asleep. UA UMA LA VA = THE END.

The Films of Mika Taanila 3

Tampereen elokuvajuhlat 2008 traileri / Tampere Film Festival 2008 Trailer (2008) 35mm, 0'30"
Pidän tästä hiljaisuudesta / I Like This Silence (1983-1986) dvd, 1'20"
Fysikaalinen rengas / A Physical Ring (2002) 35mm, 4'40"
Täydellisen pimennyksen vyöhyke / The Zone of Total Eclipse (2002) 2 x 16mm, 6'
Optinen ääni / Optical Sound (2005) 35mm, 2,35:1, 6'
Thank You For the Music - elokuva muzakista / Thank You For the Music - A Film About Muzak (1997) 35mm, 24'
RoboCup99 / RoboCup99 - We Have a Dream (2000) 35mm, 25'
Total duration of the programme: 75 min. Viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 7 Feb 2009.

A great programme with a wonderful variation, and the many technical challenges were met perfectly, including the special double-16mm presentation of The Zone of Total Eclipse with two moving 16mm projectors.

L'Inde fantôme 1-7

Based on the episodes I have seen: the best film by Louis Malle, the best film on India I have seen, and one of the all-time best films. It changes the way I see the world. Also a marvellous restoration by AFF / CNC.

L'Inde fantôme 6: En marge de l'Inde

L'Inde fantôme: Réflexions sur un voyage 6: En marge de l'Inde / Phantom India 6 / Intian päiväkirja 6: Muukalaiset Intiassa. FR 1969. P: NEF / ORTF. D: Louis Malle. 52 min. An AFF / CNC restored print (colour, 16mm blown up to 35mm), with e-subtitles by Lena Talvio, viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 5 Feb 2009. - A brilliant, full-coloured print. Magnificent cinematography.
The Bondo: the oldest inhabitants, mountain-dwellers, hunting with bow and arrow, women with many pendants, ancient weaving patterns, no cattle taboo, no taxes, making of the mud hut, making of brooms, complicated mythology. Wives older than husbands, severe exogamy, divorce common. No alphabet, no names. The common sleeping houses for the young, no sexual restrictions.
The Communist: with red flag, denouncing the officials, the land-owners, the usurers.
The Christians: Christian churches in Kerala, no succcess, in Goa, the Englishmen restrained the missionaries. The Christians of India are fanatic, with a sense of inferiority.
The Jews: the Jews have lived in Cochin since 1900 years, since before the fall of the Second Temple. Simon Coder, merchant. Never persecuted, except during the Portuguese rule. Some came 200 years ago from Baghdad. Very happy in India. Some leave for Israel. But there is something weak and sickly, as a result of strict marriage rules, marriage allowed among Jews only.
Pondicherry, a former French center of commerce. Illumination is ever-present. "I was a chef in over 10 countries, looking for inner peace" (an Italian meditator). Bhagavad Git. A Swedish woman: I was not aware that I have a soul. Aurobindo: a synthesis of yoga. The building of meditation. Ashram: sport. Active, flourishing. Exemption from taxes. Standing on one's head. Celibacy, no smoking, no alcohol. Senior sport. The eldest is 85 years. Comes a day when the human body experiences a change.
Hatha Yoga. Ambu, teacher of hatha yoga. Asanat. Incredible flexibility, a human snake. "I don't practise every day". Hatha = tenacity, stubbornness.
Auroville. A rich Indian businessman. The road to Damascus. The savior of the world.
The Toda. Nilgir Mountains, 2400 m over the sea level. Toda: an ideal society. Sumerians? Descendants from the age of Alexander the Great? No Toda girl is a virgin until 13 years of age. Free love. There is no word for sex. Children don't go to school. Collective poems. Houses out of wood. There is a shortage of women. Absolute sexual freedom. Shepherds, vegetarians, not farmers. No wars, no weapons, no leaders. The buffalo: pure, holy, unique. Men take turns as priests, alone in the temple, with a holy piece of metal. There are 800 Toda. They are the last representatives of a free society.

MARKKU LEHMUSKALLIO, ANASTASIA LAPSUI, SAKARI TOIVIAINEN

Publication of Sakari Toiviainen's book in Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 4 Feb 2009. With presentations by Sakari Toiviainen and Markku Lehmuskallio.
We celebrate the 70th anniversary of Markku Lehmuskallio with a complete retrospective of the feature films of Markku Lehmuskallio and Anastasia Lapsui and their carte blanche series. Today, Sakari Toiviainen's book Kadonnutta paratiisia etsimässä (In Search of Paradise Lost) was published, with exquisite illustrations edited by Kai Vase in collaboration with Markku Lehmuskallio.
Markku Lehmuskallio is a great artist of both documentary and fiction films. Their common subject is the life of the Northern peoples in Lapland, Siberia, and Canada. What Robert Flaherty started in Nanook of the North, Lehmuskallio has done during his whole film career, rescuing the vanishing, primordial cultures of the Sami, the Nenets, the Nganasan, the Selkup, the Inuit, and so on, for instance in his great I Am, the history of the art of the people in the tundra.
He is the documentarian of immemorial tradition and man on the last threshold of survival.
He is also a poet of the forest and of nature. He is an ecological visionary.
Since 1992, Lehmuskallio has made his films with Anastasia Lapsui, a Nenets who belongs to a family of shamans.

The Jussi Awards (gala 1 Feb 2009, for Finnish films premiered in 2008)

Heikki Kujanpää: Putoavia enkeleitä / Falling Angels (FI 2008) with Elena Leeve (Helena Viita) and Tommi Korpela (Lauri Viita).

