The Man Without a Past (Mies Vailla Menneisyyttä, Finnish; 2002)
Director, Producer, Written: Aki Kaurismäki
We are who we are all because of our senses. The composite of the input of senses that are fed to us, with the processing by our associative neurons and the limbic system, showcase us to the world as the unique individual that we are. Our likes, dislikes, values, beliefs, relationships, moods and personalities are all products of these inputs woven together by memory. The memory of the things that we learn along the way, paves the path to follow and adapt to the social mores that are appropriate for our surroundings. When the faculty of recollection fails, we become zombies that just follow the herd like automata.
Kaurismäki's movies are acquired tastes. The acting appears robotic and the actors look expressionless. Herein lies the quirky sense of humour that hits subtly. Along the way, it is apparent that the director also hits a low blow to the modern capitalistic free economy.
In this second offering of Karrismäki's 'Finland trilogy', the unnamed protagonist, credited as 'M', finds himself lost in Helsinki. After being hit on the head by hooligans while sleeping at a park and robbed of his belongings. He wonders around without knowing his purpose of being there, his past and even his name. With the help of container-dwelling fringe society of town, he tries to get himself together. By no means, it is a walk in the park as his existence seem to depend on his pass - his identity, social security number etcetera.
He just seems to be an unwanted figure existing without a soul to care. It finally changes when he gets embroiled in a bank robbery.
Director, Producer, Written: Aki Kaurismäki
We are who we are all because of our senses. The composite of the input of senses that are fed to us, with the processing by our associative neurons and the limbic system, showcase us to the world as the unique individual that we are. Our likes, dislikes, values, beliefs, relationships, moods and personalities are all products of these inputs woven together by memory. The memory of the things that we learn along the way, paves the path to follow and adapt to the social mores that are appropriate for our surroundings. When the faculty of recollection fails, we become zombies that just follow the herd like automata.
Kaurismäki's movies are acquired tastes. The acting appears robotic and the actors look expressionless. Herein lies the quirky sense of humour that hits subtly. Along the way, it is apparent that the director also hits a low blow to the modern capitalistic free economy.
In this second offering of Karrismäki's 'Finland trilogy', the unnamed protagonist, credited as 'M', finds himself lost in Helsinki. After being hit on the head by hooligans while sleeping at a park and robbed of his belongings. He wonders around without knowing his purpose of being there, his past and even his name. With the help of container-dwelling fringe society of town, he tries to get himself together. By no means, it is a walk in the park as his existence seem to depend on his pass - his identity, social security number etcetera.
He just seems to be an unwanted figure existing without a soul to care. It finally changes when he gets embroiled in a bank robbery.
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