Riku Nieminen plays the title role as Pertti Pasase in the recent Spede film.
Pertti “Spede” Pasanen, known as the big mogul of the Finnish entertainment scene, has always been a controversial figure in the public eye. Especially the fictional one premiering at the end of September Spede– during the production of the film, harsh accusations were made public about Pasanen, according to which Pasanen had, among other things, sexually harassed numerous women.
The news brought the title role to the actor in the film To Riku Niemi a new perspective on his character.
– The news that came out created a certain kind of glasses for me to look at and deal with some scenes in a new way.
However, he approached the role with a relaxed and curious attitude, as he felt that he was interested in the psychological aspect of Pasanen’s personal mental landscape. Still, he felt that he avoided unnecessary stress in preparing for the character.
– I stressed that other bald man from Kuopio a little more, Nieminen adds, referring to his titular role From Juice Leski in a narrative film.
Nieminen sees his own interpretation of Pasase as a combination of great ambition, but also endless impatience. Pasanen’s character appears in the film as an impatient and sometimes unpredictable visionary, for whom it was important to promote his own projects at any cost.
– And at the same time everything that he is in the middle of the hustle and outside of it. and what it’s like to be with himself.
Aleksi Delikouras directed by Aku Sipola, the audience is also introduced to the film Vesa-Matti Loiri. In the film, Pasanen is overshadowed by the excellence of Loir, which is on the rise, but the film still focuses on Pasanen’s own mental landscape.
– At least in this film of ours, the relationship between Loir and Spede was presented, from which they both benefited. Spede for Loiri’s charisma and Loiri for the opportunities created by Spede.
Riku Nieminen plays Spede Pasa in a new film. Mikko Huisko
Dark side
The film’s script had already been completed when Lenita Airisto’s biography made harsh accusations about Pertti Pasase. Airisto told Pasanen sexually harassing her.
The book describes quite graphically how Pasanen had visited Airisto after a meeting.
– I was suffocated under his sweaty corpse and could not move. His tongue prevented me from screaming and his throbbing made it clear that the situation would progress to rape, Airisto described in his book.
With Airisto’s exit, other well-known women, such as Katariina Souri and Piia Koriseva described their uncomfortable experiences in the company of the entertainment mogul.
In the recent film, the topic is left unaddressed and the time window of the story takes place, at least apparently, in the time before the riots. In Nieminen’s opinion, the film succeeded in subtly dealing with how Pasanen behaved at his worst.
In Nieminen’s opinion, the film knew how to deal with Pasanen’s dark side subtly. Mikko Huisko
In the film, Spede’s character is at times suddenly violent and at times a lascivious ladies’ man.
– The script managed to elegantly deal with what Spede might have thought about his own position of power in relation to, for example, women.
Nieminen trusts that the viewers know how to read things between the lines, and in that case, feasting on the noise would not have brought anything new to the film. In the film, however, Pasase is not portrayed as a victim or a saint.
– Inevitably, it’s not always nice at the top. It can be quite lonely there, Nieminen reflects.
Directed by and together with Aleksi Delikouras Antti Heikkinen the film he wrote with will arrive in cinemas across Finland on Friday, September 29.