BEST MOTION PICTURE OF THE YEAR

Niko - lentäjän poika / The Flight Before Christmas - producers Petteri Pasanen, Hannu Tuomainen
ACHIEVEMENT IN DIRECTING
Tummien perhosten koti / The Home of Dark Butterflies - Dome Karukoski
PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Putoavia enkeleitä / Falling Angels - Tommi Korpela
PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Putoavia enkeleitä / Falling Angels - Elena Leeve
PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Tummien perhosten koti / The Home of Dark Butterflies - Pertti Sveholm
PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Putoavia enkeleitä / Falling Angels - Elina Knihtilä
SCREENPLAY
Niko - lentäjän poika / The Flight Before Christmas - Hannu Tuomainen, Marteinn Thorisson
ACHIEVEMENT IN CINEMATOGRAPHY
Käsky / Tears of April - Rauno Ronkainen
ACHIEVEMENT IN MUSIC
Risto Räppääjä / Risto the Rapper - Iiro Rantala
ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUND DESIGN
Sauna / Sauna - Panu Riikonen, Vesa Meriläinen
ACHIEVEMENT IN FILM EDITING
Tummien perhosten koti / The Home of Dark Butterflies - Harri Ylönen
ACHIEVEMENT IN ART DIRECTION
Sauna / Sauna - Antti Nikkinen, Ville Vauras, Vladimir Bedrich Dvorak
ACHIEVEMENT IN COSTUME DESIGN
Sauna / Sauna - Anna Vilppunen
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Katastrofin aineksia / Recipes for Disaster - John Webster
THE FAVOURITE OF THE AUDIENCE
Tummien perhosten koti / The Home of Dark Butterflies.
...
All fair and well, but for years by favourite film of the year has not even been nominated. For 2008, I would have voted for Risto the Rapper for both best picture and best director (Mari Rantasila).

Mika Taanila: Sommerreise (2006)

Mika Taanila: Sommerreise (2006) featuring Erkki Kurenniemi.

FI 2006. P+D+DP: Mika Taanila. Featuring Erkki Kurenniemi. 16 mm, colour, silent, 3 min. A Mika Taanila print viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 31 Jan 2009. – The first screening in Finland of this film. – Intentional low tech. – Erkki Kurenniemi, who since in the 1960s started to become a computer-being, smoking compulsively, has lost his capacity of speech. With Kurenniemi's consent, Mika Taanila filmed this anti-Winterreise. It's silent, of course.

Tulevaisuus ei ole entisensä / The Future Is Not What It Used To Be

Mika Taanila: Tulevaisuus ei ole entisensä / The Future Is Not What It Used To Be (FI 2002)

Framtiden är inte vad den brukade vara. FI 2002. D: Mika Taanila.
Excerpts from Erkki Kurenniemi's short films:
– Winterreise (1964)
– Electronics In The World of Tomorrow (1964)
– Computer Music (1966)
– Firenze (1970)
– Sex Show (1968)
– Flora & Fauna (1965)
– Carnaby Street (1968)
and the video work of Kurenniemi:
– Videokirje tulevaisuuteen [A Video Letter to the Future] (1990)
Also excerpts from tv programs (YLE):
– Kahdeksan tahtia tietokoneelle [Eight Beats for the Computer] (1967)
– Tv-aktuellt (1968)
– Ihmisen uudet mahdollisuudet [Man's New Opportunities] (1969)
– Ungdom för helvete [Youth for Hell] (1969)
– Dimi-baletti [Dimi Ballet] (1971)
– Mihin menet Suomi? [Where Do You Go To, Finland?] (1979)
– A-studio (1980)
– A-raportti: Mikrojen maihinnousu [The Invasion of the Micro Computer] (1982)
– Numero 110384-1984, rekisteröity, tilastoitu ja kauko-ohjattu kansalainen [Number 110384: the Registered, Statistically Computed and Remote-Controlled Citizen] (1984)
– Lauantailokki (1987)
– TV-uutiset (1999)
And commissioned films by Filminor:
– Pakasteet [Frozen Foods] (1969, D: Jarva, M: EK)
– Tietokoneet palvelevat [The Computer At Your Service] (1968, D: Jarva, M: EK)
– Cosmic Love (Ruotsi, D: Jonas Sima) [Thank you, Mika Taanila, 10 Feb 2009, for the excerpt credits.]
54 min. A 35 mm SES print with English subtitles by Jaana Wiik. Viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 31 Jan 2009. – Presented by Mika Taanila. – A good print.

Official synopsis: "A documentary film about Erkki Kurenniemi (b. 1941), whose career represents a surprisingly natural blend of music, film, computers, robotics, science and art. His project of collecting everything around him will perhaps be the most significant of all his works. Kurenniemi records his thoughts, observations, objects and images constantly, with manic precision, with the ultimate goal of merging man and machine – reconstructing the human soul."

"Kurenniemi's story is a fascinating and forceful depiction of a forgotten visionary; it is significant because of the cultural history of the unique, never-before-seen archive material alone. The documentary includes footage of the unique DIMI instruments developed by Kurenniemi, and segments from unfinished experimental short films from the 1960s."

"The Future is not what it used to be is a film about the 1960s avant-garde in music and film, the early history of microcomputers and the open questions of 21st century science."

"The film is a logical and thematic follow-up for Mika Taanila's earlier works exploring technology and the world around us; namely Thank You For the Music, Futuro and RoboCup99. The film looks into the past, but very clearly far ahead into the future through it."

Revisited the fascinating documentary by Mika Taanila, which is also a great experimental film, about a great experimental man.

JAN HARLAN

Jan Harlan, the Kubrick ambassador, was a special guest of the DocPoint festival. We took a quick everyman's tour of Helsinki, and enjoyed salmon sandwiches and Runeberg tart at the Hakaniemi hall on Saturday, 24 Jan, 2009.

Film concert Modern Times (2009 Helsinki, Finlandia Hall / arr. Timothy Brock (2000) / perf. RSO / cond. Carl Davis)

Charles Chaplin: Modern Times (US 1936).

Nykyaika / Moderna tider. US © 1936 Charles Chaplin. M: Charles Chaplin, arr. David Raksin. The original score reconstructed by Timothy Brock (2000). Performed by RSO (Radio Symphony Orchestra), conductor: Carl Davis. Finlandia-talo, 23 Jan 2009. Full house for two performances. - Chaplin's greatest score played beautifully by the RSO. - His musical gift is versatile: the machine world in the opening credits theme, the playful passages in the gag sequences, and the emotional final theme tune that would be later become known as "Smile". It is uttered first like a breath of relief when Chaplin finally meets Goddard, the first woman in his feature films who really seems like the perfect match. (But so were Edna and Mabel in the shorts.) The music keeps growing after the final image, reaching its greatest impact when the screen is dark, just as was the case in City Lights. - It was a pleasure to have a drink with Carl Davis and Paul Wing after the lovely performance.

