Movie Review

One thing I've realized over the last few years is that there have been movies I wanted to see but either didn't have anyone to go with or never got around to seeing them. So, I'm trying to take some time now to watch some of them. I'll post some comments here about what I've watched.

Someone recommended to me a film from 2002, Man Without a Past by director Aki Kaurismäki. I watched it the other day - the basic story is a man travels to Helsinki to find work, and is mugged right away causing him to lose his memory. He leaves the hospital after being presumed dead, and works to recreate a new life. Some thoughts I had during and after watching:
-my first reaction was with the initial mugging scene, made me think how “violence” in other movies/TV shows is often camouflaged or indirect or sugar-coated somehow in that few/no details are actually shown. (I was a bit concerned at that point about what the rest of the movie would be like). It was a similar reaction actually to when I attended a junior hockey game in Red Deer and we sat in the corner near the boards, it was a lot more violent from that perspective, as was watching the Grey Cup on TV from the overhead cable camera. I guess it’s easier to watch if you aren’t reminded how violent it truly is, does that make me a hypocrite to watch hockey/football?

I loved the humour in scenes such as meeting Hannibal the “attack dog”, the Salvation Army band on the couch listening to rock music (and slowly starting to get into it/move with the music), the lawyer suddenly appearing to the police station and getting him out then giving him a cigar, the bank robber later apologizing and asking a favour. (and for some reason, when the SA band was singing their Christian songs then a mention of there being strict rules about music … I thought about the propaganda state of North Korea and the constant mentions of Kim Jong-Il/Kim Il-Sung, in a humourous comparison sort of way).

The idea/theme of being alienated or stigmatized because you’re different in some way (e.g., job agency wouldn’t help because no name, police assumed he did something wrong, even the doctor didn’t put much effort into his care before declaring him dead ;-) ) and falling through the cracks of bureaucracy as a result strikes a personal chord for me. There is someone I know who could be so bitter about how his life has turned out (because of mental illness in this case) and yet he isn’t and instead he finds joy in small things like finding 4-leaf clovers or watching lightning storms. (just like the people in the movie, on the fringes of society living in their containers/dumpsters yet all seem friendly/helpful/hopeful, using phrases like “going out for dinner” and dressing up to go to the soup kitchen.)

Also the recurrent idea of starting over/a new life/doing things differently hit home personally – obviously there was M, who went forward rather than trying to figure out the past, but also he was able to help others do something different (Irma to experience love, the SA band to widen their musical horizons, his neighbours to experience a concert nearby). The ending has a twist I won't reveal here - ask me if you'd like.

I really enjoyed this movie and it made me realize how perhaps I've been missing out by really only seeing Star Wars/Lord of the Rings/Matrix and similar over the last few years.