Fallen Leaves (2023)

I had never seen a Finnish flick before. My dad and I decided this was one of the more promising entries in the AFI European Union Film Showcase. A runtime of 81 minutes may have contributed to that assessment.

In Helsinki, Ansa (Alma Pöysti) and Holappa (Jussi Vatanen) both have trouble keeping jobs and making ends meet, Holappa because of his alcoholism, Ansa more from bad employers. After a couple happenstance encounters, they quickly develop an interest in each other. But for reasons that are unclear to me, they don't exchange names, which makes connecting a little difficult when they get even less lucky. Ansa also considers heavy drinking a dealbreaker.

I was going to describe the setting as very modern, but Wikipedia asserts that the filmmakers deliberately mix things up on that score. Much of the technology is outdated, yet the radio constantly spouts news about the February 2022 Ukraine invasion, and a wall calendar says 2024. This is a strange choice, given how otherwise credible the story is.

OK, maybe it's mostly simplicity that made the movie seem credible (and a lot longer than it really is). Several characters come across as shockingly rude, tho perhaps Finns have a blunter culture, as well as a more dismal one (hope you like emo rock lyrics). My dad's one criticism right afterward was that when Holappa goes cold turkey, he shows absolutely no symptoms.

Comic exaggeration? Perhaps. Others in the theater laughed far more than I did. To me, the humor was too understated. Had I watched alone, I might have classified FL as a drama with quirky moments.

Director Aki Kaurismäki has an unusual style: He never shoots a second take if he can help it, and he tells the actors not to rehearse or even read the script much. That may explain why characters rarely show strong emotions. This didn't bother me, because it was always obvious enough how they must be feeling, and the quiet delivery meshed with the overall aura.

FL was OK for adding variety to my viewings, but it doesn't make me want to check out more from the same people. I'd prefer something meatier.