...

ANTTI ALANEN

PROGRAM NOTE FOR THE RADIO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA HANDBILL 23 JAN 2009

Nykyaika

Modern Times / Moderna tider

Yhdysvallat © 1936 Charles Chaplin. Tuottaja, ohjaaja, käsikirjoittaja: Charles Chaplin. Kuvaus: Roland Totheroh, Ira Morgan. Lavastus: Charles D. Hall, Russell Spencer. Musiikin sävellys: Charles Chaplin. Musiikin sovitus: David Raksin, Edward Powell. Musiikin johto: Alfred Newman. Laulu "Je cherche après Titine" (Duncan, Danirdeff). Pääosissa: Charles Chaplin (tehdastyöläinen), Paulette Goddard (kulkurityttö, "gamine"), Henry Bergman (kahvilanpitäjä), Stanley J. Sanford (Iso Bill ja murtovaras), Chester Conklin (asentaja). 87 min

    Tunnussävel sanoitettiin jälkeenpäin lauluksi "Smile" / "Hymy" (san. Geoffrey Parsons, John Turner).

    Restauroitu laitos (2000) sisältää alkuperäisen musiikin Timothy Brockin uudelleenorkestroimana ja johtamana. Se on julkaistu dvd:llä myös Suomessa (2003).

Charles Chaplin oli ottanut suuren riskin tekemällä Kaupungin valot (1931) mykkäelokuvana, jonka ääniraidalla oli vain musiikkia ja äänitehosteita. Elokuva sai valtavan menestyksen, siitä tuli suositumpi kuin mistään siihenastisesta äänielokuvasta, ja huojentunut Chaplin lähti matkalle maailman ympäri. Matkallaan Chaplin kohtasi suurmiehiä (Gandhi, Churchill, Shaw, Einstein), häntä itseään pidettiin yhtenä maailman merkittävimmistä miehistä, ja hän nousi maineensa huipulle. Chaplin näki nyt omin silmin maailmanlaajuisen laman vaikutuksen. Chaplin itse oli varakas liikemies, joka oli välttynyt laman menetyksiltä myymällä osakkeensa juuri ennen pörssiromahdusta. Palatessaan Yhdysvaltoihin vuonna 1932 Chaplin näki laman ja työttömyyden vain syvenevän. Menossa olivat Yhdysvaltain presidentinvaalit, joissa valituksi tuli F. D. Roosevelt. Chaplinista tuli Rooseveltin ja tämän New Deal -politiikan innokas kannattaja.

Kaupungin valoihin oli huipentunut Chaplinin "mahdottoman rakkauden trilogia". Ankaralla 1930-luvulla chaplinilaista tunteilua alettiin arvostella, ja Charlie otti kritiikin huomioon. Uusi elokuva, joka sai nimekseen Nykyaika, heijastikin ajan todellisuutta. Sen aiheisiin kuuluivat liukuhihnatyö, nälkä, työttömyys ja poliisiväkivalta. Erityisen satiirin kohteena oli F. W. Taylorin tieteellisen liikkeenjohdon menetelmiin perustuva tehdastyö, jossa tehokkuus viedään äärimmilleen. Nykyaika ei ole poliittinen elokuva eikä yhteiskunnallinen analyysi, mutta visiona koneiden aikakaudesta ja vieraantuneesta työstä se on kohonnut tunnuskuvan asemaan. Kuva Charliesta juuttuneena tehtaan rattaisiin on iskostunut historian kirjoihinkin. Yhteentörmäys esineiden ja koneiden kanssa oli alusta pitäen kuulunut Charlien aihepiiriin. Nykyajassa satiiri avartui tietoisesti näyksi – nykyajasta.

Kaupungin valot oli Chaplinin elokuvista kehittynein, hiotuin ja ehjin kokonaisuus. Nykyaika sitä vastoin palasi yhtäältä vanhaan, ja on sanottu, että se on rakenteeltaan kuin kokoelma Mutual-lyhytelokuvia, joiden nimet voisivat olla Tehdas, Vanki, Vartija ja Laulava tarjoilija. Mutta toisaalta Chaplin tarjosi paljon uutta. Komiikka oli jalostunut; André Bazin luonnehtii sitä koruttomaksi, ehdottomaksi ja luontevaksi. Bazin arvioi myös, että Nykyajassa Chaplin eteni pantomiimista balettiin. Uutta oli myös kuvatun ajan kovempi henki; kulkuri oli entistä ankarammin yhteiskunnan armoilla. Ennen kaikkea naispäähenkilö oli uudenlainen. Paulette Goddardin tulkitsema kulkurityttö on aktiivinen selviytyjä, jonka itsenäistä tarinaa seurataan enemmän kuin naispäähenkilöitä Charlien aikaisemmissa elokuvissa, poikkeuksena Nainen Pariisissa. (Elokuvassa tytöstä käytetään sanaa "gamin", mutta Chaplin itsekin korjasi sanan sittemmin oikeaan muotoon "gamine"). Chaplin oli tutustunut Goddardiin vuonna 1932 ja koki tämän kanssa elämänsä siihen asti onnellisimman rakkaussuhteen; tämäkin säteilee elokuvasta. Nykyajassa kulkuri astelee ensi kertaa lopussa taivaanrantaan nainen rinnallaan. Uutta on vielä sekin, että tunnelataus elokuvassa liittyy enemmän naiseen kuin Charlieen.

