A woman's terribly dull life is upended by a one-night stand pregnancy, causing her to seek retribution.A woman's terribly dull life is upended by a one-night stand pregnancy, causing her to seek retribution.A woman's terribly dull life is upended by a one-night stand pregnancy, causing her to seek retribution.A woman's terribly dull life is upended by a one-night stand pregnancy, causing her to seek retribution.A woman's terribly dull life is upended by a one-night stand pregnancy, causing her to seek retribution.
Helka Viljanen
- Office employeeas Office employee
- (as Helga Viljanen)
Pope John Paul II
- Selfas Self
- (archive footage)
- (uncredited)
Iris has a dead-end job in a match-factory, lives with her dour and forbidding parents, and her social life is a disaster. But when she is made pregnant after a one-night stand by a man who thought she was a prostitute, she decides that enough is enough and plans her revenge... —Michael Brooke <michael@everyman.demon.co.uk>
Top review
Not a good ad for the Finnish tourism bureau
But a masterful minimalist portrait of a woman taking one of the few options open to her. "Iiris" is a Dickensian heroine: beset with a brute of a step father, loving a wealthy cad who turns cold when she expects warmth, and reaching out to a distant brother who loves her but cannot provide the family she seeks. Overall her world is so bleak, cold and mean that the universal comment I heard after the movie screened was "Thank God I'm not Finnish!". This is a 20th century telling of the tale of the Little Match Girl so the end fits modern sensabilities.
The humor of this comedy is easy to miss as you watch it play out, but on retrospect it comes through loud and strong.
My personal highlight of the movie was the use of song and music to propel the action. Not having a clue about Finnish pop music, I'm sure I'm missing some elements, but the subtle themes come across quite well.
The humor of this comedy is easy to miss as you watch it play out, but on retrospect it comes through loud and strong.
My personal highlight of the movie was the use of song and music to propel the action. Not having a clue about Finnish pop music, I'm sure I'm missing some elements, but the subtle themes come across quite well.
helpful•216
- Tomlonso
- Jul 15, 2004
Contribute to this page
Recently viewed
Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.