Two of the most popular and critically acclaimed films from Aki Kaurismäki, the king of existentialist kitsch. In Ariel Taisto heads his white Cadillac through Finland's snowy wastes in a cool search for work and love. Kaurismäki reworks Shakespeare in a rubber duck factory as the hilarious Hamlet Goes Business. Boardroom battles and poisoned directors ensue in a farcical take on the classic. The two films showcase Kaurismäki's deadpan humour and hallmark bleakness in tales that are as funny as they are touching



viewer's comments:



- After Seeing Ariel, I Will Die A Happy Man
When I first saw Ariel (A), at the beginning of the nineties, maybe three years after it was first released, it blew me away. At the time I had gone through a long streak of awful "alternative" movies, the last one having been Atom Egoyan's "The Adjuster"; I was totally depressed and fed up with cinema in general since all the movies around seemed to be either generic Hollywood block busters or equally generic "intellectual" time wasters -- "The Adjuster" being a perfect example of the latter category. When I left the cinema after having seen A, I had tears of joy in my eyes, thinking: "thank god, I do not have to give up going to the cinema after all". Ariel is exactly the movie I wish I had made, very cool, funny, stylish, engaging, romantic, hard core, subtle. I have seen it many times since, it has become my all - time favourite, desert - island movie. Of course there are other good movies around, but few which match its quality, and none of them changed my outlook on cinema the way A did. Other Kaurismäkis movies I have seen and loved are "MacBeth", "I Hired A Contract Killer", "La vie de bohème", "Tulitikkutehtaan tyttö" ("The Match Factory Girl"), "Juha"; the Leningrad Cowboy flicks were OK, but not really my cup of tea.

Anyway, I have a small anecdote I want to get off my chest: shortly after seeing A I was talking with a couple of co - workers about movies, and a friend of mine said: "the other day I saw the best movie ever, it's called Ariel, it blew me away, I haven't washed my eyes since", etc. I thought, wow, I would have never thought that she would like that movie, but there you go, truly good movies just have a universal appeal. Only years later did I find out that she had been talking about not Kaurismäkis' masterpiece but Disney's "Arielle -- The Little Mermaid". ;-)



- Nobody hurry up and get excited...
There is an overwhelming sense of calm in Aki Kaurismaki's 1988 pseudo-masterpiece "Ariel." As in all of the Finnish director's films, no one is in a genuine rush to get anywhere. But it's not calm in a Wenders way or a Kiarostami way - underneath Kaurismaki seems more than a little bitter. Of course, that doesn't keep him from keeping a sense of humor about things, though the humor itself is so muted as to be practically imperceptible to the inattentive viewer (or even to the attentive one, for that matter). Kaurismaki's calm is that of world-weary resignation, a resignation that extends to the point of being able to make life and death decisions without so much as thinking or even making a facial gesture besides. . .deadpan.

Deadpan is the look that is all over Taisto, the chain-smoking former miner looking for new work and a new life. What a guy. This is not to say that "Ariel" isn't enjoyable. On the contrary, if you can allow yourself to fall into Kaurismaki's off-kilter world view then "Ariel" is positively great. As a viewer, though, one must be willing to sit through the extremes of minimalism and find humor in odd places. In a way, "Ariel" is like "Raising Arizona" on heavy sedatives and, as with that film, you either get it or you don't. If you do, then by the final scene in which the central characters depart toward an uncertain future while "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" (sung in Finnish, of course) plays in the background, you will. . .well. . .likely want to have a cigarette, at the very least.



- Great, unique comedy.. in the Shakespeare style!
I must say one thing upfront: there are only a few films that have made a lasting impression on me over the years. And believe it or not, Hamlet liikemaailmassa is one of them. You see, I took the opportunity to see this movie just to complete my Kaurismäki knowledge -- just expecting to see another Aki Kaurismäki picture -- and whoah! Suddenly I realized that this just may be one of the best movies (or comedies at least) I have seen. And I've seen many!

I know, I know.. This isn't what you'd call a perfect movie in any sense: it's black and white made in the era of color film, acting is horrible (in a special way, like in other Aki Kaurismäki movies), the melodrama is just silly, the original Shakespeare story has been made really silly, cinematography is kitschy... But then again, all that was intentional and this movie really is a comedy.

And the comedy.. Oh my god the comedy! This is just one of those movies that present you a world you thought that doesn't even exist. Although I think much of the humor will be lost in translation, the way Hamlet liikemaailmassa pokes fun at overly serious drama like Shakespeare is just so unique and amazing that every one who's attracted to comedy with a little edge should see this film, if possible.



- No famous soliloquy here
What are you left with if you take most of the psychological motivations away from characters, and turn a story into a social tract? Shakespeare lovers and those who persist on "character development" better beware, as Kaurismaki (in my fourth incursion into his cinema) transforms the Danish prince into a horny, ruthless and spoiled rich heir, who writes bad poetry, is worried about his weight and has a terrible secret. I admit I don't like William Shakespeare much --I believe he's overrated-- so I rather enjoyed Kaurismaki's "irreverence". It is a hint that he does not even give credit to Shakespeare: this story has been told since late 12th century and apparently Thomas Kyd wrote a "Hamlet", before Shakespeare. Kaurismaki is more interested in speculating what may happen to a family like Hamlet's in contemporary settings that seem peculiarly outdated. The first 70 minutes tell the story we know, with a few licenses that in most cases are funny, or simply reveal how the rich and powerful take ruthless decisions without considering their effects on the people they rule. Kaurismaki builds scenes and sequences using resolute ellipsis, a fixed camera, and alienating and ironic music commentaries. Scenes are often resolved in a single take, and to the point (for example, the only time he sees the ghost of his father, Hamlet asks him to talk fast because he does not want to miss dinner, and Kaurismaki cuts to another scene; also there is no famous soliloquy), which made my somewhat uneasy viewing a fast experience. In an aftermath we have never heard of before, Kaurismaki grabbed my full attention, up to his sarcastic end credits against a montage of a factory while a trite tune of hope fills the soundtrack. I found it far more interesting than Brannagh's and Zeffirelli's films.




cast:
Olga Kabo
Albert Filozov
Arnis Licitis
Uldis Veispal
Valeri Smetskoy.

Country: Russia / Ukraine
Language: Russian with English subtitles
Colour