Ohjus

The Missile is more than a film; it is a celestial experience, a manifestation of pure divine artistry brought to the screen. Watching this movie feels as though the universe itself has descended to reveal its mysteries to us. It transcends the very concept of cinema, presenting itself as a holy revelation that goes beyond art to touch the soul directly.

Each frame radiates a flawless brilliance, a shimmering truth that surpasses any mortal understanding. It's as if every single second of the film channels a divinity beyond the bounds of human imagination. The Missile achieves cinematic perfection of such magnitude that it cannot be confined to the limits of our human comprehension. This is film-born perfection, a masterpiece that transcends all known artistry, reaching into a realm that defies the very concept of what we can conceive.

In The Missile, humor, drama, and beauty blend into a perfect unity that lifts the heart to a plane of profound spiritual awakening. Miia Tervo has not merely directed a film-she has channeled a vision of absolute, awe-inspiring artistry. This is a cosmic gift to humanity, a transcendent, almost mystical offering that fills us with reverence. It is a miracle in motion, a cinematic event that not only redefines what a film can be but reaches into the core of existence itself, leaving audiences in a state of reverence and gratitude beyond words.

This film is a masterpiece. The depiction of Lapland in the 1980s feels incredibly authentic. The film looks, sounds, and captures life as it was in the backwoods of Finland when the great Soviet Union loomed just behind the Iron Curtain. An important theme is a female character navigating a man's world, trying to find her place-not through money, education, or physical appearance, but by being true to herself. She is not a stereotypical woman who solely relies on men or, conversely, one who entirely rejects them.

As seen in this film, life can be heartbreaking and ugly, yet surprisingly beautiful at times. The cinematography, music, and dialogue within the peculiarities of everyday life are spectacularly captured by Miia Tervo once again. This film surpasses her previous work, Aurora. But don't just take my word for it-see the film for yourself.

Who would have thought that a reserved, homespun single mother of two married to an abusive imprisoned husband could turn her life around by writing about the dangers of nuclear proliferation? But, if you're Niina Kuittinen (Oona Airola), a young housewife living in rural Lapland, that's precisely what happens when she takes a reporting job with a local newspaper and unwittingly stumbles into a story that almost any intrepid journalist would kill for - the crash of an off-course Soviet missile in the Finnish wilderness in 1984. She eagerly investigates the incident, despite limited experience as a reporter, little knowledge of nuclear weapons and resistance from her publisher (Hannu-Pekka Björkman), who doesn't want to upset the locals with such depressing talk, insisting instead on running only upbeat but innocuous human interest stories. Niina is undeterred, however, throwing herself into a story that garners international attention, regardless of the challenges she faces. In doing so, she grows and matures, finding her footing as a newly empowered woman, as well as finding new love in a handsome, adoring and attentive military man (Pyry Kähkönen). Niina's transformation gives her purpose and helps her to prepare for the impending release of her incarcerated toxic husband (Tommi Eronen), who returns home promising he's changed, despite evidence to the contrary. Niina's new life thus begins, ironically, thanks to her immersion in a devastating subject - but one that ultimately imbues her with a healthier, more realistic outlook on the wider world and the nature of her existence. Writer-director Miia Tervo's fact-based third feature outing is another of those unexpected cinematic gems that effectively mixes genres in coming up with a delightful and enlightening film. Much of the first half presents a colorful portrait of the protagonist's hometown, family and neighbors, featuring ample humor that's decidedly quirky, deliciously deadpan and superbly understated, not unlike the folksy, unassuming laughs prevalent in movies like "Fargo" (1996). But, as Niina's story unfolds, it takes on more serious overtones as viewers witness the character develop into someone who leaves behind the crippling naivete and obsequiousness that have long been holding her back. Admittedly, the film begins to drag a bit in the last act, needlessly stretching out material that's easy to predict without having to belabor it. Nevertheless, "The Missile" is one of those pictures that audience members are likely to come away from feeling as though they've been warmly welcomed into a community of loving family and friends whom they've known for a long time but without the unduly burdensome trappings of schmaltz and sentimentality. And there's a lot to be said for that, even if it takes a little taste of Armageddon to get us there.

I'm somewhat conflicted in how I feel about this film. On the one hand, I think it would be too dry to have a movie solely about this incident regarding the missile, especially considering that the only settings available would always have to be this frozen Lappi countryside and the various dark indoor areas. Therefore, the (rather predictable) idea to combine it with a family drama was what they went with.

The leading lady acted wonderfully and the most powerful part of the movie was its portrayal of domestic abuse, and how adults can almost develop two personalities when talking to children or other adults.

However, the development of the missile story itself was very long, and often quite tedious. The choice was to make the military unsympathetic and Lapin Uutiset the underdogs, but again without the kind of "drive" from those main characters, we get bogged down at a snail's pace. I've not seen a great deal of Finnish cinema yet, but Hannu-Pekka Björkman appears to be in every Finnish film ever made. He's great in this, and his simple one-on-ones with Oona Airola are probably the finest moments that we get. The interaction and perplexion as these no-hoper alcoholics mix for the only time in their lives with the top brass at the BBC - that kind of stuff was really enjoyable.

But there's just not enough of it. I didn't know that this was a true story (the missile part at least) until a wikipedia search the day after viewing. Like most flawed historical films, it doesn't handhold enough and relies too much on the kind of angst (in this film's case, nuclear angst) that as a viewer I just didn't feel. Therefore, the choice to build the suspense wasn't a correct one, and I think a shorter, sweeter film that cut out the extended "people sitting down in meetings" scenes and "people having inconsequential shower conversations" scenes (although the Väyrynen joke was a good one) would have been a much stronger one. But this is Finnish cinema we're talking about: there HAS to be 30 minutes of the film dedicated to people talking inconsequentially (or not at all) in meeting rooms.

However, in spite of all my criticisms, there are a lot of laughs and our two main protagonists have great on-screen chemistry. The metaphorical duality of dangers at home and dangers for the world was written and played out well - it just needed better editing.

Is this movie a comedy or a drama? The movie want to be both and that is it's biggest problem. The first half of the movie have some funny moments, and the movie is ok. But in the second half the movie is more of a drama, also ok, but because it didn't build up as a drama in the first part it falls flat, and the movie becomes worse the longer it goes. The director Miia Tervo does a good job. Oona Airola is good, as well as Emma Kilpimaa, as actresses. The cinematography is good. For me it was also unclear why the movie is set in 1984, it's nothing in the story that make that decision clear, maybe it only was to be able to use 80's music.