Hymyilevä mies

I really enjoyed this movie. I thought I might be put off by the black and white or that it would be dull (I'm not terribly interested in boxing) but instead I loved the black and white - it was incredibly beautiful, and I never found myself bored. Instead it was sweet and charming and very romantic and I found my self both chuckling and at other times, with tears welling up. Very nicely done. My husband, who is more an action adventure kind of guy - liked it enough but didn't love it as much as I did.

This film tells the story of an amateur boxer in Finland, who decides to challenge the World Champion of boxing from the USA. He gets an agent and invites the champion to Finland for a round of home fight. The story then concentrates on how he prepares for this major tournament in Finland.

The film is black and white, which is appropriate as it is set int he 1960's. The story is about this simple man who seems to have no idea what he is doing. Olli is about to fight the match of his lifetime, and yet he is so nonchalant about it. His heart has clearly another agenda, which is not aligned with his agent's agenda. It makes me wonder why he is doing the match in the first place. His attitude and behaviour leads to the eventual inevitable outcome, but I still feel for him. Olli does have his charms, just not in the boxing ring.

Very, very good film. An unusual one with the boxing theme. Must see it. It will stay for you long after it has ended. 1962, black and White, Finnish movie. Amazing.

With a prize at Cannes, favourable reviews and complimentary buzzwords (such as 'delightful' and 'impeccable') all in the mix, you could be forgiven for believing that European cinema had chanced upon the next 'Cinema Paradiso' or 'Amelie' and unearthed the next great take on heartwarming universality. Despite this, my suspicion is that the average cinema goer will ultimately come away from viewing 'The Happiest Day in the Life of Olli Maki' slightly underwhelmed.

It would probably help to accurately define what it is, but here the film isn't shy of a bit of bobbing and weaving. Is it a boxing movie, is it a love story, is it a lovingly recreated slice of history, is it a tale of 'the little man facing mighty odds', is it a wry look at sporting optimism tainted by commercialism and self-interest? In truth, the movie invites each of these elements into the ring, feints and jabs with them, but without ever really hitting any of these targets square on.

The bulk of the story is devoted to Olli's pre-fight schedule, in the days immediately preceding the big match. So there's plenty of sparring, running and sweating on view, but this is also interlaced with the multiple promotional and commercial events Olli must attend in order to satisfy the sponsors and financiers of the bout. Rather than developing Olli's character (which remains fairly fixed as an affable, modest everyman) this routine is most successful at conveying how an event, which is billed as one man's dream, can incrementally drift away and become something he almost no longer recognises as his own. A man who merely wishes to test his talent, suddenly finds himself as a performer in a grand spectacle, carrying the weight of a nation's expectation on his shoulders. It's not 'one giant leap' to imagine a biopic of astronaut Neil Armstrong treading a similar path.

If I haven't mentioned the love story until this juncture, it's probably because, despite it producing some of the film's best moments, its presence feels a little token. Narratively, it teases us with the possibility that Raija is a distraction for Olli, dislodging his focus from 'his dream' or instead that she is actually the only genuine thing he has left to hold on to; especially given the fickle nature of the 'media circus' surrounding him. Whether it's preparing for sleep in a children's bunk bed, a stolen kiss at a local wedding reception or stealing an evening for themselves away from the pre-fight hoopla, Raija's wide-eyed openness and Olli's shuffling chivalry certainly imbue the film with some much needed emotional texture, but it's not enough. Given that we've had no access to them before the whole machinery of the 'big event' is in motion, for the most part, it's difficult to see them as much more than chess pieces in a game not of their own making.

The performances of the two leads and that of Eero Milonoff, as Olli's scheming promoter, all do the film credit, and as an impressively rendered piece of history, it's easy to see the film resonating with a domestic audience. But the rest of the art-house crowd may find the current 7.8 average IMDb rating a little generous; 6.8 is probably closer to the mark. (insert your own joke about the film not being a 'knockout' here)

A beautiful film. not memorable. but real nice. about love, sport, media pressure, a honest and modest man . nothing to reproach . nothing bad. only sin - impression to see a sketch. the viewer options for colors and lines, for define it as boxing story or love story is the thing who transforms the film as a spring drawing. the absence of director to give real roots to the story is, maybe, the lead error. sure, it is a biopic and the "true events" are enough for a reasonable adaptation. but you expect more than a neutre , interesting portrait. sure, one of good points is the predictability of story. you know the end. you expect it. and the basic motif for not be bored or apathetic is the performances of Oona Airola,Jarkko Lahti and Eero Milonoff. I admitt, I expected with enthusiasm to see this film. and I was not dissapointed. because it is a beautiful film.