Shadows in Paradise

Written and directed by Aki Kaurismaki, Varjoja paratiisissa (Shadows in Paradise) is the story about a lonely garbage man who finds himself falling for a shy supermarket cashier as they begin a unique relationship. The first in a trilogy of films based on working-class outcasts, the film explores the relationship of two people who are lost in the world. Starring Matti Pellonpaa, Kati Outinen, Sakari Kuosmanen, Esko Nikkari, and Mato Valtonen. Varjoja paratiisissa is an extraordinary film by Aki Kaurismaki.

A garbage man meets a supermarket cashier as the two form an unlikely relationship based on their own loneliness and having a hard time fitting in with the rest of the world. Because of their shyness with nearly everyone as they have few friends, they manage to connect with each other despite some awkwardness between the two. Even as they both send mixed signals toward one another where it causes some frustrations in the relationship. It’s a film that explore these two people who are from working-class environments in Helsinki as they both have a hard time trying to connect as the garbage man is dealing with the death of a colleague while the cashier is dealing with being laid off.

Aki Kaurismaki’s script is quite simple but also very unconventional as there’s not a dialogue while many of the meetings between the two characters in Nikander (Matti Pellonpaa) and Ilona (Kati Outinen) have its share of humor but it’s a bit dark at times but also awkward. Notably as neither of them have any idea of what to say to each other or where to go for a date as it is very obvious that both of them hadn’t done a lot of socializing as they often work for most of their lives. While they have friends who try to help them out, it only make things worse for them as Nikander and Ilona both go into different directions that become questionable.

Kaurismaki’s direction is quite simple in terms of the compositions that he creates but are still entrancing for the way he frames his actors into a scene. Notably as he uses Helsinki not just as a backdrop but also as a major character in the film. A lot of it plays into that working-class environment that Nikander and Ilona live in where despite their lonely personas, it’s a place where they can belong in some ways as it always something to offer. That is something that is in sharp contrast to the more posh-restaurants they try to go to on a date where they wear nice clothes but couldn’t get in.

Even the new job that Ilona would get would feel off as her boss thinks of Nikander as nothing more than a “shit collector” because of what he does for a living. Still, Kaurismaki makes these characters very engaging to know that they don’t have everything together but will always find a way to do what is right for them no matter how awkward they are for each other. Overall, Kaurismaki creates a very tender yet eccentric film about two lonely people coming together.

Cinematographer Timo Salminen does excellent work with the cinematography as it‘s quite low-key with the exception of some scenes set at night that include a few lighting schemes. Editor Raija Talvio does terrific work with the editing as it has a few jump-cuts and fade-outs where a lot of it is straightforward with bits of style. Art directors Pertti Hilkamo and Heikki Ukkonen is fantastic to display the working-class home of Nikander as well as the places he and Ilona go to. The sound work of Jouko Lumme is superb as it is very naturalistic from the sound of the garbage trucks to the sounds of the city. The film’s music soundtrack largely consists of different kinds of music from jazz and rock along with some blues cuts by Albert Collins, Elmore James, and John Lee Hooker to help play into the film’s melancholia.

The film’s cast is brilliant as it features some notable small roles from Pekka Laiho as Ilona’s boss at the clothing store she works at late in the film, Esko Nikkari as Nikander’s co-worker early in the film, Malto Valonen as Ilona’s old boss at the supermarket, Kylli Kongas as Ilona’s friend/co-worker from the supermarket, and Sakari Kuosmanen as Nikander’s new co-worker Melartin who helps Nikander out. Kati Outinen is amazing as Ilona as a young woman who is very shy as she has no idea how to be with someone while finding herself unsure of Nikander’s feelings for her as she is dealing with being laid off and finding a place to live. Matti Pellonpaa is marvelous as Nikander as this simple garbage man who deals with loss as he also tries to learn English while trying to make Ilona feel welcome despite their awkwardness. Outinen and Pellonpaa make a great pair in the way they put in some subtle humor as well as drama into their performances to display two people just lost in the world.

Varjoja paratiisissa is a phenomenal film by Aki Kaurismaki that features superb performances from Matti Pellonpaa and Kati Outinen. The film is definitely a very exhilarating portrait into the world of alienation in the working-class world as two people try to find themselves while falling in love. Even as they deal with the tribulations of what is expected from them as people. In the end, Varjoja paratiisissa is a fantastic film from Aki Kaurismaki.

