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Leningrad Cowboys Go America (1989, Aki Kaurismaki)
“Do you know Mexico?” “… Sure.” “Go there.” Ridiculous comedy about soviet musicians who head to America to find their fortune. The movie’s deadpan consistency won me over. By the time the “deceased”...
View ArticleLeningrad Cowboys Meet Moses (1994, Aki Kaurismaki)
Sequelitis. Tyrannical band manager Vladimir returns from the wilderness claiming to be Moses, leads the group to Coney Island then to Siberia, stealing the nose of the Statue of Liberty along the way....
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November 2015 Shorts
The Benaki Museum (2013, Athina Tsangari) Lovely seven-minute advertisement for a Greek museum narrated by Willem Dafoe, children acting as curators, interacting with ancient artworks. The Boy Who Saw...
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Crime and Punishment (1983, Aki Kaurismäki)
“I killed a louse and became one myself. The number of lice remained constant … I wanted to kill a principle, not a man. Killing a man may have been a mistake.” Aki’s debut feature, restored in HD to...
View ArticleThe Other Side of Hope (2017, Aki Kaurismäki)
Another magical drama about a refugee in hiding with a carefully balanced comic tone, this was inevitably going to be compared to Le Havre, my favorite movie of a few years back, and fall slightly...
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The Match Factory Girl (1990, Aki Kaurismäki)
The MFG pays the bills, does all the cooking and cleaning for her mom and stepdad, but they still kick her out when she gets knocked up by hateful Aarne. Then she buys some rat poison and takes care of...
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La Vie de Bohème (1992, Aki Kaurismäki)
Watched on Kaurismaki’s birthday, this movie suddenly taking priority after I learned that André Wilms’s character Marcel from Le Havre originated here. Not as much rock music as usual for A.K., but...
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Drifting Clouds (1996, Aki Kaurismäki)
A couple runs into some hard luck, and perseveres. Same lead actress and ending as Le Havre. Obviously, the movie I needed right now.
View ArticleFallen Leaves (2023, Aki Kaurismäki)
Cruel to be kind, briefly uniting two recently-fired lonely losers then conspiring to keep them apart, working on themselves separately, until belatedly providing a reunion. I’m a sucker for Aki’s...
View ArticleTotal Balalaika Show (1994, Aki Kaurismäki)
Did not realize the Leningrad Cowboys (their hair in full glory) would be backed by the massive Russian Red Army Chorus and Dance Ensemble, playing to a crowd of 70 thousand. After the first guitar...
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