Talvisota

I have watched Talvisota for two times and it was even better than in the first time. It's a very realistic movie about the 105 day Winter War, which was fought between Finland and Russia in 1939-1940. The movie follows an infantry regiment from Lapua, and particulary private Martti Hakala. The movie starts when the men are called to an extra training session, but soon they are transported near the border and, soon after that, to the frontline, where they are trying to stop all the russian attacks. The combat scenes look good and realistic. They usually consist of Finns trying to stop the Russian human wave from getting in to the Finnish trenches, but every battle is still different, when the number of Finnish soldiers is decreasing and decreasing and the battles are getting more desperate. And of course, sometimes it's the Finns attacking. Technically the movie is also very good. The sounds really make you feel as if you where there, in the middle of combat, thanks to the sound designer Paul Jyrälä. I have always liked scenes with added slow motion, especially in war movies. This movie features some, and they are in really great places (for example, in one scene a soldier is running to the HQ during a bombardment, trying not to get hit by a grenade. And all is shown in a cool slow motion!) The explosions also are very well done, with pieces of ground, ice and trees flying in the air.

I can't say anything bad about this movie. Sometimes it reminds me of Band of Brothers or Saving Private Ryan (I also like both of them) but unlike them, Talvisota tells about a war not so famous. I guess that almost everyone of you has heard about the invasion of Normandy and Operation Market Garden, but how many has heard about Taipale? How many has heard about the Winter War?

TALVISOTA (Winter War) deals with the 1939-40 Russo-Finnish War, a largely forgotten conflict that was one of the most savage wars of the 20th century. The Soviet Union invaded Finland in November of 1939 when the Finns refused Stalin's demands to relinquish some of their territory in Karelia. The Finns were outnumbered 50-1 but fought with incredible courage and tenacity and inflicted a half million casualties on the Soviets before they were forced to capitulate in March of 1940. The Russians were equally brave but not as smart; they stormed well defended positions en mass and were mowed down by the hundreds. TALVISOTA brilliantly captures the horror and carnage of that war and all wars. Disturbing and depressing but also a gripping and deeply moving experience. Makes SAVING PRIVATE RYAN look like a walk in the park.

The subject is the little-known war between Finland and Russia in WWII. It is hard to imagine such a small country standing up against mighty Russia, but it happened. You get a vivid sense of the despair and carnage of fighting against overwhelming odds. The random nature of combat also strikes hard. The visuals are graphic and stunning without being over dramatized. The craziness of war is brought home by a Finnish soldier who laughingly lights up a cigarette after having his uniform set aflame by a Russian tank. Quiet moments off the battlefield intersperse the intense battle scenes. If you are a war movie fan then this is a must-see movie!

Reviewed was the English sub-titled version. For anyone primarily fluent in English it is quite interesting to hear dialogue in Finnish, a language far removed from English.

Though I'm not a great fan of war-movies I must say this one made quite the impression. I can't really tell what it was but the story struck me.

Not only did this movie give you a story about the war itself, but also on the impact it had on the families afflicted by it. Excellent acting and a chillingly choice of filming made this movie one to remember. Forget about "saving private ryan" this movie shows a war in all it's roughness without the fancy actors doing their best to be the "brave soldier" (no offense to some, but lots to others). After Full Metal Jacket (to me a totally different genre but still for many a war-movie) one of the favourite movies in the "war-theme"

This is a very nice movie about the winter war between Finnish and soviets in 1940. That is a shame to cut a lot of scenes. The quality of the DVD Belle and Blade Studios is awful. You loose a lot of important scenes, there are too true scenes which can help to understand this black period for Finland. Forget it and go to

"www.suomikauppa.fi" to get the true version.

I can't believe such a bad copy could exist in the country of cinema! So you have to watch Talvisota in the true long version 191 min.

My vote is 10 for the film and the European version and the American short version 1!