Aki Kaurismäki is considered the best Finnish director in history and one of the best directors in the world. Together with his brother Mika Kaurismäki, also a film director, he is the founder of the Midnight Sun Film Festival and the film distributor Ville Alpha.
Aki Kaurismäki, born in 1957, began in the cinema in the early 80s, with a cinema about the most disadvantaged classes.
Despite the fact that the filmmaker has shot just one more to date, his first film was a documentary, "Saimaa's gesture." The film, which he co-directs with his brother in 1981, shows the tour of Lake Saimaa by the marching bands Hassisen Kone, Eppu Normaali and Juice Leskinen Slam.
Two years later he adapts with Pauli Pentti the famous novel by Fyodor Dostoyevsky "Crime and Punishment" to direct it alone. The film, despite being based on the famous book, Kaurismäki places the action in Finland in that year 1983.
In 1985 he shot the comedy “Calamari Union”, This time with an original script written by him alone.
The following year was a very busy year for the filmmaker. Shoot the short film "Rocky VI", parody of the American film filmed by Sylvester Stallone "Rocky IV". Aki Kaurismäki said about his short film: «My revenge on Mr. Stallone, who I think is an idiot. », Controversial statements those of the Finnish director.
That year he also shot the feature film "Shadows in Paradise", the first installment of his proletariat trilogy which would continue with "Ariel" in 1988 and "The Girl from the Match Factory" in 1990.
And in that same year 1986 the Midnight Sun Film Festival, a competition that he founded with his brother Mika Kaurismäki and whose first guests were directors Samuel Fuller, Jonathan Demme, Bertrand Tavernier and Jean-Pierre Gorin.
In 1987 he made a peculiar adaptation of Shakespeare with "Hamlet messes with businessman”. He also made three shorts in that year "Through the Wire", "Rich Little Bitch" and "LA Woman".
The following year he shoots the second installment of his proletariat trilogy "Ariel", which is awarded as best foreign film in 1990 by the Society of Critics of the United States.
In 1989 he shot the musical comedy “Leningrad Cowboys Go America“A road movie style film that follows a group of Finnish musicians and their manager as they try to cross the United States to get to a wedding in Mexico.
Learn more | Film Masters: Aki Kaurismäki (Early and 80s)
Source | wikipedia
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