History Is Made at Night

This film couldn't decide what kind of movie it wanted to be: a serious spy film, a light comedy, a dark comedy, or a romance. The acting wasn't good. The screenplay was awful. The directing was abysmal.

The idea could have worked: a mothballed CIA agent and his former-KGB girlfriend find themselves on opposite ends of a post-Cold War dispute, putting their relationship (and their lives) in jeopardy. But much of the plot line was completely unbelievable. Also the film was too choppy and inconsistent, almost schizophrenic at times. Just when you're starting to enjoy the farcical parts of the movie, BANG! The movie turns dark. I blame the director. It doesn't appear that he had any kind of overarching plan for this movie, seemingly taking each scene individually, and setting the film adrift as a result. About the only thing going for it was sex appeal, and even that grew tiresome.

Take my advice: avoid this movie. There are better ways to spend 90 minutes.

History is made at night has to be one of the worst films the Finnish film makers have touched in years. What a shame that director Ilkka Järvilaturi -who also made the terrible "Darkness in Tallinn"- has failed with a cast and crew like this: Irene Jacob and Kati Outinen, Kari Väänänen and Bill Pullman, Vesa-Matti Loiri and Bruno Kirby for example. Good performers' talents are wasted in a junk like this! Do your self a favor and don't watch this awful finnish try to make a romantic thriller that moves in time after cold war. This is not even unintentionally funny.

Porn star Henry Saari has role in this. He plays a man in a porn video. Even this video is nicer to watch than the rest of this stupid, ridiculous...

This entertaining poke at the cold war remnants is an interesting little romp that is at times very funny and others very clever and original.

Presented at the Toronto International Film Festival by director Ilkka Jarvilaturi, the film goes from one interesting locale to another as we jump from Hellsinki to New York to St. Petersburg. Bill Pullman and Irene Jacob are secret agents from opposite sides who have romantic entanglements as they try to determine just what they mean to each other while they still have a job to do.

A mysterious and coded porno tape is intercepted in transit and the CIA attempts to decode it while stalling for time. Complications arise in the plot which gives way to some innovative yet ultimately classical comic situations. I don't know whether it's the fault of the film or the theater's sound system but at times it was difficult to follow what was happening due to the heavy accents of the (presumably) Finnish actors. Bill Pullman's comic performance in the underrated "Zero Effect" is a good warm up for this similar but distinctly different character, and he is always a pleasure to watch. Bruno Kirby also provides a solid comic contribution as a disgruntled FBI operative and the stunningly beautiful Irene Jacob graces the screen in a demure yet intriguing role as the KGB agent looking to get ahead in the ranks.

Jarvilaturi was gracious enough to stick around for a Q&A after the film and spoke of mostly the music selections and their role in the film. One audience member pointed out a subtle yet relevant continuity error that they said they were already aware of and intended to fix. This is an indication of how fresh the film was and how the pressures of festival deadlines can affect the film.

This is one of the most enjoyable movies I have seen in a long time. Also great scenes of real Finland, not some other place pretending to be Finland. Bill Pullman and and Irene Jacob have great chemistry.

I know this film from the title "Spy Games."

It is one of those man versus woman films, that also is West (American) versus East (Russian) and has the familiar James Bond-type scenario in which spies working on opposite sides are still lovers at the same time.

Bill Pullman and Irene Jacob play those two roles. It was shocking to see full frontal nudity on Jacob not once but several times. Yes, "history was made at night" if you were with her!

Pullman was okay but nothing special in his role. Actually, I had a hard time believing his role. The same goes for the movie in general: okay, but nothing so involving that you can't put it down. The premise was more interesting than what was delivered.