This adaptation of the Finnish novel of the same name by Rosa Liksom transfers the plot of the book to the 1990s and the destination of the trip to the Kola Peninsula. The basic idea, however, remains the same: Despite several attempts to escape her incidental travel companion on the long journey to Murmansk, Laura is forced to come to terms with the uncouth Ljoha. On the day-long trip Laura not only watches the geographical distance between her and her lover in Moscow grow; the further she leaves the familiar metropolis, and by extension Irina, behind her, the closer Laura and the stranger Ljoha grow. Though she initially sleeps on the compartment's upper bunk and he cannot afford the on-board restaurant, both gradually discover their similarities and, above all, vulnerabilities. The fact that they belong to different social classes and are interested in completely different things becomes unimportant in view of the blossoming affection between them. Thus it is, close to one another for days in a train compartment, that all loneliness in the deserted landscape of the Arctic Circle is overcome.
1:2.35 [Cinemascope]
Andris Feldmanis, Livia Ulman, Juho Kuosma
J-P Passi
5.1 Digital
Kari Kankaanpää
Seidi Haarla, Yuriy Borisov
Achtung Panda!
eksystent Filmverleih
Jakob Kijas
Juho Kuosmanen - born 1979 - is Helsinki based filmmaker. He graduated from ELO Helsinki Film School of Aalto University in 2014. His first two films have won a prize in Cannes Film Festival. The Painting Sellers (2010) won the 1st prize in Cannes Cinéfondation and The Happiest Day in the Life of Olli Mäki (2016) won The Prix Un Certain Regard. Besides making award-winning films, he has directed avant-garde opera and theater. He also makes silent short films with live music and foleys. He is the co-founder and artistic director of a small film festival in his birth town Kokkola.