Aki Kaurismaki Films: (Crime and Punishment (1983 film)) - (Calamari Union) - (Hamlet Goes Business) - (Ariel) - (Leningrad Cowboys Go America) - (Dirty Hands) - (The Match Factory Girl) - (I Hired a Contract Killer) - (La Vie de Boheme) - (Take Care of Your Scarf, Tatiana) - Total Balalaika Show -(Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses) - (Drifting Clouds) - (Juha) - (The Man Without a Past) - (Lights in the Dusk) - Le Havre

© thevoid99 2013

Night on Earth

Written and directed by Jim Jarmusch, Night on Earth is a collection of five stories set in five different cities all over the world where a taxi driver and a passenger would engage in various conversations during their brief time together. The film has Jarmusch going into various places with different actors in each city to explore the dynamic between passenger and driver. With an all-star cast that includes Winona Ryder, Gena Rowlands, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Giancarlo Esposito, Rosie Perez, Issach de Bankole, Beatrice Dalle, Roberto Benigni, Paolo Bonacelli, and Matti Pellonpaa. Night on Earth is an extraordinary yet hypnotic film from Jim Jarmusch.

In Los Angeles, tomboy cab driver Corky (Winona Ryder) picks up the rich casting agent Victoria Snelling (Gena Rowlands) at an airport on their way to Beverly Hills. During the ride, the two women discuss the fallacies of men and their differences as Victoria reveals to have night blindness while Corky aspires to be a mechanic. In New York City, a man named YoYo (Giancarlo Espositio) is trying to get a ride to Brooklyn as he gets a cab driver in an East German circus clown named Helmut Grokenberger (Armin Mueller-Stahl). Unfortunately, it’s Helmut’s first day as he doesn’t know the city nor how to drive as YoYo takes over where the two talk while picking up YoYo’s brash sister-in-law Angela (Rosie Perez).

It’s late at night in Paris as a frustrated cab driver (Issach de Bankole) had just been dealing with a couple of awful passengers (Pascal N’Zonzi and Emile Abossolo M‘bo) as he takes a blind woman (Beatrice Dalle). During the ride, the driver is fascinated by the blind woman as she reveals that she can still do things despite her blindness. In Rome, the talkative Gino (Roberto Benigni) wears sunglasses during the late night as he picks up an ailing priest (Paolo Bonacelli). During the ride, Gino reveals his many sins which overwhelms the priest. In Helsinki, Mika (Matti Pellonpaa) picks up three passengers (Kari Vaananen, Sakari Kuosmanen, and Tomi Salmela) where one of them has just had the worst day of life as Mika tells them a story that moves the two awake passengers.

The idea of a taxi as far as a driver and passenger is concerned is this. Driver takes the passenger on a ride. Passenger tells the driver to its desired location. Driver does that and once the destination is reached, driver gets paid and the passenger is at its desired location. Yet in a world as glorious as this, a simple cab drive could be something more as Jim Jarmusch creates five different stories in five different worlds with several different people in different situations. All in different races, nationalities, age groups, and personalities as Jarmusch creates something is truly engaging in the stories that are told.

In each segment of the film, there is something happening between passenger and driver where they all get something out of this little moment in their lives. For the L.A. segment, two different women bond over their frustration towards men along with their different lifestyles. In the NYC segment, an East-German man becomes fascinated by the city and the two people he meets as it’s a great sense of discovery on his first day as a taxi driver. In Paris, a man from the Ivory Coast is fascinated by this blind woman as he seems uninterested in what he’s doing. The segment in Rome has a very talkative man who drives very fast as he ends up overwhelming an ill priest that is strange dark comedy as it’s one of the strangest. The last segment in Helsinki has a driver taking in three passengers where he reveals to them a sad story that reveals that there’s always something worse from happening.

