Laitakaupungin valot (2006)

User Rating:

6.9/10   

Director:

Aki Kaurismäki

Writer:

Aki Kaurismäki (writer)

Release Date:

3 February 2006 (Finland)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Plot:

In Helsinki, a lonely night watchman is caught up in a series of misadventures with a femme fatale and a crooked businessman.

Plot Keywords:

Night Watchman | Femme Fatale | Jewels | Burglary | Big City

Awards:

3 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Janne Hyytiäinen	...	Koistinen
Maria Järvenhelmi	...	Mirja
Maria Heiskanen	...	Aila
Ilkka Koivula	...	Lindholm
Sergei Doudko	...	Russian
Andrei Gennadiev	...	Russian
Arturas Pozdniakovas	...	Russian
Matti Onnismaa	...	Shift Manager
Sulevi Peltola	...	Foreman
Antti Reini	...	Security Guard
Neka Haapanen	...	Security Guard
Santtu Karvonen	...	Security Guard
Sesa Lehto	...	Security Guard
Jukka Rautiainen	...	Security Guard
Jukka Salmi	...	Security Guard

Also Known As:

Lights in the Dusk (Canada: English title) (festival title) (International: English title) (USA) (festival title)
Les lumières du faubourg (France)
Lichter der Vorstadt (Germany)
Ljus i skymningen (Finland: Swedish title)
Yövartija (Finland) (working title)

Runtime:

78 min

Country:

Finland | Germany | France

Language:

Finnish | Russian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Finland:K-7 | Sweden:7 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Germany:6 | Argentina:Atp | Portugal:M/16 | South Korea:12

Filming Locations:

Helsinki, Finland

Company:

Sputnik

Trivia:

Suomen Filmikamari, which selects the Finnish candidate for Academy Awards Best Foreign-Language Picture, had already chosen Laitakaupungin valot in September 2006, but in October 2006 Aki Kaurismäki informed them that he did not want his film considered for that competition. This also meant that there was no Finnish entry in the Academy Awards pre-selection.

Quotes:

Shift Manager: And what was your name?
Koistinen: Koistinen. Just like before.

Movie Connections:

References Varjoja paratiisissa (1986)

Soundtrack:

SÄ ET KYYNELTÄ NÄÄ

Kaurismaki goes Kafka and fluffs the laugh cues.

Aki Kaurismaki has an instinctive knack of laying down a story. He also presents the interest of being on the margins of life in a marginal country. Think of "Hamlet Goes Business". But in "Lights in the Dusk", Kaurismaki goes Kafka. He leans toward the fable, a genre hard to make into a decent movie. This one follows an honest loser to disaster. The character only manages to crawl out of the pit at the last minute by finally accepting partnership with another, more cautious loser. Visually splendid the film shows us Helsinki in all its modern, hard-edged, hostility, and together with the acting has a flawless unity of style. A.K.'s quirky humor is much less in evidence than usual though you might call a joke the fact that the loser's life in jail is roughly like his existence before he goes inside and after he comes out. Indeed the only time we see him socially at ease and smiling is in the prison yard when spring comes to Helsinki.