Chaplin teki Nykyajan vielä kerran uhkarohkeasti mykkäelokuvana. Charlie ei lausu elokuvassaan ainoatakaan vuorosanaa; hän laulaa vain "Titina"-laulun. Musiikki sai sitäkin suuremman sijan. Tunteen mahti Nykyajassa liittyy oleellisesti musiikkiin, ja Nykyaikaan Chaplin loi kunnianhimoisimman musiikkinsa. Chaplin ei osannut nuotteja, mutta hänellä oli säveltämisen lahja. Hänen vahvuuksiaan olivat melodia ja harmonia ja kyky rytmittää musiikki toimintaan. Chaplin valmisteli Nykyajan musiikkia neljän ja puolen kuukauden ajan sovittajinaan David Raksin ja Edward Powell. Pääkumppanina oli David Raksin (1912–2004), sittemmin kuuluisa elokuvasäveltäjä, jolle Nykyaika oli ensimmäinen elokuvamusiikkityö. Myöhemmin hänet opittiin tuntemaan mm. Lauran tunnusmelodian säveltäjänä. Suorapuheisuutensa vuoksi Raksin (23 v) sai saman tien potkut, mutta mietittyään toisen kerran Chaplin palkkasi rehellisen ja innokkaan Raksinin uudelleen, ja rankka mutta onnellinen työ alkoi. Oli valmistettava puolitoista tuntia musiikkia 60 hengen orkesterille. Kohtaukset, eleet ja vivahteet synkattiin sekunnin murto-osan tarkkuudella. Äänitysvaiheessa Chaplinilla oli palkkalistoillaan kokonainen sinfoniaorkesteri kuusi viikkoa. Chaplinilla oli siihen varaa, ja hän maksoi kaiken omasta taskustaan.

Nykyajan musiikki on Chaplinin "vahvin, kompleksisin ja kekseliäin" (Timothy Brock). Se viestittää itsenäisellä tavallaan sanomaa koneellisesta maailmasta. Musiikin tarkoitus ei ole toistaa sitä mitä jo näemme, vaan tuoda elokuvaan uusi ulottuvuus, ja keskeisenä on tunteen maailma. 1930-luvun puolivälin äänitystekniikalla musiikista tuli kuitenkin kuuluviin vain pinta: rytmi, melodia, rakenne ja synkronisuus. Sinfoninen harmonia, syvyys ja vivahteikkuus eivät välittyneet ääniraidalta. Timothy Brock käytti 14 kuukautta restauroidessaan Nykyajan partituurin ja stemmat vuosina 1999-2000, ja tulos oli sen arvoinen. Kun kuulin Brock-sovituksen ensiesityksen Bolognan kaupunginoopperassa 2000, musiikki jäi soimaan mieleen päiväkausiksi. Koskaan Nykyaika ei ole ollut niin sykähdyttävä ja pakahduttava kuin ison orkesterin tulkintana elävässä konsertissa.

Antti Alanen

Richard Leacock and Valerie Lalonde (2009 DocPoint festival)

Valerie Lalonde and Richard Leacock. Photo from: Richard Leacock & Valerie Lalonde: The Paris Years 1989–2009.

It was a pleasure to have coffee with Richard Leacock and Valerie Lalonde, guests of honor of the DocPoint festival, in the lobby of the President Hotel in Helsinki. Richard Leacock is probably the last major direct link to Robert Flaherty, the father of the documentary film.

L'Inde fantôme 2: Choses vues à Madras / Phantom India 2: Things Seen in Madras

Louis Malle: L'Inde fantôme 2: Choses vues à Madras (FR 1969). A festival at the Kapaleeshwar Temple on the outskirts of Madras. The car of the juggernaut.

L'Inde fantôme: réflexions sur un voyage. 2: Choses vues à Madras
Phantom India: Reflections on a Journey. 2: Things Seen in Madras.
Intian päiväkirja 2: Madrasin näkymiä.
    FR 1969. D: Louis Malle. Brilliant restored version, superb print by AFF / CNC, with e-subtitles by Lena Talvio. 52 min. Viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 22 Feb 2009. – I saw the beginning: the Car of the Juggernaut. A magnificent scene of religious fervour and mass feeling.

Kekkoslovakia 1

A compilation video by Ilkka Kippola and Jari Sedergren, prepared for this screening. 82 min. Viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 22 Oct 2009. - The career and times of Urho Kekkonen (1900-1986), President of Finland in 1956-1981. Displayed in the newsreels, showing both the facade, with glimpses behind.
+
Urho Kekkonen. FI 1961. D: Harry Lewing. 37 min. Colour. The official propaganda film for the presidential election. Brilliant colour in the 35mm print.

L'Inde fantôme 5: Regards sur les castes / Phantom India 5: A Look at the Castes (2009 restoration AFF / CNC)

Louis Malle: L'Inde fantôme 5: Regards sur les castes / Phantom India 5: A Look at the Castes (FR 1969).

Intian päiväkirja 5: Kasteista. 

    FR 1969. PC: Nouvelles Editions de Films / ORTF. P: Claude Nedjar. 

    D: Louis Malle. DP: Etienne Becker - shot on 16 mm - colour - blowup to 35 mm. ED: Suzanne Baron. S: Jean-Claude Laureux. Commentary read by: Louis Malle. 

    52 min

    The restored version by AFF / CNC, e-subtitles by Lena Talvio, viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 21 Jan 2009.

Brilliant image in the print, gorgeous for instance in the colourful laundry (dhobi) sequence.

Magisterial. The US development assistance worker. The ancient music instruments. The folkloristic episode. The villagers got used to us. Beyond the routine, the unexpected. The precious cow manure. The carrying of water. 

The strange work patterns lead us to the hidden caste system. For the foreigner, it is incomprehensible, invisible, it is a silent agreement, an unconscious reflex, abolished from the Constitution. Since thousands of years, there are the four castes: 1. Brahmins, 2. Kshatriyas (warriors, nobility), 3. Vaishyas (merchants), 4. Shudras (workers, farmers, service providers, laborers) - and the casteless.

In this village, there were 20 castes. - The terms pariah, untouchable, caste, are invented by Europeans, not used by Indians. - The reality is more complex. - The casteless are called the Harijan (the children of God). The situation is comparable with the one that existed in the Old South of the U.S. between the whites and the blacks. - A young harijan was burned. The police was supposed to intervene, but there was a wall of silence that prevented it. - The greatest victims of the system are its greatest defendants. - The water pipe. The pure and the impure bath-house.

The taboos are losing some of their might, especially in the cities. - How one bathes, eats, smokes. - In the West, the individual is supreme, in India, the relations. - A charming outdoor school on the ceiling of the bath-house. The teachers belong to the brahmin caste. - The blind camel circles the grindstone that mixes the seed.

