Finnish Films on DVD

Discuss internationally-released DVDs and Blu-rays or other international DVD and Blu-ray-related topics.
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Erikht
Joined: Thu Nov 20, 2008 5:31 am

Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#26 Post by Erikht » Wed Oct 07, 2009 4:29 pm

Wu.Qinghua wrote:@ Thanks for the answer, Lamourderer ... I think I will grab this Niskanen 60s box ... Though it's a pity that those Jarva discs lack English subtitles ...

@ Erikht: I think you may have seen that yourself or may have ordered those discs already but just in case you haven't done it yet: Amazon.co.uk has significantly reduced Artificial Eye's Kaurismäki Collections (40% off) ...
I grabbed a Karusmäki box in the shop, but I have to check exactly what I bought; it was mayhem in there. almost 300 films in less than an hour, I just grabbed and grabbed and grabbed..... and got a return deal, in case I grabbed the same twice.

No Bergmans, though, I think I will start with that boxed set that gets released the 18th of November.

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Lemmy Caution
Joined: Wed Mar 29, 2006 3:26 am
Location: East of Shanghai

Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#27 Post by Lemmy Caution » Thu Oct 08, 2009 1:23 am

I hope that you are asking for an educational or a volume discount before you pillage and plunder the store. Especially in this economy, the customer is king.
A 10% discount would be a pretty nice savings and stretch your budget.
Pretend you're using your own money and make a stand.
Also, let them know that if they oblige you'll likely be back for more harvests on next year's budget.

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Erikht
Joined: Thu Nov 20, 2008 5:31 am

Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#28 Post by Erikht » Thu Oct 08, 2009 1:44 pm

Lemmy Caution wrote:I hope that you are asking for an educational or a volume discount before you pillage and plunder the store. Especially in this economy, the customer is king.
A 10% discount would be a pretty nice savings and stretch your budget.
Pretend you're using your own money and make a stand.
Also, let them know that if they oblige you'll likely be back for more harvests on next year's budget.
I told them we were from the University, and that we wanted to buy all their Nordic films. And that we wanted percentages, or else next years 10.000 Euros will be taken elsewhere. I got 10% on the final sum, with already discounted films included. And with a "return if I don't like the look of it" policy. When I came back today to buy something for myself, I was given the same discount. When I said "No, this is for me", the shop manager said "No, no, it's okay".


It's good to be king.

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L.A.
Joined: Thu May 28, 2009 7:33 am
Location: Helsinki, Finland

Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#29 Post by L.A. » Fri Nov 20, 2009 7:10 am

Renny Harlin's Prison (1988) was released uncut on DVD quite recently here in Finland. The disc has optional Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian and Danish subtitles and some extras including a trailer, an exclusive interview with Harlin (48 minutes and in English) and two music videos (again directed by Harlin) from a band called Wild Force.

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HistoryProf
Joined: Mon Mar 13, 2006 3:48 am
Location: KCK

Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#30 Post by HistoryProf » Wed Feb 10, 2010 1:52 am

Does anyone know anything about the way overpriced DVD ofThe Winter War (Talvisota)? It's a film I've wanted for a long time but I don't understand the $45 price tag. Amazon seems to sell a Korean (?) 2 disc set that claims to be region free...is that a better option?

I am still R1 only, so I can't do imports unfortunately. I know it's self-limiting, but I have a wishlist hundreds long as it is...if I opened myself to editions from abroad I don't think i'd stay married long. ;)

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L.A.
Joined: Thu May 28, 2009 7:33 am
Location: Helsinki, Finland

Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#31 Post by L.A. » Fri Feb 26, 2010 3:09 pm

Finally, Erik Blomberg's award-winning classic Valkoinen peura / The White Reindeer (1952) will be released on DVD in April.

Unfortunately, no English subtitles.

Perkins Cobb
Joined: Tue Apr 29, 2008 12:49 pm

Re: Finnisg films - help me!

#32 Post by Perkins Cobb » Sat May 08, 2010 6:37 am

Lamourderer wrote:Then again, film box including three films from one of the most known new wave directors from Finland, Mikko Niskanen (Who also directed the already mentioned Eight Deadly Shots), does have English subs. http://www.finnkino.fi/dvd/2672/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The same goes with another new wave director, Jörn Donner (probably most known as Ingmar Bergman scholar). His controversial films Perkele! - kuvia Suomesta (Fuck Off! - Images from Finland), Anna, Dirty Story, Mustaa valkoisella (Black on White), Naisenkuvia (Portraits of Women), Miestä ei voi raiskata (Men Can't Be Raped) and Sixtynine are all available with English subs.

Other notable English-friendly Finnish films on dvd: Kuuma kissa? (Hot cat?) and Laukaus tehtaalla (A Shot in the Factory) by Erkko Kivikoski, Mommilan veriteot 1917 (The Mommila Murders) by Jotaarkka Pennanen, Kreivi (The Count) by Peter von Bagh, Riisuminen and Ameriikan raitti (Paradise America) by Lauri Törhönen and Punahilkka (Red Riding Hood) by Timo Bergholm.
Can anyone report on the image quality of any of these discs?

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MichaelB
Joined: Fri Aug 11, 2006 6:20 pm
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Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#33 Post by MichaelB » Mon May 17, 2010 6:06 pm

HistoryProf wrote:Does anyone know anything about the way overpriced DVD ofThe Winter War (Talvisota)? It's a film I've wanted for a long time but I don't understand the $45 price tag.
It's probably to pay back the cost of all those rather over-optimistic ads the producers took out when they tried to get it nominated for every Oscar under the sun.

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Lemmy Caution
Joined: Wed Mar 29, 2006 3:26 am
Location: East of Shanghai

Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#34 Post by Lemmy Caution » Sun Oct 24, 2010 3:27 pm

From October 17 to 23, Estonian Film Week will feature five recent productions at four downtown cinemas, the Shanghai Film Art Center, Cathay Theater, Yonghua Cinema and Studio City Cinema.

The films:
Andrus Tuisk's crime film Bank Robbery,
Asko Kase's war epic December Heat,
Marko Raat's "The Snow Queen," a winter fairy-tale for adults,
Grigori Kromanov's drama The Last Relic and
Rasmus Merivoo's fantasy kids movie Buratino, Son of Pinocchio.

At the opening on October 17, director Merivoo will talk to film goers.
His latest film, an Estonian-Russian collaboration, is loosely based on Alexei Tolstoy's renowned children's book "The Golden Key."
Unfortunately it turned out to be a busy week for me, including two evening visits to the soon-ending Shanghai World Expo. So I didn't get to any of the Estonian films. It didn't help that I couldn't find the schedule or theater listings any where online. And when I was hoping I could figure something out on the weekend, it rained all day Saturday and was rainy Sunday.

I visited Estonia in 2008, and was interested in catching some of their films.
The Last Relic sounded pretty interesting. Not sure if the Dvd will ever turn up here unless some reasonably well-known label picks it up. Sigh.

Anyone familiar with that handful of Estonian films?

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L.A.
Joined: Thu May 28, 2009 7:33 am
Location: Helsinki, Finland

Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#35 Post by L.A. » Fri Dec 17, 2010 8:37 am

French DVD of Valkoinen peura / The White Reindeer (1952) from Artus Films.

According to the site, it is subtitled in English, French and Spanish.

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filmghost
Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 5:15 pm
Location: Athens, Greece

Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#36 Post by filmghost » Sun Dec 19, 2010 7:30 pm

L.A. wrote:French DVD of Valkoinen peura / The White Reindeer (1952) from Artus Films.

According to the site, it is subtitled in English, French and Spanish.
That's great news! I always wanted to see this. Does anyone know anything about Artus Films though? I've never heard about them before.

charal
Joined: Fri Aug 08, 2008 6:36 pm
Location: ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA

Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#37 Post by charal » Wed Aug 10, 2011 1:56 am

I managed to get both volumes of the JORN DONNER COLLECTION from an Amazon seller. These sets were previously mentioned here but I think they deserve wider exposure. The 7 discs are available separately by the same seller [who hails from the USA]. The cost to me was about $90 making each disc about $12 each. The subtitles are white, clear and fully translate all the dialogue. All the films are worth seeing if you are a Euro-cinephile. Donner's works range from pseudo-comedy to drama [+ documentary].

