Divorce in Finnish - DVD

Content: When Tuula (Elina Knihtilä) and Juhnai (Hannu-Pekka Björkman) decide to end their marriage, the separation seems to go over quite civilly. But then Juhnai is persuaded by his best friend to celebrate their new bachelorhood by picking up women together. And Juhnai promptly brings home another woman. Although nothing ultimately goes his way, he's broken one of the most important rules - and for Tuula, that just screams revenge. She now wants to rehash a short-term affair to make her still-husband jealous. He, in turn, with the help of his half-brother Wolffi (Antti Reinie), hires prostitute Nina (Anna Easteden) to pretend to be Juhnai's new girlfriend. Too bad Nina is wanted by the unscrupulous Yrsa (Kati Outinen) for allegedly stealing a lot of money from her. And suddenly Tuula and Juhnai find themselves not only in the middle of a bitter divorce dispute, but also in the middle of a tangible criminal case...

With Divorce in Finnish, Mika Kaurismäki has created a quirky comedy that at first seems like the Finnish answer to the War of the Roses, but then turns into a crime comedy interspersed with plenty of black humour. He takes a much less laconic approach than his famous brother Aki (Le Havre), but is in no way inferior to him in terms of bizarreness. When a well-behaved family therapist is suddenly mistaken for the head of a criminal organization or when hot sex takes place in a dug-up grave, this is not exactly the stuff conventional comedies are made of.

Kaurismäki succeeds very well in showing how close love and hate can sometimes be. This becomes especially clear in moments that seem to be taken directly from life. Even if the characters and the story in general seem to be overdrawn, there are also scenes that are very close to reality and the protagonists' actions are comprehensible for the audience. The mixture of such quiet, true-to-life moments and the completely weird, increasingly escalating story is what makes this comedy so appealing.

The whole thing is carried by Elina Knihtilä and Hannu-Pekka Björkman, who act wonderfully with and against each other, and are perfectly supported by Antti Reinie (The Man Without a Past), Kati Outinen (Le Havre) and the enchanting Anna Easteden. The good ensemble, the very special humour and the absurd story make Divorce in Finnish a great pleasure for all viewers who like quirky arthouse fare with a Nordic touch. Nothing for the masses, but for Kaurismäki fans an absolute must! Worth seeing!

Image + Sound: The DVD's image pleases with a warm colour scheme, decent overall sharpness and well-matched contrasts. No real weaknesses such as smudging or noticeable blurring stand out. The audio, which is in Dolby Digital 5.1, is primarily dominated by the dialogue, but minor sound effects, music, and coherent ambient sounds ensure that some dynamics can be detected on the surround channels as well. Good!

Extras: As a bonus, the DVD has only the trailer for the film, a short music video (about 3:03 min.) and other program tips to offer.

Conclusion:Divorce in Finnish is a curious mix of divorce drama and black crime comedy, filled with all sorts of quirky characters and absurdly funny plot twists. Even if the humor doesn't always hit the mark, Mika Kaurismäki has still managed to create a very amusing comedy overall that can be warmly recommended to lovers of slightly quirkier arthouse cinema with a Nordic twist. Recommended

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp