Violence is a neutral additive to a story. Blood and gore need not necessarily make any story better or worse. It fits some and ruins others. If an author wants their protagonist to use gratuitous violence while retaining sympathy, they must pick an appropriate target.Sisumakes the obvious choice. Almost any action is justifiable when it’s aimed at Nazis and doled out by their victims.
Writer/director Jalmari Helander established himself as a fascinating filmmaker with his first feature film, the 2010 holiday horror comedyRare Exports. His follow-up, 2014’sBig Game,paired Helander’s nephew Onni Tommila withSamuel L. Jackson fora 90s-inspired action romp.Sisuis Helander’s third feature. It’s a deeply personal film that invokes elements of Finnish nationalism to attack everyone’s least favorite kind of nationalism.
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What IsSisuAbout?
Finland’s position inthe Second World Warwas complicated. The Soviet Union invaded Finland three months before the conflict began, resulting in the short-lived Winter War. Fifteen months later, the Nazis started their attack on the USSR. The Soviets bombed Finnish cities. Finland allied with Germany, claiming self-defense. This period was known as the Continuation War. Peace negotiations in 1943 and 1944 led the Finns to sign a treaty with the Allied Powers. The agreement assured Finland that the USSR would leave them alone if they kicked the Nazis out. The Wehrmacht was prepared, leading to the Lapland Conflict.Sisutakes place in late 1944 while the people of Finland suffer the wrath of the spurned Nazis.
The hero ofSisuis Aatami Korpi, a retired commando who lost his family in the Winter War. After the loss, Korpi became a terrifying one-man army feared bythe entire Soviet military. Korpi now lives in the quiet wilderness of Lapland, accompanied only by his dog and horse. Korpi works as a prospector, finally stumbling upon a massive vein of gold. Korpi encounters Nazis on his road to the bank. He’s forced to fight for his life and his treasure. Korpi swiftly discovers that the Nazis have abducted several Finnish women. As Korpi’s military past is revealed, he’ll have to slaughter his way through the remaining Wehrmacht. He’s a mighty warrior, and his quest is appropriately thrilling.
What MakesSisuSo Good?
Sisudeliverseverything the modernWolfensteingameshave from a different cultural perspective. Viewers can select their level of investment in the deeper storytelling elements. There’s a rich historical backdrop to the spectacle, but the spectacle is the draw. Those less engaged with World War II history will find an excellent action thriller regardless. There’s not much dialogue in the film. The hero, the villains, the victims, and even the landscape are symbols and visual storytellers. The word “sisu” doesn’t have a direct translation, but it broadly describes stoic determination in the face of impossible circumstances. It’s a descriptor of Finland’s national character that holds a lot of inherent importance for its people. In the context of the film, it describes the main character’s impossible tenacity.
There are a lot of action films in which an unflappable superhuman performs feats of strength, agility, and bravery that would be impossible for most. There are a lot of films in which Nazis are slashed, strangled, and slaughtered, though there may never be enough.Sisufits neatly intoconversation withInglourious Basterds, Tarantino’s well-received alternate history Nazi-killing classic. Like Tarantino, Helander is borrowing cinematic language from multiple sources. There’s a lot of Sergio Leone in its cinematography and its taciturn protagonist. The film it evokes most explicitly isTed Kotcheff’sFirst Blood. Like John Rambo, Aatami Korpi is a veteran living in the woods and trying to create a new life for himself. Like Rambo, Korpi isn’t fighting the people he went to war against. He’s fighting the corrosive force they represent.
What IsSisu’s Rotten Tomatoes Score?
Sisucurrently enjoys a 94% positive score from critics on Rotten Tomatoes. The audience score sits slightly lower, with a respectable 88%. Like almost every action movie released in the last nine years, there are plenty ofcomparisons toJohn Wickscattered throughout the reviews. Most critics praise the film’s simplicity, spectacle, and uncomplicated fun violence. The few negative voices cite the film’s repetitive structure as their largest complaint.
Sisuis a straightforward thrill ride with layers of hidden depth. It could’ve been 90 minutes of mindlessMortal KombatFatalities dealt out to Nazis, and itwould’ve still found an audience.Sisudoes a lot with a little. Limited dialogue, reserved cinematography, and slim characterization act as the canvas upon which Korpi spills gallons of blood. More directors should make outstanding action films out of their national heroes.Sisuwill likely be the lens through which the rest of the world views Finnish action, and it’s a great representative.Sisuis a masterful mixture that any action fan will love.
