Fallen Leaves

Fresh from being awarded the Jury Prize at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival, this beguiling new comedic romance from celebrated auteur Aki Kaurismäki (The Other Side of Hope SCA17 ) follows two lost souls who meet by chance in the Helsinki night. 

Ansa (Alma Pöysti, Tove SCA21) works at a supermarket, where the job is so badly paid that she takes home expired sandwiches for dinner. Holappa (Jussi Vatanen) is a metalworker, labouring in a job so hazardous he drinks through the day and again at night to cope. Meanwhile, the radio constantly carries news about the nearby war in Ukraine. 

One evening, Holappa is dragged to a karaoke bar by a friend and when he meets shy Ansa, there is an immediate spark. But life being what it is, a variety of obstacles conspire to get in the way. 

With his trademark deadpan humour, minimalist dialogue and retro aesthetic, Kaurismäki's latest delight showcases his unrivalled mastery for depicting down-on-their-luck characters in all their complexity and finding humour in the unlikeliest of circumstances.

*Note: Not screening in Perth.