Laitakaupungin Valot (2006)
Genre: Drama / Crime
Duration: 78 minuten
Alternative title: Lights in the Dusk
Country:
Finland / Germany / France
Directed by: Aki Kaurismäki
Stars: Janne Hyytiäinen, Ilkka Koivula and Maria Järvenhelmi
IMDb score:
6,8 (8.787)
Releasedate: 3 February 2006
This movie is not available on US streaming services.
Laitakaupungin Valot plot
The naive night watchman Koistinen is an unfortunate plodder, constantly looking for a glimmer of hope in the harsh and distant world. His fellow man and the cold mechanics of the modern city seem to systematically crush his dreams. For a moment the tide seems to turn when a spark jumps between him and the beautiful and mysterious Mirja. But criminal elements misuse his need for affection and his position as a security guard in plotting a break-in, and Koistinen bears the consequences.
Actors and actresses
Koistinen
Mirja
Aila
Lindholm
Russian
Russian
Russian
Shift Boss
Supervisor
Security Guard
Reviews & comments
Hannibal
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- 9381 messages
- 3309 votes
I completely agree with Kapp's above criticism.
The main character either enjoyed suffering, or he was just very stupid, because he just sought out misery.
- He approaches 3 very strong, unfriendly men to tell them that they have to take care of their dog.
- He blindly trusts a woman who starts talking about marriage at the first meeting, even takes her on his rounds and lets her watch as he enters the jeweler's PIN code.
- When the lady visits him after her misdeed, he simply lets her leave, even though he SEES that she is trying to trick him again.
- Once he has the stolen goods on his table, he simply sits down and waits for the police.
- His dumbest action was that he wants to kill someone with a knife, approaches the man and holds his knife out in front of him a kilometer in advance, giving him enough time to react and stop him.[/spoiler ]
Those criminals looked like the tough guys from Donald Duck, but I was surprised that they weren't wearing masks. When they are playing a card game, one of them stands behind with his hands behind his back, legs a little wide, looking tough. You could tell that they had always wanted to become crooks, and are proud that they succeeded.
What I did like was the dark atmosphere, which is apparently very Finnish. You regularly saw shots of Helsinki, but there was hardly anyone on the street. People are sitting inside, grumpy because the winter in their country lasts so long. They do not see it as an advantage that they only have to deal with mosquitoes for one month a year, no, Finland is miserable, and the people who live there know that.
2.5*
Translated from Dutch · View original
mjk87 (moderator films)
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- 14637 messages
- 4567 votes
I was always fascinated by a still from this film with the blonde girl in dark blue, a man next to it on a bright red background. I always had the feeling that I was dealing with a family drama somewhere in Lapland. Before I finally saw the film, I already knew that it would be a completely different film. That saves some disappointment on that front, but in the end I got it in a different way.
There's a good film hidden here somewhere about loneliness and mild poverty in a big city. Beautiful atmospheric images, both outside with large panoramas and in interiors. But I think the film is extremely weak because everything is so magnified and especially the main character who is not sad because he is lonely, but because he apparently wants to be and secretly only because that suits this film. Far too apathetic, too unbelievable and it started to bother me enormously. And since the entire film is built around his person, the film didn't touch me either. Now those short 45 minutes were quite easy to watch and the picture was certainly not boring, but irritation and especially disappointment dominated. Therefore 2.5*.
Translated from Dutch · View original
Fisico
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- 10039 messages
- 5398 votes
Kaurismaki's style is obvious. Does this have to be repeated with every film? Depressing lonely characters in a dreary setting. I like his style. Always with that striking soundtrack.
Always very sober, with silent characters who barely utter two sentences in a row. Emotionless and indifferent contacts, as if empathy has been consciously wiped away.
An interesting plot where a guard is tricked into committing a crime. There's nothing better than a beautiful woman to seduce (and deceive) a man. Quite enjoyed this movie! That subtle humor, although being funny is very far away, remains beautifully woven into the whole. Fine!
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