Rosso (1985)

Giancarlo Rosso, a Sicilian hit man, gets a job to kill someone in Finland. His new target is Maria. Rosso arrives in Helsinki, buys weapons, and comes in hers apartment. After seeing that ... See full summary »

Director:

Mika Kaurismäki

Writers:

Dante Alighieri (monologue), Aki Kaurismäki (monologue),

Stars:

Kari Väänänen, Martti Syrjä, Leena Harjupatana

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kari Väänänen	...	Rosso
Martti Syrjä	...	Martti
Leena Harjupatana	...	Maria
Mirja Oksanen	...	La Raggazza
Maija-Liisa Majanlahti	...	La cassiera di banca
Orazio Anelli	...	Il capo
Arli Fiila	...	Il padre
Liisa Kalliomaa	...	La madre
Leean Langri Jr.	...	Il commerciante di armi (as Langri Jr.)
Giuseppe Leocata
Antonio Rosalio
Giuseppe Rosario
Tauno Pollari
Matti Ahonen
Pertti Halkonen

Storyline

Giancarlo Rosso, a Sicilian hit man, gets a job to kill someone in Finland. His new target is Maria. Rosso arrives in Helsinki, buys weapons, and comes in hers apartment. After seeing that apartment is deserted, he runs into her brother Martti and, although not speaking each other's language, together they go to find her...

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Plot Keywords:

sicilian | finland | dante | killer | road movie | 

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Genres:

Drama | Crime

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Details

Country:

Finland

Language:

Italian Finnish Swedish

Release Date:

11 October 1985 (Finland)

Also Known As:

Reise in die Finsternis

Filming Locations:

Helsinki, Finland

Box Office

Budget:

FIM 300,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Jörn Donner Productions, Villealfa Filmproduction Oy

Technical Specs

Runtime:

76 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The only line spoken by Marja is a single "Ciao" at the end.

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Crazy Credits

Credits are in italian, althought the film is Finnish

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Connections

Featured in Scenes Under the Midnight Sun (1987)

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Soundtracks

"La Traviata"
Giuseppe Verdi

User Reviews

adrift in Finland

The best way to approach this disarming Finnish import is to imagine a mock existential road movie, set in and around Helsinki, where a burned-out Sicilian gunman is given orders to redeem himself by killing a woman who was once his lover. Of course nothing proceeds as expected, for either the reluctant assassin or for unsuspecting viewers. Against his better judgment, the hapless killer joins forces with his intended target's irrepressible brother, and despite the language barrier between them begins an aimless quest the length and breadth of Scandinavia, at first for the elusive, beautiful Marja, but finally for any way out of his spiritual crisis. In the end he finds neither, and as a result the film is little more than a low-key (if often engaging) shaggy dog story, drawing from both European and American role models, but shaded with a lackadaisical midnight sun mentality.