Täältä tullaan, elämä!

As a Finnish and Helsinki citizen I find this movie to be one of the best Finnish movies ever. I'd label it as "Finnish Neo-realism" if there ever was such a genre, because it represents the early-80s Helsinki in such a realistic way that it is almost part documentary. I was a kid in Helsinki those days, and I remember my city like it was in the picture. Cold, hostile and full of concrete:)

I like the way this movie is shot, it's not trying to be cool or "right" looking all the time. I guess Tapio Suominen worked with a minimum crew on the streets of Helsinki. Partly due to fact that Finnish cinema was going downhills fast (or was already in the bottom) and there was no money to spend around, but also because it worked well with the DIY-punk attitude of movie and the look. I love the way this movie looks. It looks very much like the early 80s were in Finland, sort of DDR-grey, dull and pale.

I just LOVE the way the characters speak in this movie, how they act and behave. I'm not sure what "tarkkailuluokka" is in English (sort of special class for disturbed and antisocial youth, who can't cope with normal classes in school), but like the attitude was in those days and in this movie, the kids who were in "tarkkailuluokka" were thought to be destined for criminal / jail career. The kids in this movie are very much like those in my youth. Of course there are reasons for this behavior, kids' parents drinking, not being there for the kid etc. Problems that are universal. It's a story of a young soul, who eventually will be killed in the process, because there is no place for dreamers.

Director Kaurismäki found his trusted actress Kati Outinen from this movie, in her first major movie role, and she was as wonderful as ever.

I assume this one was a significant breakthrough for the Finnish cinematography and probably one of the first ones that created a base that later developed into dozens of films about life that are nowadays called "European Art-house". It's very interesting to think about how movies like that could affect society at that time-late 70's, early 80's...first of all, the excitement is to watch it from the historical point of view. So, not to speak about the plot itself again, I'd like to focus on thoughts that seemed the most interesting to me after I watched this one. The characters may seem very typical and director's look at the problem is probably too naive for modern audience. We've got "bad guy"-character from Pink Floyd's The Wall actually, a good guy who tries to save teenagers' lives and the bunch of kids whose lives are going from nowhere to nowhere. This film could be called icon for punk generation and if I was 15 now, it would be my favorite movie probably. But another association that stops me from talking about "lost generation" is that teenagers in the movie remind me too much of "Clockwork Orange" that contains one of the most repulsive stories in the history of cinema/modern literature. In the end it leaves me with the same feeling that the story of Burgess gives-both of the sides are wrong. The society machine that stands against freedom and rock music is terrifying but still the opposite side also doesn't bring any positive feelings. Self-destruction, crimes and total lack of morale isn't something you'd like your kid to have. Still it leads to the idea that parents and society are guilty, and they sure do, but not necessarily it always affects the victims of that attitude so harsh. They can stay human anyway. What I'm trying to say is that the film shows some positive sides of teenage characters but still I don't feel sorry for them. Well, anyway it doesn't cancel the fact that the problem of generations is eternal and we have to think and talk about it. Especially it was necessary in revolutionary times like 70's. So I was pretty happy to watch this movie that may not be very shocking and doesn't open many new horizons for the modern viewer but gives themes for thoughts and discussion.

Jussi (Esa Niemelä) is a student on a special class for problematic youths in a school in East Helsinki during the punk rock era of the late 1970s. Many of his classmates come from broken homes and display different signs of rebellion against various authority figures, something that is only understood by their kind teacher "Pappa" (Pertti V. Reponen). After getting in trouble with the school once again, Jussi runs away from his home and spends days wandering around the town, with or without his classmates Pete and Lissu (Tony Holmström and Kati Outinen). Can there be a sensible solution for his desperate escape?

The film mainly utilizes a non-flashy documentary-like approach to its troubled characters. The rawness is effectively emphasized by beginning the film with footage of an authentic childbirth ("Life, here I come" indeed!) and a punk rock concert of Pelle Miljoona that sets the mood for the story excellently. True to the realistic style, the characters are not portrayed as badass street punks; most of the time they don't talk very much and often just run away when confronted, but the atmospheric style has its problems too. Since the young actors were all amateurs, they often cannot carry the quiet scenes with their charisma or screen presence only, and we are not left with much to enjoy during the long wandering sequences like Jussi and Pete's drunken night out. Occasionally the film catches a fleeting feel of fragility beautifully though, such as when Jussi sadly crawls under a playground slide to sleep. The best one of the young actors is clearly Kati Outinen who has later appeared in many Aki Kaurismäki films, but Esa Niemelä as the protagonist Jussi also succeeds decently in his first of only two credited acting jobs. None of the adult actors give any reasons to complain either.

Personally I think very fondly of the setting in East Helsinki since I was born and raised there and recognize many of the locations seen in the film, but even when observed from a more objective point of view, the gray infrastructure suits the overall style very neatly. Contrasting with the bleak suburb, the other main setting of the story is the city center with its colourful lights and busy streets. Especially the dramatic climax on the wet, gleaming streets and the ledge of the City-Center building (a.k.a. "Makkaratalo") looks very good and ends the tale of modern anxiety powerfully.

I absolutely loved Täältä tullaan, elämä! when I first saw it, but after several rewatches I've noticed that it doesn't quite hold up as strongly as I first thought it would. Some tightening of the pacing and better supporting actors could have helped the whole, but there's plenty to like in the film as it is now too. The apathetic atmosphere, lack of interest from the parents and the innocent relationship of Jussi and Lissu ring true, and the visuals are in tune with the story, so ultimately the film is a fairly enjoyable effort and well worth checking out at least once.

This movie brings me some frightening childhood memories. This was the reality I was growing up in and it explains why I never went to the toilet at school. Watching this I became also relieved because I got an insight into the problems the bigger guys had and I now understand that much of my fears were exaggerated.

I am sorry, and I am well aware that this movie is not about me but "Täältä tullaan, elämä" is a trip to my personal Stone Age, the early eighties when all the bullies at school relieved their frustrations by listening to punk rock and smashing some things into pieces. I didn't understand anything about that young anarchy back then but this movie gave me a valuable insight.

The concept of the movie is the most ordinary one: a young boy discovering life's mysteries by learning by trial and error. Nothing surprising but it is interesting because it is about life. There are however some stereotypic characters, like the over-dominant school principal, but the special class teacher character seem to have some other level too than the teacher's one.

The boy who lead the main role hardly ever appeared in any other film, and he actually does very little acting in this too. He's just quiet for the most of the time. The fans of Kati Outinen get to spot her as the girl of the story.

A classic showing the atmosphere of a troubled suburb of Eastern Helsinki in the 80s. The main character is well built and played more than well. In fact, all the characters are done the same way, too. The directing and camera work reflect the era. Setups and casting all fit together. Especially important is that this film has captured quite some parts of Helsinki that have gone quite some time ago. A perfect example to film in places knowing that they no longer exists soon. This film has captured so many locations and the spirit of that time. The story plus the plot is excellent. A troubled kid, or to say kids, do have emotions. This displays it well.