Pihalla

Saw this at Frameline41 Festival in San Francisco last month. Don't understand why it didn't have more showings. It was VERY good. Very funny. Sexy, well written and acted. Everything made sense.

I hope Wolfe Video picked it up, because this should be on everybody's wish list. Grab it however you can.

I hate movies when you have to follow a story but not with a real ending... Or at least I didnt get the point where it was going... I need my closure :D.

This coming of age story has a distinctly Nordic kink, with a quirky sense of humour and an unabashed celebration of the carefree and the individualistic. Sporting a beautiful and well balanced cast, Screwed doesn't shy away from all sides of characters' personalities, nor the lumpy parts of them dealing with the challenges in their lives. It does however handle their travails with warmth and sensitivity, and allows the cast's performances to shine and leave us with little choice but to fall in love with this motley crew, warts and all. Snuggle up with this summer romance for a dose of feel-good, sans saccharin, lumpy bits not removed.

When i red the very banal two-line-plot on IMDb, I thought i will watch a cliché gay summer movie, a typical love story encluding malignant parents, hater society, etc. This movie is nothing like that. Very original and well acted characters (especially the mothers), very nicely written and directed script, very understandable but not cliché situations which are seemingly from the real life (oh those little details!). I have to mention the camera work - photography is just nice. Watch this movie if you want a nice summer evening with thoughts and emotions, but not the overloaded Holywood way. I didn't regret a moment of it.

Surprising, first, for its freshness. For humor and large slices of eccentricity. And, sure, for acting, Mirja Oksanen and Mikko Kauppila being the good examples. Nice perspective about parenthood and image of narcolepsia. In same measure, so familiar scenes, dialogues and reactions.

A nice film for cinematography and for the wise way to tell a story too familiar to give surprises but charming at whole. A beautiful, in profound sense, love story, good performances and a special veil defining each detail.