My favorite of this year’s TIFF was a Midnight Madness screening of the Finnish film Sisu. It was just a fun action-packed film. I first became aware of Jalmari Helander through his film Rare Exports. This was a quirky film that really stuck with me over the years
Which brings me to Sisu. Sisu is an untranslatable local phrase that refers to “a white-knuckled sort of strength and unbelievable drive… [manifested] when all hope is lost,” according to the opening text. Then, using map visuals, quickly describe Finland’s difficult circumstances during World War II, when it initially had to fend off Soviets trying to re-annex a country that had just recently declared its independence before it found itself occupied by Nazis. When this story takes place in 1944, Hitler’s soldiers were on the retreat and the war was all but over. However, they were determined to “kill everything in their path” as they were being escorted home by Allied forces from the battle zones of Lapland. We meet a man who has “chosen to leave the conflict behind him, for good” in the bleak northern landscapes. This seasoned prospector (Jorma Tommila) is panning and digging for gold alone, with only his horse and dog for company. He does discover a large vein, and his good fortune brings him a sizable bag of nuggets. But his battle with the war is far from over.
A close runner up was Ti West‘s new film Pearl. This is the second film of a trilogy with X being the first and the upcoming Maxxine being the final and third installment. I’ve been a Ti West super fan every since this first film The House of the Devil. An incredible skilled filmmaker and writer, mature beyond his years.
Pearl is no exception. Mia Goth just kills it as Pearl. Literally and figuratively. In the end, Pearl is a distinctive and effective slasher prequel. It does something genuinely noteworthy for the genre by swinging hard and hitting the target with its melodrama-meets-slasher formula. It’s okay if not everyone likes it. The filmmaking and acting are both adventurous, and fans of X will find plenty of it here. Stay for the bold, sympathetic picture of a new classic slasher villain; come for the technicolor killings. I loved it!
