Simply A Masterpiece

If you don't like this, we can't be friends.

Admirable film.

In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

We watched this movie in class, and our teacher has chosen this movie, because it's "easy to go forward and backwards" from this movie when talking about Finnish movies. I'm assuming it was referring to the time when this movie was made. Also another crucial factor in why we watched this movie is that our school has a permission to show this movie. Also we are supposed to watch Finnish movies because that's what we are going to be making in the future, and sometimes we forget or ignore our own movies.I have never watched Aki Kaurismäki's films before, but I was already aware of his style. Cast is very stiff and acting is closer to underacting. It's a style, and it works, but it's not extremely realistic, since it sounds like how Finnish people talk in the morning when they're not fully awake yet, or how they talk to strangers. It sounds very reserved. Even though it can be painful to watch, it's very stylish and suits a film like this. And also the only reason why it can be seen as painful is because we're so used to the English way of dialogue and acting in movies.Another almost painful thing is the cinematography. It's well made, and in theory thing are in the right place, but it doesn't look very pretty. Colours and things in the shot are almost ugly.The pace of the movie is also very slow. Not much happens, yet it feels long, because it feels just an important to show a band playing than to process with the story. If you find the story boring, the slowness can be almost unbearable. But all in all Kaurismäki captures everyday life during recession well, and even if the acting can barely be called that, the story isn't emotionless. You feel for the characters and get annoyed by them. The story is almost boring because of the subject and the pace, but it's still easy for you to get into the story, and you can't just ignore what's happening, Maybe it's because the themes are close to many viewers, maybe it's just that well made that you hope for the best and fear for the worst.

absolutely flabbergasted !!! that's about sums up my feeling when I first saw this. This was probably the turning point movie for me in dwelling into Nordic films - and what a start.I had to see it again. The blank expressions initially was distracting but in fact there's a lot of expression. The little waiting moments too and so is the dog!!! Now I'm writing from recollection from more than 10 years ago, so maybe somethings maybe amissed. But the feeling (especially of fleeting hope - the ending- in tough times) imprinted by tone and images are that strong!!! Then I started to try Icelandic film - first one was Cold Fever. Also Bent Hammer's films, and the likes of Green Butchers, the Bothersome Man... these are films of a different world almost. But somehow they speak much about loneliness, in a surreal realistic way.Later on Aki came out with the 2nd and 3rd installments too in which there's another unforgettable funny scene in the Man Without a Past that is just as indelible.This is not a real review but a more a look back to the stick in the sand marker on my starting point toward Nordic Cinema.

To truly understand and appreciate Kauas pilvet karkaavat (Drifting Clouds)you need to understand something of the Finnish mindset, and to understand something of the Finns I would recommend this film. Kaurismaki is able to encapsulate and embody the Finns and Finland in his work. I have lived 10 months of my life in Finland, and I was therefore able to identify immediately with this film through my experiences of Finland and the Finns themselves (my dear friends there). This film captures the sense of space that Finland itself has, the sense of space that the Finns create around themselves (Finns appear to me to be somewhat unseasy with urban and city living, hence everyone's desire to escape to a kesamokki, summer cottages at the earliest possible time) and the understated, no-BS nature of the Finns themselves, it is the only country I know where it is truly possible to have confortable silences when conversing with people.Silent despair, brought on by the extremes of the climate, Finland's relative isolation, the social problems that DO exist there (despite being a Scandinavian country with all the images of a freedom and social support that that may conjure), the expectation of conformity that exists within such small societies, and yet the strong innate desire of every Finn to truly assert an individual identity over within the framework of this 'organised freedom' are all apparent in this film and are how I observed Finland. The 'national' sport of drinking until one passes out, particularly during the dark days of winter, and when coping with depression or despair. To any Finns out there, this is not meant to cause offense, my apologies if these comments do.Kaurismaki's use of long shots and one takes for a sequence of action (or non-action), and the sense of time and anticipation that they create, until you realise that the anticiption amounts to nothing, which is so in line with the Finnish sense of humour. It is always difficult to generalise about a particular nation and make sweeping statements that are meant to be applicable to all who live within the confines of those national boundaries. But as a small country (in terms of population) with a closely homogenous people, these traits are quite discernable, especially with the impact that the environment and climate brings...Drifting Clouds and the Leningrad Cowboys are two sides of the same coin...I make this disclaimer, the film is actually gloomier than life there.

The British film-maker Ken Loach manages to produce profound and uplifting films on the rather grim subject of poor people trying to cope with the nightmare that is modern urban capitalism ('My Name is Joe', 'Ladybird, Ladybird', 'Carla's Song'). Yet 'Drifting Clouds', which offers a Finnish version of the same old themes (poverty, unemployment, mindless sex, optimism in the face of repeated failure), makes me realise how truly boring an evening in a dark room in front of a flickering screen can be. This movie is dull, and two years later I have still not fully forgiven the person who persuaded me to go and see it. As I am married to her, this lack of forgiveness creates considerable problems every time she tries to take me to the movies. It's about a couple who both lose their jobs. That's more or less it, apart from the 'happy' ending. View at your peril.