Laitakaupungin valot (2006)

Director:

Aki Kaurismäki

Writer:

Aki Kaurismäki (writer)

Release Date:

3 February 2006 (Finland)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Plot:

In Helsinki, a lonely night watchman is caught up in a series of misadventures with a femme fatale and a crooked businessman.

Plot Keywords:

Night Watchman | Femme Fatale | Jewels | Burglary | Big City

Awards:

3 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Janne Hyytiäinen	...	Koistinen
Maria Järvenhelmi	...	Mirja
Maria Heiskanen	...	Aila
Ilkka Koivula	...	Lindholm
Sergei Doudko	...	Russian
Andrei Gennadiev	...	Russian
Arturas Pozdniakovas	...	Russian
Matti Onnismaa	...	Shift Manager
Sulevi Peltola	...	Foreman
Antti Reini	...	Security Guard
Neka Haapanen	...	Security Guard
Santtu Karvonen	...	Security Guard
Sesa Lehto	...	Security Guard
Jukka Rautiainen	...	Security Guard
Jukka Salmi	...	Security Guard

Also Known As:

Lights in the Dusk (Canada: English title) (festival title) (International: English title) (USA) (festival title)
Les lumières du faubourg (France)
Lichter der Vorstadt (Germany)
Ljus i skymningen (Finland: Swedish title)
Yövartija (Finland) (working title)
Luces al atardecer (Argentina) (Spain) (Uruguay) [es]
Огни городской окраины (Russia) [ru]
Äärelinna tuled (Estonia) [et]
Fota sto souroupo (Greece) [el]
Le luci della sera (Italy) [it]
Lichter der Vorstadt (Austria) [de]
Ljus i skymningen (Sweden) [sv]
Luzes na Escuridão (Brazil) (festival title) [pt]
Luzes no Crepúsculo (Portugal) [pt]
Lys i skumringen (Norway) [no]
Lys i tusmørket (Denmark) [da]
Svetla u sumraku (Serbia) [sr]
Swiatla o zmierzchu (Poland) [pl]

Runtime:

78 min

Country:

Finland | Germany | France

Language:

Finnish | Russian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Finland:K-7 | Sweden:7 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Germany:6 | Argentina:Atp | Portugal:M/16 | South Korea:12

Filming Locations:

Helsinki, Finland

Company:

Sputnik

Trivia:

Suomen Filmikamari, which selects the Finnish candidate for Academy Awards Best Foreign-Language Picture, had already chosen Laitakaupungin valot in September 2006, but in October 2006 Aki Kaurismäki informed them that he did not want his film considered for that competition. This also meant that there was no Finnish entry in the Academy Awards pre-selection.

Quotes:

Shift Manager: And what was your name?
Koistinen: Koistinen. Just like before.

Movie Connections:

References Varjoja paratiisissa (1986)

Soundtrack:

Pieni tulitikkutyttö

It is still Kaurismäki, is it?

Compared to normal Hollywood movies I still enjoy Kaurismäki's films, but this is definitely not one of his best ones.

One of the biggest problems of this film is the director's attitude towards his main character. Koistinen's situation is getting worse with every action he takes. That's not the problem, but Kaurismäki doesn't offer a minimum of possible explanations to Koistinen's behaviour.

I don't expect a complete interpretation of his work by a director or by an author, but as a viewer of a film or as a reader of a book you need at least some information to start at. So I can only imagine that the reasons for Koistinen's behaviour lie in his state of mind and/or in his past.

But this is criticism at a high level. There are still some typical Kaurismäki-scenes in this film which I like a lot.