If
Russian wants to claim the Crimea than it should relinquish its hold on the
Republic of Karelia to be consistent—like that would ever happen. It inspired
Sibelius’s Karelia Suite, so you can’t
get much more Finnish than that. Finland had reclaimed the Finnish speaking
area during the Continuation War, but alas, it ended in a less satisfying manner
than the previous Winter War. The fog of that ill-fated follow-up war is
vividly captured in Aku Louhimies’s Unknown Soldier, reportedly the most expensive Finnish film ever produced, which
releases today on DVD.
Most
of the soldiers we meet in the early days of the Continuation War are kids, but
not Rokka, a crusty old veteran of the Winter War. The middle-aged farmer was
less than thrilled to be drafted, but he will do his duty—just do not expect him
to act like he is happy about it. Immediately, Rokka clashes with his officers,
even the grounded Second Lieutenant Koskela. Nevertheless, he has a knack for killing
Russians and keeping his comrades alive, particularly his crony, Susi.
Initially,
the Finnish forces score several victories, but the tide will turn against them.
Louihimies & Jari Olavi Rantala’s adaptation of Väinö Linna’s classic
autobiographical novel unambiguously blames the Finnish officer class, with the
sole exception of Koskela. Unfortunately, that necessarily includes the dashing
young platoon commander Kariluoto. He does not have the gumption to challenge
his superior officers, but he has the integrity to face every danger
shoulder-to-shoulder with his men.
Louhimies’s
Unknown Soldier is a three-hour epic
(there were three prior adaptations), but the scenes of muddy, mucky warfighting
definitely start to blend together. There are dozens of name characters jostling
for the viewer’s attention, but only four really stand out: Rokka, Koskela,
Kariluoto, and the doughy joker, Vanhala.
Nevertheless,
nobody can deny Louhimies has staged some dashed dramatic battle sequences. He definitely
conveys a visceral sense of the violent, confused, and random nature of war.
Eero Aho and Jussi Vatanen effectively anchor the film, at opposite poles, as
Rokka and Koskela, respectively.
Mika
Orasmaa’s cinematography encompasses both the macro sweep and micro grit of
war, while Lasse Enersen’s score has a vintage Maurice Jarre vibe. It is an
impressive technical package, especially when it comes to the blood and guts
and bullets whizzing and bombs exploding.
Apparently,
Louhimies’s Unknown Soldier is
considered somewhat revisionist in Finland, because it openly addresses the
country’s alliance with National Socialist Germany. However, nobody in the film
seems too happy about it. It is easy to criticize in retrospect, but when a
small country like Finland is invaded by a large, rapacious nation like the
Soviet Union, it is hard to blame the scrappy defenders for accepting whatever
help they could get. In all honesty, the Continuation War was a war against
fascist imperialism and the fascists won. As revisionist as the film may or may
not be, it is always clear the Soviets were marauders, bent on conquest, who do
indeed commit war crimes at one point—so the film is accurate in that respect.
Problematically
impersonal at times, Unknown Soldier is
still an impressively immersive work of war cinema. Recommended for the
spectacle and scale of the action, Unknown
Soldier releases today (3/12) on DVD and BluRay.
