PlatinumRead Just so...so bad

Cleveronix A different way of telling a story

Anoushka Slater While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

Billy Ollie Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Oskari Ratinen "Under the North Star" by Väinö Linna is one of the shining classics of Finnish literature. Up until 2009, the only cinematic interpretation of the masterpiece was the dismal attempt of Edvin Laine, which just leaves the viewer wondering what might be happening on the screen and why, if they have not read the book.You must admit however, that movie makers are facing a near impossible task translating this book onto the big screen. There's 1000 pages of words that knit together the life, death, strife and joy of an entire Finnish rural parish from a time span of 60 years, with great emphasis on the social issues that slowly tore the Finnish society in two hostile factions, the brief but brutal civil war those factions fought immediately after independence was secured and the painfully slow recovery from it. Just how do you squeeze that into any comfortable number of hours without compromising the story? Well, you don't, as we see in this movie. Director Timo Koivusalo really does the best he can, but with so much golden source material, he's really in trouble because he tries to fit it all in. He does a decent job telling the story of the Koskela family of tenant farmers, the very central characters of the story. However, many of the minor characters that are almost equally as important, and so masterfully described in the book are mere caricatures here. The tensions that eventually erupt violently in the parish and the entire country after slowly building up for decades are quite simply present from the beginning.With more than a three hours runtime, the movie still feels like it's sprinting through the plot points to get them all covered. It's more illustration than interpretation. Regardless, it's still the best cinematic version we have of the book that was written 50 years ago and still counts among the best that were ever written in Finnish. To do justice to this film, you might say that it's not painful to watch, but not very good either. If you only have three hours to spare, watch it. If you have more and want some magic, read the book.

Anders It's a long film - too long some might say, including to some extent me - but I'll be brief.Under the North Star, based on Väinö Linna's novels is the first of two films dealing with Finland's civil war, contemporary with but not really a part of World War One. The story begins way before that, however, as farmer Koskela gets permission to turn a marsh on the congregation's property into farmland, and succeeds through uncomplaining hard work. The years pass and his children grow up in a world where class struggle is starting to become a buzzword. All the farmers in this beautiful land of birch forests, lakes and fields may at short notice be evicted by the owners of the land, but the village's local socialist Halme does his best to implement change in a peaceful manner. Others, including Koskela's oldest son Akseli, have no illusions about how to force change down the throats of the lucky few.There's war and lots of cruelty to be found in this film, but also the patience to thoroughly present the place and the characters before that. The cinematography and music suit the story's slow, serious arc and it's apparent that a lot of effort and, for a Nordic production, money have been put in the film. It's worth seeing, though not exactly uplifting, especially for those interested in history and politics.