The script that Jarmusch creates is very loose as each segment is given enough time to develop the relationships and the stories told in these segments. In his direction, Jarmusch goes for the same kind of compositions of each segment to capture the driver and passengers with the camera always in front of the car. Yet, he also brings something different to the look and tone of each segment as some are light-hearted while some can seem grim and entrancing. Jarmusch keeps each segment and fresh so each can bring something different to the table. The film and each segment is preceded with a shot of five clocks where the camera zooms towards the clock with the city’s name above and a globe to reveal where what city is to be told.

Throughout the entirety of the film, each segment opens with a look of the city at night in a montage and a cab to introduce the driver, with the exception of the NYC segment, for each segment. During the entirety of the segments, shots of the cities at night are taken place to reveal what locations the driver and passengers are at. The overall approach to Jarmusch’s direction is very stylish yet intimate portrait of an entire night on earth in five different cities with different people musing about the world around them. What Jarmusch creates is a truly exciting and entertaining film that is unconventional yet engrossing in its simplicity.

Cinematographer Frederick Elmes does a wonderful job with the film‘s colorful cinematography from the evening look early in the Los Angeles airport scene to the colorful lights in New York and Los Angeles. Elmes’ work adds a wonderful beauty to the cities with blue lights for the Paris and Helsinki scenes to more intimate settings for the scenes in Rome. Editor Jay Rabinowitz does a great job with creating some stylish cuts for the film while maintaining a fascinating rhythm for many of the conversation scenes that occur in the film. Rabinowitz also keeps a tight pace for each segment at around 20-25 minutes in total to bring enough moments for each story.

Sound designer Anthony J. Ciccolini III does an excellent job with the sound to capture the differing atmospheres of each city along with the intimacy of the cab conversations between the characters in the film. The film’s music by Tom Waits is superb as it is a wonderful mix of jazz and folk that includes different instruments to play to each city. Featuring a few songs written by Waits and wife Kathleen Brennan, Waits score is definitely a highlight of the film as the rest of the soundtrack includes additional music pieces from Davie Allan and Blue Cheer for the L.A. segment.

The big ensemble cast is truly magnificent as each segment provides something different for the film. In very small roles include Lisanne Falk as a manager for band that Corky had brought in the L.A. segment while Pascal N’Zonzi and Emile Abossolo M‘bo are good as the two passengers who annoy the driver in the Paris segment. In the Helsinki scenes, Tomi Salmela is good as the drunk passenger who is passed out while Kari Vaananen and Sakari Kuosmanen are excellent as the other passengers who starts to befriend the cab driver Mika following his story. Matti Pellonpaa is amazing as Mika, the Helsinki cab driver who maintains a stoic approach to his performance as he holds his emotions together during the drive. Paolo Bonacelli is wonderful as the ailing priest who is forced to listen to his driver’s confessions while Roberto Benigni is hilarious as the talkative Gino whose confessed sins prove to be too much in an otherwise dark but funny segment.

Beatrice Dalle is brilliant as the blind passenger who can feel things around her despite her blindness while Issach de Bankole is superb as the quiet driver who is fascinated by the presence of his blind passenger. Rosie Perez is very funny as the brash Angela who spouts all sorts of profanities towards her brother-in-law while being a bit nice towards Helmut. Giancarlo Esposito is also funny but charming as YoYo who tries to help Helmut about being a cab driver and showing him New York City while Armin Mueller-Stahl is phenomenal as the East German cab driver on his first day in amazement on the world around him. Winona Ryder and Gena Rowlands are spectacular as the two different women in L.A. who share their disgust about men while bonding over their differences in low-key but fun performances.

Night on Earth is a fascinating yet magical film from Jim Jarmusch. Armed with a diverse yet exhilarating ensemble cast of actors and in five different locations. It’s a film that truly chronicles the idea of how big the world is and despite the different nationalities, races, genders, and personalities shown in the film. These characters all will have a brief experience that is profound in a world as vast as this one. In the end, Jim Jarmusch creates a lively yet exciting film with Night on Earth.

Jim Jarmusch Films: Permanent Vacation - Stranger Than Paradise - Down By Law - Mystery Train - Dead Man - Year of the Horse - Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai - Coffee and Cigarettes - Broken Flowers - The Limits of Control - Only Lovers Left Alive - Paterson - Gimme Danger - The Dead Don’t Die - (Father Mother Sister Brother) - The Auteurs #27: Jim Jarmusch

© thevoid99 2011