The concept of the freedom of the individual is unknown. - The man who is the water-lifter: the dharma. The system of exchange. The agrarian communism. Now connected with land ownership. The village goes in debt to the rich. The castes turn into classes.

The mountain tribe who has moved to the plains: isolated, fateless. - Laundry, the dhobi, the ancient way of beating against the rock, without soap. - Even in Madras, there are hundreds of the dhobi, in a precise division of labour. The laundry is ready to be picked up on the same day.

The Aryans, the Greek, the Romans, the Germans - the castes are 3000 years old - they preceded the Aryans. - In Bombay, there is a huge laundry, yet they have the dhobi. - In 1853, Marx predicted that the railway would put an end to the caste system. Instead, it still exists, hampering democracy.

The funeral, a jubileum of death. Death is not even a break in the continuous chain of existence. No punishment is final. The supreme goal is to no longer be born, to merge into the cosmos.

The modernization of agriculture. First, you have to change the consciousness. You need to look at the world in another way. - The traditional sport that resembles wrestling. Nobody follows the rules. The past can be revoked. - Panchayat: the village council. Sarpanch: the village chief. - There is an accusation of theft. But democracy and justice are only for the appearances.

Kansakunnan olohuone / The Living Room of the Nation (in the presence of Jukka Kärkkäinen and Sami Jahnukainen)

Jukka Kärkkäinen: Kansakunnan olohuone / The Living Room of the Nation (FI 2008).

FI © 2008 Mouka Filmi. P: Sami Jahnukainen. D: Jukka Kärkkäinen. Video. 80 min. A Mouka Filmi videotape, English version, with English credits and subtitles by Aretta Vähälä. 

    Viewed at DocPoint opening gala, Bio Rex, 20 Jan 2009. 

    Presented by Jukka Kärkkäinen and Sami Jahnukainen with a performance of bad English and a fine a cappella song of A Thousand Roses. - 

The visual quality of the picture is modest, not far from surveillance video.

Erkko Lyytinen's programme text: "The Living Room of the Nation follows the lives of Finns in their holiest place, the living room. By comparing the protagonist Tero's life to the events taking place in the living rooms of the other characters, the viewer is given a unique window to an essential dimension of Finnishness - how we react to other people's problems and how we talk about our own. "

"The film is a small-scale collection of manifestations of Finnishness. Tero seeks to untangle his relationship with the mother of his unborn child, and a reclusive man tries to sort out his own relationship to life. Their introverted worlds reflect something vulnerable and tender to the outside. "

"It's better to say nothing and to keep things as they are, rather than seek to change and confront one's problems - revealing one's self is admitting weakness. The film combines all the traditional Finnish virtues: forced silence, enacted humility and artificial modesty." (Erkko Lyytinen, translated by Anna Volmari).

This is a feature film about people who are not participating in active daily life: who have retired to their homes, who are almost outcasts, old, weak, sick, disabled, apathetic, mentally ill, etc. All are retired or unemployed. 

It has been quite a feat to approach them and record them on the video with such candour. This film belongs to the same tradition as On the Bowery, and such works carry the same ethical question: the human beings being documented reveal extremely private sides of their circumstances, but are we worthy of their trust? Is there enough dignity in us?

Aesthetically the film belongs to the school of Roy Andersson.

The humanity of the film is affecting, and at the same time I feel embarrassed having been such a voyeur. - AFTERWARDS I was reminded that the people appearing in the film were present in the gala evening, and they approved.

DOCPOINT OPENING GALA

Bio Rex, 20 Jan 2009

The opening gala of the magnificent DocPoint festival, 20-25 Jan 2009.

Rock the Pole: a dance troupe presented a wonderful acrobatic performance around a pole erected in front of the screen. During the official speeches they watched First Blood on a monitor, Rambo wreaking havoc on the police station.

Nyt ja nyt - kuvia Helsingistä ennen ja nyt / Now and Now - Images from Helsinki Before and Now. FI 2008. D: Pekka Uotila. 8 min. Video. A montage of vintage silent Helsinki footage and new footage shot with five vintage hand-cranked cameras. The new footage looks much clumsier. And the point is lost, as it's a video. - Beautiful live music by a string quartet (four young and lovely ladies).

Opening speeches:
- Jari Matala, Executive Director
- Erkko Lyytinen, Artistic Director

The Apollo Prize was given by Mr. Erkki Astala (YLE, Finnish Broadcasting Corporation) to
the Epidem company, dedicated to quality documentary films since 40 years.
- Jaana Wahlforss gave a long, exciting speech
- Kai Salminen gave a shorter speech

The feature film, see Kansakunnan olohuone / The Living Room of the Nation

Ruslan i Ljudmila

Руслан и Людмила / Ruslan ja Ljudmila / Ruslan och Ljudmila / Ruslan and Lyudmila. SU (c) 1972 Mosfilm, released in 1973. D: Alexander Ptushko - from the poem by A.S. Pushkin (1820). DP: Igor Gelein, V. Zaharov - Sovcolor. FX: I. Felintsyn. PD: Jevgeni Serganov. COST: Olga Krutshinina. CAST: Natalja Petrova (Lyudmila), Valeri Kozinets (Ruslan), Vladimir Fedorov (Chernomor). 147 min. A vintage print with e-subtitles in Finnish by Tuulia Lehtonen. Viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 17 Jan 2009. - A soft Sovcolor print. - The launching film of our The Secret History of Soviet Cinema curated by Lauri Lehtinen and Antti Suonio. - I watched the start only. The film has the sense of the mythical grandeur of a fairy-tale epic, as did Ptushko's Ilya Muromez. It takes place in the mythical 9th-10th centuries of the old Russian principality of Kiev. - The performance was well attended. This film has a new fascination in the era of the new popularity of The Lord of the Rings.

THE FILMS OF MIKA TAANILA 1 + PORI WITH CIRCLE LIVE

Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 17 Jan 2009.

Futuro - tulevaisuuden olotila / Futuro - en framtidsutopi / Futuro - A New Stance for Tomorrow. FI (c) 1998. Kinotar. D: Mika Taanila. 30 min. - A good SES print with English subtitles by Jaana Wiik. - Revisited: the brilliant documentary on the UFO-shaped Futuro house (1968) by Matti Suuronen.

