Fallen Leaves (Kuolleet lehdet)

Synopsis

Two lonely people meet by chance in the Helsinki night and dare to believe they might have found the first and only love of their lives. They are hampered in their efforts by their fondness for a tipple and because they manage to lose each other’s phone number before they have even shared their name or address. But then the course of true love never did run smooth.

In contrast to his earlier films, Kaurismäki here offers his characters a glimmer of hope, in a tragicomic addition to his Proletariat trilogy that brings out the best of his trademark obsessions and pared-down style.

Biography and Films

Aki Kaurismäki (Orimattila, Finland, 1957) studied journalism at the Tempere University but was soon tempted into filmmaking by his brother, Mika Kaurismäki, initially as an actor and joint screenwriter. After working alongside his brother on several films, in 1983 he struck out on his own with a film adaptation of Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment.

In 1986 he presented the first film in his Proletariat trilogy, Varjoja paratiisissa (Shadows in Paradise), followed by Ariel (1988) and Tulitikkutehtaan tyttö (The Match Factory Girl, 1990). His staunch sense of social justice and urge to combat capitalism run throughout his work, as do his trademark restrained dialogues, minimalist mise-en-scène and limited number of characters.

Kauas pilvet karkaavat (Drifting Clouds, 1996), Mies vailla menneisyyttä (The Man without a Past, 2002) and Laitakaupungin valot (Lights in the Dusk, 2006) make up his Finland trilogy. They all competed at Cannes, where Mies vailla menneisyyttä won the Grand Prix, and the final two were selected as Finland’s candidates for Best International Feature Film at the Oscars; Kaurismäki, however, to attend the Academy Awards on both occasions in protest at US foreign policy. He also competed at Cannes with Le Havre (2011), and Toivon tuolla puolen (The Other Side of Hope, 2017), won the Silver Bear for Best Director at the 2017 Berlinale.

In 2023 Kuolleet lehdet won the Jury Prize at Cannes and the FIPRESCI Prize for Best Film of the Year at San Sebastián, the third time that Kaurismäki has won this accolade from the International Federation of Film Critics, following Toivo tuolla puolen in 2017 and Mies vailla menneisyytä in 2002.