From Shadows in Paradise to Fallen Leaves, Aki Kaurismäki’s films show ordinary Finns in minimalist, near-timeless settings. But they’re also a response to changes in working-class life since the 1980s, as consumerist values edge out Finland’s social model.
In the woods next to a gleaming lake, several men secretly drink moonshine, cook fish and sing songs by a fire in the waning light. It’s one of numerous vivid…
Literal fathers, symbolic father figures and ‘the patriarchy’ itself are all over cinema. Paul Ridd takes a look at various fathers in films at this year’s BFI London Film Festival.