Kaurismäki’s film is now recommended to Catholics – Pappi laughed out loud

The film Dead Leaves is recommended from the Vatican. Sputnik / Finnish Film Foundation

The official news site of the Vatican State and the Holy See Vatican News has published a positive film review Aki Kaurismäki from the movie Dead leaves (2023). Vatican News is the Pope of Francis founded news media and its news focuses on events related to the Catholic Church around the world.

The film review was written by an American-born priest who currently works in the Holy See of Rome Greg Apparcel. The film review published now is part of a series of articles in which Catholics around the world are recommended films for the coming year, which is a year of jubilation in the Catholic Church. The theme of the anniversary year is hope.

In his review, Apparcel goes through the plot of the film and says that he laughed out loud at several scenes and lines. Apparcel praises the film’s dry humor as well Alma Pöystin and Jussi Vatanen role performances.

– I loved that even these depressed, lonely people have hope to end up together and save each other, Apparcel writes.

Apparcel says he wants to see other Kaurismäki films and mentions the director’s films Far away the clouds flee, A man without a past, Le Havre and I hope beyond.

– I would think that their humor and sense of hope would be the same as what I experienced in the Dead Leaves, Apparcel concludes his article.

You can read the full review in English from this link.

The fourth part of Kaurismäki’s worker trilogy Dead leaves appeared in 2023 and became an international success. It won the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival in the summer of 2023, was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and came close to an Oscar nomination as well. The US news sites Time and AP News chose Dead leaves for the best film of the year. in Finland Dead leaves received four Jussi nominations.

The film review was the first to report in Finland Helsingin Sanomat.