Circle in live concert (Janne Westerlund: guitar, vocals - Mika Rättö: vocals, keyboard, percussions - Tomi Leppänen: drums - Jussi Lehtisalo: bass, vocals - Tuomas Laurila: sound design - Janne Tuomi: percussions) to the film

Pori. FI (c) 1998 Mika Taanila / Kiasma. With inserts from Porin uusi silta (The New Bridge of Pori, Adams Filmi, 1926). A triptych (like Abel Gance's Polyvision) in Cinerama proportions of three 16mm projectors and colour slides. 35 min. - A good print, a perfect performance.
Circle is a many-sided band which has been associated with space rock, experimental music, metal music, post-rock, Krautrock and maybe also neo-psychedelia. Their performance was dynamic and inspired.
The film is a tribute to the seaside city of Pori, mixing old newsreels with new footage, sewer video surveillance imagery, abstract flashes and SMPTE test and leader strip. It starts with the waves of the sea upside down, the seagull in the sky, and the new bridge (of 1926) replacing the old Charlotta. There is footage from a concert at the Yyteri sand beach, showgirls, vapour, night lights, electric towers, the half moon in the sky. The abstract passages are great.

The Wrestler

Painija / The Wrestler. US (c) 2008 Off the Top Rope / Wild Bunch. EX: Vincent Maraval, Agnès Mentre, Jennifer Roth. P: Darren Aronofsky, Scott Franklin. D: Darren Aronofsky. SC: Robert D. Siegel. DP: Maryse Alberti - shot on S-16mm - 2K digital intermediate - color - 2,35:1. "Round and Round" perf. by Ratt / Rat Attack. "The Wrestler" by and perf. by Bruce Springsteen. CAST: Mickey Rourke (Randy "The Ram" Robinson), Marisa Tomei (Cassidy), Evan Rachel Wood (Stephanie Robinson). 115 min. A Cinema Mondo release with Finnish / Swedish subtitles by Janne Mökkönen / Saliven Gustavson. Viewed at Tennispalatsi 10, 17 Jan 2009. - An intentional low definition look with heavy grain sustained in the digital intermediate. - A companion piece to Darren Aronofsky's masterpiece Requiem for a Dream. That film was about addiction. This is about performance as a masochistic show. The Ram is a show wrestler at the end of his career. His best friend Cassidy is a stripper. - The film is about dignity, pride and humanity in circumstances where those qualities would be least expected. - Mickey Rourke and Marisa Tomei are magnificent in their brave performances. The braver feat is how they expose their characters' soul rather than flesh. - The film belongs to the tradition of The Set-Up (Robert Ryan), Somebody Up There Likes Me (Paul Newman), Fat City (Stacy Keach) and The Raging Bull (Robert De Niro), but this is a different game and an original approach. - Also in this film the theme of addiction is essential.

Sjećaš li se, Dolly Bell / Do You Remember Dolly Bell?

Emir Kusturica: Sjećaš li se, Dolly Bell / Do You Remember Dolly Bell? (YU 1981). Ljiljana Blagojević (Dolly Bell).

Сјећаш ли се Доли Бел? / Muistatko Dolly Bellin? / Kommer du ihåg Dolly Bell? YU 1981. PC: Sutjeska Film, Televizija Sarajevo. D: Emir Kusturica. SC: Abdulah Sidran. DP: Vilko Filac. M: Zoran Simjanovic. LOC: Sarajevo. CAST: Slavko Stimac (Dino Zolje), Slobodan Aligrudic (father), Ljiljana Blagojević (Dolly Bell), Mira Banjac (mother), Boro Stjepanovic (Cvikeras), Zika Ristic (Cica). 110 min. A SFI print deposited by Sandrews with Swedish subtitles by Kajsa von Hofsten. Viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 15 Jan 2009. - A beautiful print. - My favourite Kusturica film of the ones I have seen. It is the coming-of-age story of the 16 year old Dino who loves music, gets attracted to the young prostitute whom he shelters in his dovecote, and fights violently with her pimp. - Kusturica is a pupil of Jiri Menzel, and this film has also been compared with young Fellini (I vitelloni). - His film is totally original in its rhythm, vitality, feeling for life, community, family, how he portrays the authoritarian father, the Communist ideal, and the discovery of sex. It is satirical both about the party bureaucracy and the white slave trade conducted by the pimp. The most moving scene is the one where Dino has to witness Dolly Bell being taken by a row of sex-starved youngsters. He is crying in the rain.

MARKKU LEHMUSKALLIO: SHORT FILMS

Four documentary films.
Pohjoisten metsien äänet / De nordliga skogarnas ljud / Sounds of the Northern Forests. FI 1973. 14 min
Mies jolla on kahdet kasvot / Mannen med två ansikten / The Man With Two Faces. FI 1974. 19 min
Elämän tanssi / Livets dans / The Dance of Life. FI 1975. 15 min
Mikä mies metsuri / Skogsarbetaren / The Lumberjack. FI 1977. 19 min
16mm. Viewed at Cinema Orion, Helsinki, 14 Jan 2009.
Beautiful colour in Pohjoisten metsien äänet, slightly faded in Mies jolla on kahdet kasvot, OK in Elämän tanssi and Mikä mies metsuri.
Markku Lehmuskallio is the artist of the people and the nature of the North. He makes both documentary and fiction films.
Sounds of the Northern Forests shows us the elks, the cranes, the hawks, the eagles, the fighting wood grouse, the reindeer, the owls, the swans, startled by the sounds of the chainsaw and the screaming jet.
The Man With Two Faces portrays the last wanderer of the forest, the Laplander, who meets swans making love and rearing their offspring.
The Dance of Life shows the man with eyes and hands tied in the forest, experiencing the courtship of the wood grouse and other birds of the forest.
The Lumberjack is the story of two schoolchildren preparing an essay of the modern lumberjack, so completely different from the lumberjack of the past. The modern lumberjack is well educated, versatile, an expert with huge forest machines, pretty independent in executing a clear cutting, living in populated centers, commuting to the forest with cars, working all year round in different aspects of the forest business.

