Mubi Monday: The Man Without A Past (2002)

I wasn't planning on reviewing another Aki Kaurismäki movie here, mainly because I try to keep things varied when reviewing older world cinema titles, but it turned out that The Man Without A Past just seemed like a good choice. I wanted some of that deadpan brilliance that Kaurismäki can deliver, although I didn't check any of the plot details ahead of time. I'm glad I picked this, because it made for a surprisingly timely, and surprisingly delightful, treat.

Markku Peltola plays the titular character, a man we see being beaten up and left for dead in the opening scenes. When he comes around, he is unable to remember anything. He has no ID on him, no money, and not even the smallest clue to his name. Helped by the goodwill of some other individuals, this man eventually starts to piece together a whole new life. He also falls for Irma (Kati Outinen), a Salvation Army worker who also spends some time helping him to get back on his feet. Is a completely new start possible, or will the past eventually crash into the present?

Considering the blunt nature of the opening, I was very pleasantly surprised by how sweet this was. Kaurismäki could have gone in any number of different directions, but he shows how a life can be completely changed by the accumulation of small kindnesses from strangers. While the immediate effect may not always be so obvious, this is why people should not stop caring for one another, ever. Everyone needs some help at some time in their life, even if it's not to this degree, and whether that is a bit of food, money, clothing, or just trust, it can make a huge impact. 

Don't worry though, Kaurismäki doesn't forget to include a lot of his usual humour. A number of conversations are enjoyably ridiculous, and the second half of the film features at least one sequence that is almost Kafka-esque in the way our main character is questioned and doubted while he tries to explain his state of near-complete amnesia. Anyone familiar with other films from this man won't be disappointed.

Peltola is perfectly fine in the lead role, although he spends a lot of the runtime moving like a leaf blown around by a breeze. His performance is in line with many others throughout Kaurismäki's filmography, wonderfully deadpan and slow, no matter what other forces start to whirl around him. Outinen is just as good, and their connection is believable, rooted more in curiosity and consideration than any grand yearning or romantic gestures. Others provide great support, including Juhani Niemelä, Kaija Pakarinen, and Sakari Kuosmanen, but they are very much in orbit around the central figure/couple.

A lesson in benevolence wrapped in the trappings of absurdist humour and occasional off-kilter surrealism, this is another fine film from a director who may not have any duds in his entire filmography (although maybe that's just down to me having seen his best films first).

8/10

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Netflix And Chill: The Hole In The Ground (2019)

An acclaimed debut from director Lee Cronin, who also co-wrote the script with Stephen Shields, The Hole In The Ground is a well-made little horror movie with a couple of good ideas. It's just a shame that it didn't really work for me, especially during moments that felt a bit too vague, and in a way that seemed like a cop out as opposed to an interesting artistic choice, while so many other moments left no room for anything ambiguous.

Seána Kerslake is Sarah O'Neill, a single mother with her son, Chris (James Quinn Markey). The two have recently moved into a fairly isolated house in the midst of some woods, of course, and things get a bit strange as Sarah starts to suspect Chris of changing somehow. This idea firms up in her mind after she discovers the backstory to a local woman, Noreen (Katie Outinen), who some say killed her young son when she became convinced that he had been turned into a demonic entity.

Although this is an original horror, always something worth celebrating among the selection of remakes, reboots, and sequels, The Hole In The Ground doesn't actually FEEL very original. All of the component parts will be very familiar to genre fans, and some aspects are almost laughable. Let me pick one main example, this could have felt even more unique, and interesting, if set in a town environment. Need a massive sinkhole for the child to discover? Have him clambering over a fence and into an abandoned building site. There. Anyone who wants to remake this movie in about twenty years can make that change, at least, and thank me in the credits.

Cronin knows what he's doing, the technical side of things is generally quite perfect (including the dreary colour palette), but the script disappoints, with character development not as good as it could be and the tendency to weave between over- and under-explaining things.

Kerslake does as well as she can in the lead role. She's a good actress, and Markey works well alongside her. Both are hampered by the motions they have to go through as the plot plays out. Outinen does well as a female version of Crazy Ralph - "you're doooooooomed" - and James Cosmo is excellent as her caring husband, but there aren't enough other strong supporting players given a chance to lift things up slightly.

I can't call this a bad movie. It isn't, even though it didn't work for me as well as it seems to have worked for many others. Everyone involved knows what they're doing, to a degree, and it's good to see some praise being given to something trying to be a bit different from the many films trying to capture that Wan-iverse vibe. I just can't call it a good movie either. None of it worked for me, not when it came to the horror movie moments. I was never tense, never scared, never really bothered by where things were going. And the final scene just had me rolling my eyes, especially when viewers know that there's absolutely no need for it.

5/10

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