Fogo no coração

A movie about real people, falling in love during the war, putting their own values ahead of parental judgments. No glamour just real struggles and hard work when two peole have a common goal and have a fullfilling life together no matter what.

Beautiful scenes of intimate relashionships between husband and wife, father and daughter, sisters and a great moment when the mother reaches out to her daughter's wrongful husband when she realizes the strength of their authentic love and gives him hope to win her back. We learn a lot of what it is to live in wartime in Finland. I compare this film to " A hidden life" and "Testament of youth". This film is incredibly comforting. An excellent choice.

Anni leaves a sheltered life with her wealthy family to marry and live with Veikko in North Karelia. Veikko is an orphan, lonely, badly wounded in the war but has a good heart.

Anni's love for Veikko is tested by the harsh realities of northern living and isolation that are so new to her. The strength love against odds of survival is probably one of the messages of the film.

Having said that, I do not suggest that we need profound messages to enjoy a film. Good acting, rich cinematography, era-appropriate costumes and settings, as well as expert direction, are sufficient ingredients to create a fine work of cinematic art. These ingredients are all present in Markku Pölönen's film.

A small trivia: The Shostakovich Waltz No. 2 is heard at the wedding, indicating that this piece, written in 1938 one year before the Soviet invasion of Karelia, was a hit, at least in Finland.

This is a lovely story of two people, virtually strangers, forging a new life for themselves in the wilderness. Anni is the headstrong daughter of a prosperous businessman. Veikko had been a mere lumberjack, but is now a wounded veteran of the 1939 Winter War when the Soviet Union invaded Finland. As a veteran, he is entitled to homestead a farm in the woods off in the boondocks and they proceed to do so. It is relentlessly hard work, and Veikko's health is uncertain.

According to the writer/director, the film's title in Finnish translates to "Our Own Land". This phrase (like our "40 Acres and a Mule") was the promise made to veterans, that they would get land of their own, and many new farms were homesteaded in this period.

The acting is solid, and the lead actress is radiantly convincing as a woman in love. This is a solid period piece, well worth seeing.

I started watching this film because the rating was 4.5 out of 5 on Amazon which in my opinion is highly misleading. I've watched nearly 3/4 of the film, but abandoned it because it's boring. I've seen plenty of great films which have had me on the edge of my seat and this certainly isn't one of them. The plot is very simplistic. There's nothing special about the acting or the music. I need to keep on writing because I have to have a minimum word count for this review. There isn't really a lot more to say. I would not recommend this film. I was expecting a lot more of the film based on rating.

Its lovely simplicity is the main virtue. It is a love story and portrait of hard fight for survive. It. Inspired photography, good performances, noble message and correct definition of beginning, it is just a beautiful film.