Finnish War Movies

Talvisota (The Winter War), 1989
Director: Pekka Parikka

I stumbled upon Finnish war movies when doing a little research on the Winter War. This was the first movie I “discovered”. I found it on YouTube where you can watch it in 10 minute increments. The link is here.

This movie is the story of two brothers who go to fight the Russians during the Winter War. Russia, taking advantage of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact with Germany, decided to expand their territory. After capturing Eastern Poland and the Baltic States, they invaded the Finnish Karelian Isthmus in November of 1939. Finland, having only recently obtained independence, fought to keep them out although they were outnumbered almost 3 to 1.

The movie focuses on Karelia and depicts what is mostly trench warfare between poorly equipped soldiers. (The slashing strikes with ski troops took place further north in Finland.) This is where the Molotov Cocktail was perfected as it was the only means the Finns had of stopping Russian armor. Though lacking the glamour of ski troops, the movie captures a realistic representation of trench warfare in winter. The filming logistics must have been difficult as they filmed on location during the winter. There are also plenty of pyrotechnics to satisfy those who like explosions. The only concession to special effects was that the airplanes were all models.

Subtitled in English, the movie captures the cynical humor that is typical of the Finns. In one scene, a soldier running to shelter during a particularly fierce shelling is asked by another what he is doing out in such “bad weather”. And throughout the movie, the soldiers refer to Russians as “the neighbors”, giving the impression that the war is nothing more than a simple disagreement between two farmers or a social event.

The movie won 7 Finnish film awards in 1990 including Best Director, Best Music Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor. After the move was released, the director, Pekka Parikka, was invited to work in Hollywood. He stayed there for two years but could not find a script he liked. (He turned down “The Firm”) He died in 1997.