The films featured are as follows:
1. BLACK ON WHITE (1967) 4:3 [1.66:1]
2. SIXTY-NINE 69 (1969) 4:3 [1.66:1]
3. PORTRAITS OF WOMEN (1969) 16:9 + 1 hr documentary on Finland, narrated by Donner (1980)
4. ANNA (1970) 16:9
5. PERKELE! IMAGES FROM FINLAND (1971) 4:3 [1.66:1]
6. MEN CAN'T BE RAPED (1977) 16:9 [Swedish dialogue]
7. DIRTY STORY (1984) 4:3 [1.66:1] Swedish dialogue

#1 was Donner's first in Finland and the first by his company. He acts in this as well as films #2 & 3. He is a good 'comic' actor. #2 & #3 are comedies but not so as one would notice. I found them amusing and they are apparently not as 'serious' as Donner's Swedish films. #4 has a dubbed Harriet Andersson in the leading role. #7 features Erland Josephson. I found #6 to be the best film experience in terms of blind viewing and as good cinema.

2, 4 & 6 are on volume 1. The other four make up volume 2.
The quality is good on all except for #1 which is slightly below average.

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JPJ
Joined: Mon Dec 15, 2008 8:23 am

Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#38 Post by JPJ » Wed Aug 10, 2011 7:49 am

"Official" english title for Perkele is "Fuck off-images from Finland" which is quite harsh,perkele is also a swearword but it really doesn't mean fuck off...Charal please could you report back when you've watched the documentary,I'd like to know the reaction of non finnish viewer.

charal
Joined: Fri Aug 08, 2008 6:36 pm
Location: ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA

Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#39 Post by charal » Thu Aug 11, 2011 1:49 am

All the Finnish films on these sets were my first exposure to the language itself. To my ears It sounds unlike Swedish and more like Hungarian.

As to PERKELE: I liked it. As a film it has worn well. In regard to its subject: Finland, it seems to me that the Finnish people themselves are very critical of their country. Sweden appears to outshine its Finland on many levels. Helsinki dominates the rest of the country. Since Swedish is spoken by some Finns they abandon their homeland for Sweden itself. (A similar case here is with New Zealanders moving to Australia for better pay and more action.) Finland is shown to be a poor country, cold, ugly, etc. I'm sure it is not the case; the film is 40 years old after all and Donner did move back there so he must like it I suppose.

The section showing Finns emigrating to Australia amused me. I live in Adelaide, South Australia and I've met immigrants from everywhere [my parents themselves are Greek immigrants] but I've never actually met a Finnish person. Did they all go to NSW or Victoria I wonder?

The 1980 film on Helsinki is more educational despite having autobiographical passages. It taught me that people are the same - as are cities - all over the world.

Tell me JPJ how do Finns react to Finnish films with Swedish dialogue? What percentage of the population in Helsinki speaks Swedish?

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MichaelB
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Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#40 Post by MichaelB » Thu Aug 11, 2011 4:57 am

charal wrote:All the Finnish films on these sets were my first exposure to the language itself. To my ears It sounds unlike Swedish and more like Hungarian.
There are common linguistic roots and the grammar has a similar structure, but they're mutually unintelligible.

When I went to a talk by the Hungarian composer György Ligeti, he told an anecdote about someone saying "You're Hungarian and you're working with Esa-Pekka Salonen, who's Finnish, so you obviously have no problem communicating, right?"

To which Ligeti replied: "Yes, thankfully we both speak good English, and also some Swedish".

He went on to say that Hungarian and Finnish have about as much in common today as English and ancient Greek - in other words, there are a few subtle connections, but not ones that are any particular use when actually speaking either language.

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JPJ
Joined: Mon Dec 15, 2008 8:23 am

Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#41 Post by JPJ » Thu Aug 11, 2011 8:37 am

Charal,interesting points about Perkele.There are very few finnish films made in swedish,in fact Donner's films are the only ones I can think right now(I'm sure there are others).I don't know about Helsinki area but about six percent of Finns speak swedish as first language,most of them live on the west coast.I live in a town called Tampere(200 000 inhabitants) and here you don't normally hear swedish anywhere.