Blackout

FI (c) 2008 Filmiteollisuus. EX: Jorma Reinilä, Aleksi Bardy, JP Siili. P: Olli Haikka. D+SC: JP Siili. DP: Jarkko T. Laine. AD: Päivi Kettunen. COST: Helena Paavilainen-Takala. M: Lauri Ylönen. S: Juha Hakanen. ED: Jyrki Levä. LOC: Helsinki University Hospital (HUS, Helsinki). CAST: Petteri Summanen (Pekka Valinto), Jenni Banerjee (Laura Koskimies), Irina Björklund (Anne Hartela), Ismo Kallio (Ismo Valinto), Lena Meriläinen (Hanna Kajaste), Mikko Kouki (Juha Pasanen), Mari Perankoski (Mari Koski), Mikko Leppilampi (Kari Tuikkanen), Eppu Salminen (Arto Suominen), Risto Kaskilahti (Risto Vierikko), Miitta Sorvali (ward sister), Hannu-Pekka Björkman (Aleksi Partio), Asko Sarkola (director of the hospital). Released by FS Film. Viewed at Tennispalatsi, 9 Jan 2009. - A digi-mastered look, bleak, ok in close-ups and medium shots in the hospital, not good in nature scenes. - An interesting and original thriller to the obsessive amnesia trend of 2000s cinema (the Bourne films, Mies vailla menneisyyttä, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Memento). The man wakes up from coma with a long nail in his brain and has totally forgotten certain things, including his wife, and who tried to kill him. His father (Ismo Kallio) suffers from dementia / Alzheimer's disease. He is estranged from his wife who is a minister (Irina Björklund) but gets support from an ex-policewoman who now studies the law (Jenni Banerjee). - It is a suspense thriller with serious moral and social themes. The hospitals are overcrowded. Medicine develops fast, and cures are possible that had been impossible before. How long shall a person's life be prolonged in borderline cases? Must a doctor be a killer (of the old and the hopelessly ill) in order to save lives? - This is a film based on solid performances of the actors. Only the talented Irina Björklund seems lost in this picture.

Changeling

Clint Eastwood: Changeling (US 2008) with Angelina Jolie as Christine Collins.

Vaihdokas / Changeling (SE). 

    US © 2008 Universal. P: Clint Eastwood, Brian Grazer, Ron Howard, Robert Lorenz. 

    D+M: Clint Eastwood. SC: J. Michael Straczynski. DP: Tom Stern - shot on 35mm - digital intermediate - 2,35:1 - color. PD: James J. Murakami. COST: Deborah Hopper. ED: Joel Cox, Gary Roach. LOC: California. 

    CAST: Angelina Jolie (Christine Collins), John Malkovich (Gustav Briegleb), Jeffrey Donovan (J. J. Jones), Colm Feore (James E. Davis), Jason Butler Harner (Gordon Northcott), Amy Ryan (Carol Dexter). 

    144 min. 

    Released by Finnkino with Finnish / Swedish subtitles by Jaana Wiik / Janne Staffans. 

    Viewed at Tennispalatsi 3, 9 Jan 2009.

A digi-mastered look, bleached, pared down, visually not of the best Clint Eastwood standard.

Another strong Clint Eastwood film. He has been at his best in this decade (Mystic River, Million Dollar Baby, two Iwo Jima films). 

Changeling would be unbelievable if it weren't a true story of a woman who's son is kidnapped and who receives via the police another boy who isn't hers. Then a farm is discovered with the corpses of 20 murdered boys. And still many years later a boy believed lost is found who tells what happened.

This is the story of a heroic mother who refuses to give up, is put into an insane asylum, and, still fighting, causes changes in the police system and in legislation.

It is good to see Angelina Jolie in a role that is powerful in a completely different way than Lara Croft. 

There is a convincing period feel (1928-1935).

In the music I enjoy the jazz for horns, but strings are dragging. 

Clint's tempo is slow, refreshingly so in comparison with ultra-fast cutting in some current films, yet the film might be brisker.

There is a special sting in Eastwood making a film about LAPD as the most corrupt police department and our protectors as brutalizers.

Rööperi

Aleksi Mäkelä: Rööperi (FI 2009). Peter Franzén (Krisu). Samuli Edelmann (Tomppa).

Rödbergen

FI © 2009 Solar Films. P: Markus Selin, Jukka Helle. 

    D: Aleksi Mäkelä. SC: Marko Leino – based on the novel Rööperi – rikoksen vuodet 1955–2005 (2005) by Harri Nykänen and Tom Sjöberg. DP: Pini Hellstedt – 2,35:1 – color. PD: Pirjo Rossi. COST: Tiina Kaukanen. MA: Riika Virtanen. M: Kalle Chydenius. S: Jyrki Rahkonen. 

    CAST: Samuli Edelmann (Tomppa), Peter Franzén (Krisu), Kari Hietalahti (Kari), Pihla Viitala (Monika), Kristo Salminen (Arska), Jasper Pääkkönen (Korppu), Hiski Grönstrand (Pera), Tommi Rantamäki (Sale), Juha Veijonen (Koistinen), Pekka Valkeejärvi (Uki), Pirkko Mannola (Tyyne), Leena Uotila (Tompan äiti), Santeri Kinnunen (Teukka), Kalle Holmberg (Lindström). 

    130 min

    Released by Nordisk Film Theatrical Distribution with Swedish subtitles by Markus Rautiainen. 

    Viewed at Kinopalatsi 1, 9 Jan 2009.

A digimastered look, emphasis on the blue and the brown, a little shabby.

Underworld Helsinki.

Based on the novel by the crime expert, journalist and writer Harri Nykänen, on the true story of Tom Sjöberg, of organized crime in alcohol, robbery, theft, drugs, porn, smuggling, violent assault, murder, etc. in the district of Punavuori / Rödbergen known in the Helsinki slang as Rööperi.

The film has it both ways: it both shows that crime doesn't pay and glorifies crime. Krisu perishes with heroin addiction. Kari is an imbecile. Monika dies broken-hearted. Tomppa loses his child.

