Sisu

Sisu is an entertaining B-movie from inhospitable Lapland. Stylish, bloody, funny, lively and even a bit cartoonishly fantastical. It’s not exactly innovative in terms of its subject matter, but it is unpredictable and imaginative in some scenes. The presence of Aksel Hennie as a top Nazi was pleasing. (19/05/2023)

This Finnish World War II revenge film wowed with the trailer of the year. The film itself may not be a new genre milestone, but it's pretty cool. The not too experienced Jalmari Helander has originally enriched the popular library of current action movies. He chose a feared main character (John Wick, Nobody), whom everyone is afraid of, has a dark past and is a brutal beast in action, and swapped classic gangsters for Nazis, which is cool and fresh. Story-wise, however, it's very simple. The protagonist finds gold at his house and decides to take it to the nearest bank, but along the way he has to beat up a bunch of Nazis who want to steal it. The protagonist doesn't say much, the actions simply speak for him and when it comes to the getting down and dirty, it's a nicely brutal and dirty affair with an almost western feel to it. Unless you're willing to accept what all the main character can and can't survive, you won't enjoy it (if that bothered you in Wick, it's doubly true here), but I'm OK with it. Outside of the action sequences, it's a bit slower and more intimate, but luckily it's only 90 minutes long, so the movie goes by very quickly. I must also praise the villain, who played the evil Nazi brilliantly. There aren't many genre films like this being made and it's definitely my kind of thing. If you like revenge movies and Nazis, you shouldn't hesitate to go to the cinema. 75%. (27/04/2023)

A bunch of Nazis steal gold from the Finnish Santa Claus, but unfortunately for them, he's an ex-commando of Finnish elite assassins and he doesn't like it very much. Don't be fooled by the film's description and look, as this is no serious murder mystery, but a pure swag satirical comedy that just happens to have the premise it does. Anyone expecting a Finnish killing spree John Wick should go into the film with caution and temper expectations, but anyone who wants to see a pissed off SISU grandpa tearing limbs off, destroying tanks and slicing up Nazis by the hundred-sixths in a very wacky and far-fetched format (10 minutes underwater, holding on to a plane and sprinting with a shot leg...) should go for it. Because I'm afraid this "festival film" for a narrow spectrum of viewers won't be available for download any time soon, so I'd take the cinema screening option. Although it may not have been the aim, I had a good time, and even though I don't often seek out this unrealistic and over-the-top genre, I enjoyed this one. (19/04/2023)

Take out the resident. Lapland. Specifically, veteran Korpi, whose dog looks like a lamb, but he himself is no sheep. The trailer promised an enticing spectacle of grit in Nazi asses, but who could have guessed that’s pretty much all there is. Jalmari Helander blatantly steals from another thief (from the episode titles' font to the chunks of gold glaring into the face like an open trunk on Vincent Vega), but in the midst of physical anomalies, violence, blood, and slow-motion shots, I found that the style of exaggeration missed the mark quite a bit. Otherwise, I assume this film was an appendix to Finland's NATO application. (17/05/2023)

Ironically, the promising bubble created by the trailers bursts with the first action scene. The Tarantino-like titles, chapter divisions and a would-be spaghetti western atmosphere are unfortunately not enough to turn a boy's foolishness into a real film. I found Sisu surprisingly boring and most of all he struck me as a Finnish version of Machete, including the feeling that it shouldn’t have been more than a trailer. (28/04/2023)