I had high hopes for this movie and indeed, this film shows that it is possible to make films that can be more popular then American films, at least in Finland. I think that this is a pretty good film although I do not agree with many things about it. To mix a love story with a war story is in my opinion a big mistake, a blatant attempt to bring in the female movie goers. And to show that even if the lieutenant is out of control he really does not have to pay for it, except by loosing a couple of his men. I'm glad that they showed that even prisoners were shot but somehow the final message of the film is very mixed up. What are they trying to say? An officer can lose control on the battle field and that is good? Religion made the difference between the Russkies and the Finns? Russkies were mere bystanders in the war? A good film but somehow it is just a collection of things that were quite rare in the war but are displayed here as if these things happened all the time. Could have been a lot better.
Review of Rukajärven tie
