Before dying, Ingmar Bergman gave to Aki one of his cameras. He said that he was the only Scandinavian director who deserved to shoot his films with such a valuable treasure. And it was sure that he was.
Aki was born in Orimattila (Finland) and started as a co-director with his elder brother Mika. But no one as Aki could define and show the proletariat Finnish society in the big screen. People with monotonous lives, routine jobs, with a lack of passion, excitement and sometimes emotion. Most of them see how their dreams tumble and they keep on trapped in this vicious circle.
The Match Factory Girl is an example of what I have just said above. The girl has a routine job in a factory; monotony invades her life. She lives with her parents (which do not love her, I guess they do not even notice she is there). Sometimes she goes out and tries to dance and forget her troubles. But life is cruel, and one night things get complicated. From that night, everything in her life will change.
Aki knows how to communicate in his films. He always tries to work with the same actors (the great Kati Outinen for instance) and they are able to transmit the frustration of their characters. You can feel it, you can touch it. Before realising it, you are plunged into their anguish.
Kaurismäki’s movies have been acclaimed for the critics and one of them ( “The man without a past”) has been nominated for an Academy Award in the “Best foreign language film” category. But he prefers to keep out of this celebrity world. Maybe he loves simple things. Things that could be perceived simple at a glance, but below the wrapping, you can find a complex and touching story. Just as his films.
