In 1944, as German forces retreat from Finland, they leave a trail of scorched earth, pillaging villages along the way. Near a remote Lappish settlement, they encounter a solitary, taciturn figure named Aatami (Jorma Tommila). Armed with only a pickaxe, Aatami is prospecting for gold in the rugged terrain – and strikes a rich vein of ore. When the Germans attempt to seize his bounty, they quickly discover Aatami is not to be trifled with, as he brutally dispatches his adversaries. This sets off a relentless pursuit by a special SS unit, determined to claim both Aatami and his gold.
Jorma Tommila as Aatami in “Sisu”
A Director’s Return to Form
Director Jalmari Helander makes a triumphant return to cinema after a prolonged hiatus. His last venture, the Hollywood action flick “Big Game” starring Samuel L. Jackson, was released in 2014. His breakout hit, the darkly comedic horror “Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale,” dates back even further to 2010. This time away seems to have served Helander well, as “Sisu” feels like a deliberate refinement of his craft. Where “Rare Exports” occasionally suffered from excess, particularly when compared to its concise source short film, “Sisu” is remarkably streamlined. There’s not an ounce of fat on this film.
Jack Doolan as Wolf in “Sisu”
Stripped-Down Storytelling
The protagonist remains largely silent throughout the film. The setting is essentially a single, expansive, frozen Lappish landscape. The conflict is distilled to its essence: Aatami kills Nazis. The lean 91-minute runtime (including credits) is dominated by action sequences, punctuated by brief exchanges between the Germans, who are baffled by the force they’ve encountered. Captured Finnish women offer a chilling explanation: during the Winter War, this man lost his family and single-handedly slaughtered hundreds of Soviet soldiers, earning him the moniker “Koschei” – a figure from Slavic folklore, believed to be immortal.
Jorma Tommila as Aatami in “Sisu”
A Symphony of Action
Helander’s film cleverly assembles elements from other mythic action heroes. Aatami dispatches enemies with the efficiency of John Wick, thwarts Nazis with the ingenuity of Indiana Jones, and engages in vehicular mayhem that rivals Mad Max. However, this Finnish “Koschei” often travels on foot. Burdened by a traumatic past and a legendary reputation, his only companions are his loyal dog and horse (though, predictably, not all will survive). While the film flirts with familiar tropes, Helander deftly avoids accusations of cliché. He retains only the barebones genre structure, dedicating the film to relentless action. We learn about Aatami’s past solely through the dialogue of other characters – no flashbacks, no tedious introspection. He remains a mythic force of nature until the very end. It’s easy to imagine that if the story were told from the perspective of the SS soldiers, Aatami would be a typical slasher movie monster, appearing from nowhere to dispatch his opponents in the most creative and gruesome ways imaginable.
A Finnish “Fury Road”
Due to its minimalist approach, the film might seem overly mechanical. Dialogue is strictly functional, the brief “quiet” moments between action sequences serve primarily as breathers, and the subplot involving the captured Finnish women feels like a transparent attempt to inject some dramatic weight into the story. Otherwise, Aatami would simply be fighting for a bag of gold. However, “Sisu” is so laser-focused on action that its narrative austerity barely registers. It’s a Finnish “Fury Road”: a showcase of inventive set pieces where people are torn apart by mines and severed tracheas are repurposed as makeshift snorkels. With each passing second, the film veers further from gritty action into fantastical Grand Guignol, never once losing momentum. One might wonder how many action scenes can be conceived when your sole location is an empty field. The answer, it turns out, is many, if you possess imagination. And if you’re willing to accept minor genre conventions, such as the inexplicably poor eyesight of the SS soldiers.