Yet it makes these characters bigger than life, using slow motion and music. Aspects of the story may be polished and idealized. There is certainly a lot of interesting stuff. I laughed at the scene in which the criminals learn that keskiolut (middle-strength beer) has been certified for sale in grocery stores. "Don't they have any morals?" they ask, aware of a loss of a lucrative black market product. Probably the richest exploration of a life of crime in a Finnish film.

Elegy

Isabel Coixet: Elegy (US 2007) with Penélope Cruz (Consuela Castillo) and Ben Kingsley (David Kepesh). The Finnish title Kauneuden valta means The Power of Beauty. 

Kauneuden valta / Elegy – skönhetens makt. 

    US © 2007 Lakeshore. D: Isabel Coixet. SC: Nicholas Meyer – based on the novel The Dying Animal (2001) by Philip Roth. DP: Jean-Claude Larrieu – 1,85:1 – color. LOC: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. 

    CAST: Ben Kingsley (David Kepesh), Penélope Cruz (Consuela Castillo), Patricia Clarkson (Carolyn), Dennis Hopper (George O'Hearn), Deborah Harry (Amy O'Hearn), Peter Sarsgaard (Kenneth Kepesh). 

    108 min

    A Future Film release with Finnish / Swedish subtitles by JS.

    Viewed at Kinopalatsi 5, Helsinki, 5 Jan 2009. 

A digi-mastered look, not grating, as the film is based on close-ups and medium shots of people. – There are parallels to The Human Stain: the male protagonist is a senior professor, and the female protagonist is a young woman who faces a crisis. The affair between the two is both profoundly fulfilling and deeply disturbing. The professor's breast fetish is not exaggerated in the movie, but Penélope Cruz's charms are wonderfully displayed. Among other things, the film is a celebration of her beautiful breasts. For the female viewer, Ben Kingsley's naked body is in perfect shape, he could be 30 years old. – The professor has always been emotionally immature. One of the big themes of the story is that reaching maturity is still possible at an advanced age. – All performances are good. Patricia Clarkson is the professor's grown-up lover. Dennis Hopper and Deborah Harry are the couple who are his best friends. Peter Sarsgaard plays the perennially frustrated son.

Isabel Coixet: Elegy (US 2007) with Penélope Cruz (Consuela Castillo). A story of breast cancer. Consuela wants to enjoy the pleasures of her breasts to the full before mastectomy. 

LE TEMPS DES CERISES (CHANSON FRANCAIS) IN THE CINEMA

Wikipédia: "Le Temps des cerises est une chanson de 1866, paroles de Jean-Baptiste Clément, musique d'Antoine Renard. Cette chanson est si fortement associée à la Commune de Paris que, dans les esprits, elle fut écrite pour elle."

Quand nous en serons au temps des cerises (Quand nous chanterons le temps des cerises)

Et gai rossignol et merle moqueur
Seront tous en fête
Les belles auront la folie en tête
Et les amoureux du soleil au cœur
Quand nous chanterons le temps des cerises
Sifflera bien mieux le merle moqueur

Mais il est bien court , le temps des cerises
Où l'on s'en va deux cueillir en rêvant
Des pendants d'oreilles
Cerises d'amour aux robes pareilles (aux larmes pareilles)
Tombant sous la feuille en goutte de sang
Mais il est bien court le temps des cerises
Pendants de corail qu'on cueille en rêvant

Quand vous en serez au temps des cerises
Si vous avez peur de chagrins d'amour
Evitez les belles
Moi qui ne crains pas les peines cruelles
Je ne vivrai pas sans souffrir un jour
Quand vous en serez au temps des cerises
Vous aurez aussi des chagrins d'amour

J'aimerai toujours le temps des cerises,
C'est de ce temps-là que je garde au cœur
Une plaie ouverte
Et Dame Fortune en m' étant offerte
Ne saura jamais calmer ma douleur (Ne pourra jamais fermer ma douleur)
J'aimerai toujours le temps des cerises
Et le souvenir que je garde au cœur

This song has been popular in the movies, most famously in:
Casque d'or (Jacques Becker, FR 1952)
Prominently also in:
Le Temps des Cerises (Jean-Paul Le Chanois, FR 1937)
Jonas qui aura 25 ans en l'an 2000 (Alain Tanner, CH/FR 1976)
Kurenai no buta / Porco Rosso (Hayao Miyazaki, JP 1992)
Juha (Aki Kaurismäki, FI 1999)

P.S. 14 Aug 2011: My favourite interpretation of "Les Temps de cerises" is by Cora Vaucaire.

Jonas qui aura 25 ans en l'an 2000 / Jonah Who Will Be 25 in the Year 2000

Alain Tanner: Jonas qui aura 25 ans en l'an 2000 /  Jonah Who Will Be 25 in the Year 2000 (CH/FR 1976).

Jonas täyttää 25 vuonna 2000 / Jonas fyller 25 år 2000. 

    CH/FR © 1976 Citel Films etc. 

    D: Alain Tanner. SC: John Berger, Tanner. DP: Renato Berta - Eastmancolor. M: Jean-Marie Sénia. "Le Temps de cerises" (1866, L: Jean-Baptiste Clément, M: Antoine Renard). ED: Brigitte Sousselier, Marc Blavet. 

    LOC: Geneva. 

    CAST: Jean-Luc Bideau (Max Satigny), Rufus (Mathieu Vernier), Miou-Miou (Marie), Jacques Denis (Marco Perly), Dominique Labourier (Marguerite Certoux), Roger Jendly (Marcel Certoux), Myriam Mézières (Madeleine), Myriam Boyer (Mathilde Vernier). 

    115 min. 

    A vintage print with Finnish / Swedish subtitles by Satu Laaksonen / Maya Vanni. 

    Viewed at Cinema Orion, 1 Jan 2009.

Beautiful colour (warm and vibrant) in the print screened.

    Revisited: Alain Tanner and John Berger's masterpiece on the legacy of the 1960's counterculture. It's about utopia, idealism, activism, thinking differently, sometimes naively, even destructively. It's about social awareness, ecological thinking, agriculture, raising children, new kinds of human relations, and tantra sex. Eight main characters, all around 30 years old, all with names starting with Ma-. In the music track, the piano passages (by Jean-Marie Sénia?) are lovely.