By far the most popular movie Mika Kaurismäki has ever directed during his long career. With more than 140,000 admissions it was 2nd highest grossing domestic film of the year in Finland.
The Shakespearean quote used by Pekka in the garden is from "Macbeth" by William Shakespeare.
"Macbeth: Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player / That struts and frets his hour upon the stage / And then is heard no more: it is a tale / Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, / Signifying nothing." - Macbeth: Act V, Scene 5.
The quote Pekka speaks whilst in the house is from "Twelfth Night" by William Shakespeare.
"Duke Orsino: If music be the food of love, play on, / Give me excess of it; that surfeiting, / The appetite may sicken, and so die." - Twelfth Night: Act 1, Scene 1.
The quote Juhani speaks whilst lying in the "grave" is from "Hamlet" by William Shakespeare.
"Hamlet: How weary, stale, flat, and unprofitable / Seem to me all the uses of this world! / Fie on 't, ah fie! 'Tis an unweeded garden / That grows to seed. Things rank and gross in nature / /Possess it merely." - Hamlet: Act 1, Scene 2.