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MichaelB
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Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#42 Post by MichaelB » Thu Aug 11, 2011 8:47 am

Ironically, one of those Finns who spoke Swedish as a first language was Jean Sibelius. Despite his global reputation as one of Finland's greatest nationalists (and probably the one with the most instant international recognition), virtually all his songs and choral settings are in Swedish.

marnum
Joined: Wed Jun 30, 2010 12:50 pm

Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#43 Post by marnum » Thu Aug 11, 2011 10:32 am

Yep, 6 % of Finns are Swedish speakers, but 30-40 % of Finnish culture is "Swedish". They got the money and every single one lives happily 100 years.

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MichaelB
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Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#44 Post by MichaelB » Thu Aug 11, 2011 10:35 am

marnum wrote:Yep, 6 % of Finns are Swedish speakers, but 30-40 % of Finnish culture is "Swedish". They got the money and every single one lives happily 100 years.
Tragically, Sibelius died young - he was a mere 91.

marnum
Joined: Wed Jun 30, 2010 12:50 pm

Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#45 Post by marnum » Thu Aug 11, 2011 10:52 am

MichaelB wrote:
marnum wrote:Yep, 6 % of Finns are Swedish speakers, but 30-40 % of Finnish culture is "Swedish". They got the money and every single one lives happily 100 years.
Tragically, Sibelius died young - he was a mere 91.
Sibelius was really bilingual, there is the explanation. That factor takes 9 years off your age, almost surely.

marnum
Joined: Wed Jun 30, 2010 12:50 pm

Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#46 Post by marnum » Thu Aug 11, 2011 1:49 pm

charal wrote:I managed to get both volumes of the JORN DONNER COLLECTION from an Amazon seller. These sets were previously mentioned here but I think they deserve wider exposure. The 7 discs are available separately by the same seller [who hails from the USA]. The cost to me was about $90 making each disc about $12 each. The subtitles are white, clear and fully translate all the dialogue. All the films are worth seeing if you are a Euro-cinephile.
Those 2 sets make less than 40 euros if you live in Finland. Shipping them to Australia or anywhere would cost maybe 10 euros extra. Let me know if you are interested and have a PayPal account.

Zot!
Joined: Wed Jan 20, 2010 12:09 am

Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#47 Post by Zot! » Thu Aug 11, 2011 2:15 pm

MichaelB wrote:He went on to say that Hungarian and Finnish have about as much in common today as English and ancient Greek - in other words, there are a few subtle connections, but not ones that are any particular use when actually speaking either language.
I've heard from non-speakers and academic types that there is a connection, but I speak Hungarian, and I don't understand a single word of Finnish, not even close. So, yes, I concur.

marnum
Joined: Wed Jun 30, 2010 12:50 pm

Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#48 Post by marnum » Thu Aug 11, 2011 4:03 pm

Zot! wrote:I've heard from non-speakers and academic types that there is a connection, but I speak Hungarian, and I don't understand a single word of Finnish, not even close. So, yes, I concur.
I think you learned in grammar school that there is some words in common.
Blood:
Veri (in Finnish)
vér (in Hungarian)
Hand:
Käsi (in Finnish)
kéz (in Hungarian)

Edit: typo

Zot!
Joined: Wed Jan 20, 2010 12:09 am

Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#49 Post by Zot! » Fri Aug 12, 2011 4:32 am

I didn't go to school in Hungary, so I'm sure plenty was left out of my education, however that list is interesting. It is however a very short list, and when spoken, I don't recognize anything from Finnish just as general rule. But yes, sorry, my experience is highly unscientific and only anecdotal.

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MichaelB
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Re: Finnish Films on DVD

#50 Post by MichaelB » Fri Aug 12, 2011 4:46 am

And that ties in with Ligeti's English/ancient Greek example - you'll find plenty of similar parallels there, which are fascinating to etymologists but functionally useless.

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