Nousukausi

If you know any of the old Norse "Ole and Lena" (Norwegian or Swedish jokes akin to "Polish jokes"), you will understand this updated illustration of the tendency of Scandinavians to be tricked or embarrass themselves. [saying this being one] This story gives the audience an interesting ride that is both exhilarating and painful - and definitely original.

A young upwardly-mobile couple get sucked into a downward, terrifying spiral that ends up changing their lives in a number of positive ways.

Kudos on a great story, fine sense of struggle, nice direction and wonderful performances. Absolutely well worth watching if not one of the best foreign films I've seen in the past year.

The theme of this film resolves around the fact that nowadays you can buy packaged "adventure" holidays for any part of the world, to deep down Amazonia or even to the North Pole, that is to say if you have the money. But what happens "when you have done it all", you will want something else, something scary with a taste of the real stuff and real risk. This is where the post modern holiday enters, why not go someplace really dangerous, two weeks in a country torn by civil war for instance. This is not too far fetched in fact I saw an advert on a newspaper offering a different holiday where you rescue crocodiles. The fact that crocodiles live in unhealthy places and tend to see you as a snack didn't seem to be a problem but on top of you had to pay to participate and these "holidays" although advertised by a charity were far from cheap. So an excellent film, a surprise that Hollywood didn't make a remake out of it but that is all the better as they could very likely mess it up, a bad surprise is that this film is so little know, the copy we saw was subtitled and hard to find.

Quite frankly, I had totally different kind of anticipations for this film, and I was very strongly taken by surprise when I actually viewed the film-- And very positively so.

Is the Finnish title perhaps misleading, if so, is it for purpose? :-)

I'd actually categorize this as 'Drama-Comedy' or something. And as comedy, I'd acknowledge this being a different kind of representative in that genre, especially for a team of Finns.

I'm not sure how foreigners could understand this film as Finns do, as I expect many of symbols (such as places etc) have distinct meaning for Finns. And for sure that might be true also for people living outside Helsinki.

But the actors were great, and plot -- even though pretty simple -- has funny indeed, and there was couple of twists and turns in it to keep one on toes.

I recommend this for a nice, light and easy entertainment for a Tuesday/Thursday evening. Not to be taken too seriously.

BR; --Tarra

This movie is so mild! I tried not to expect anything greater from this film, but still it was a big disappointment. The basic idea of the story is interesting and potential. This could have been so much better. The characters are really simple, no depth at all. It's a shame that previously talented performers Tiina Lymi and Petteri Summanen didn't make the already poor characters any better. The director just don't get the watcher emotionally involved at all with this piece of cr*p.

And the the chase sequence at the end of the movie. That's hideous!!!

Why there had to be so stupid and old solution for that situation?

It's too much used element with even more terrible way of filming it. OH NO!

I have really enjoyed myself lately the new Finnish movies as they get better and better! Nousukausi is a brilliant movie, made of a fresh and new idea. It is not only a comedy, even though it gave me huge laughs during the viewing. It is also a bit of a drama, focusing on the reality of a relationship of a two rich and talented young people, whose life is in every aspect in order -or is it?

The movie focuses cleverly on the today's values in the society, and how they affect on young people. It shows us with the means of comedy how it is like when everything you have gained and relied on is taken away from you and suddenly you have to survive without the help from the surrounding society. And in this Nousukausi succeeds very well, making it very enjoyable watching!

Definitely an enjoyable movie experience in Finnish movies!