“Shadows in Paradise” ( Fin. Varjoja paratiisissa , at international box office - English. Shadows in Paradise ) is an art house film by the Finnish director Aki Kaurismäki with melodrama elements and black humor characteristic of the author. The first part of the so-called "Proletarian trilogy" [2] . The painting was recognized as the best film in Finland in 1986 and was awarded the corresponding national prize "Jussi" .
| Shadows in Paradise | |
|---|---|
| Varjoja paratiisissa | |
 | |
| Genre | comedy melodrama |
| Producer | Aki Kaurismäki |
| Producer | Mika Kaurismäki |
| Author script | Aki Kaurismäki |
| In the main cast | Matti Pellonpyaya Katie Outinen |
| Operator | Timo Salminen |
| Film company | Villealfa Filmproduction Oy |
| Duration | 76 minutes [one] |
| A country |  Finland |
| Tongue | |
| Year | 1986 |
| IMDb | ID 0092149 |
Content
Story
Helsinki, 1986. Nikander Matti is a garbage truck driver. The usual set of entertainment after work is a movie and a plentiful drink at the bar, which often ends with arrest and at night in the police station cell. The only possible way out could be the proposal of one of his workmates, who proposes to create his own waste processing company using credit funds. Once Nikander met with the supermarket cashier Ilona Riyamaki . Initially, the relationship is quite formal, but gradually develop into a romantic affection.
Cast
- Matti Pellonpyaya - Nicander Matti
- Kati Outinen - Ilona Riyamaki
- Sakari Kuosmanen - Melartin, cellmate Nikandra
- Esko Nikkari - Business Partnership Partner
- Kyle Köngäs - Ilona's girlfriend
- Marie Rantasila - Nicandra's sister
- Mato Valtonen - Pelle
- Aki Kaurismäki - night porter
Artistic Features
With the grayness and prosaic of everyday life of the garbage collector and his lover, the film, according to the director, sometimes inexplicably gravitates to poetic realism . In addition, the optimism of the final scene directly runs counter to his own life experience and inner state [3] .
The columnist for the American edition of Chicago Reader notes that the minimalist design of the painting owes much to the work of Robert Bresson , and the “sandy” tones are borrowed from Fasbinder [4] .
Awards and recognition
- 1987 - The Finnish National Film Award “Jussi” for the best film of the year.
- 1987 - participation in the out-of-competition program of the Moscow Film Festival .
Criticism
Igor Mantsov in the magazine " Cinema Art " gives an extremely high rating to the film [5] :
(Starting with the film “Shadows in Paradise”), Kaurismäki made a decisive step forward: from now on he takes off one impeccable masterpiece after another, varying his favorite motifs, changing countries and cities, but never leaving white spots, unprocessed lines, doubtful within the screen time frames, avoiding errors in casting, framing and editing.
At the same time, the same publication in 1988 noted that the film did not have the will of the director, who would fully develop the characters' characters and did not allow the viewer's interest and sympathy to the image created by the artist to fade [6] .
Additional Facts
In an interview, Aki Kaurismäki comments on the first preview of the picture [3] :
When I made the film “Shadows in Paradise” about garbage truck drivers, I organized the first viewing, gathering all the city garbage truck drivers. They all came with their families and were very pleased ... I remember this with pleasure. Then there was a small celebration. They said: "Our life is not quite like that, but it was funny."
Notes
- ↑ Varjoja paratiisissa: Technical Specifications // IMDb (English) (Retrieved January 9, 2014)
- ↑ By the self-determination of Aki Kaurismyaki (see Plakhov A., Plakhova E. “Success is the same as shit” // Aki Kaurismyaki. Last romantic. - New Literary Review, 2006. - 296 p. - (Film texts). - ISBN 5-86793-479-9 . ). At the same time, the director himself admits another version of the name - “Trilogy about Losers” (see Sandbaka A. “Finnish Trilogy” Aki Kaurismäki . Tampere University website (2009). Date of access March 6, 2013. Archived April 6, 2013. . )
- ↑ 1 2 Fevre K., Kaganski S. (interviewers). Shadows in Paradise . Les Inrockuptibles (1990). Date of treatment March 8, 2013. Archived on April 7, 2013.
- ↑ Shen T. Shadows in Paradise . Chicago Reader. Date of treatment March 8, 2013. Archived on April 7, 2013.
- ↑ Mantsov I. Norma . The art of cinema (No. 10, 2002). Date of treatment March 8, 2013. Archived on April 7, 2013.
- ↑ Petrova N. Shadows in Paradise // The Art of Cinema: Journal. - 1988. - No. 2 .
Links
- Shadows in Paradise on the Internet Movie Database
- Shadows in Paradise on Rotten Tomatoes