Deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as GOD S OWN COUNTRY...one of the most moving gay romance stories of recent years Film Inquiry.
Having moved to Paris for university, Leevi returns to his native Finland for the summer to help his estranged father renovate the family lake house. Tareq, a recent asylum seeker from Syria, has been hired to help with the work, and when Leevi s father has to return to town on business, the two young men establish a connection in the heat of the Finnish summer.
A MOMENT IN THE REEDS is one of the first queer feature films made in Finland. Viewing Finland from both the perspectives of an immigrant and an emigrant, the film casts the long-marginalised voices of sexual and ethnic minorities centre-stage in a story about the search for freedom, acceptance and a place to call home.
Cast: Janne Puustinen, Boodi Kabbani, Mika Melender Director: Mikko Makela Language: Finnish with english subtitles
Publisher: Saffron Hill, Year: 2018
A sweet and hilarious fusion of gay romantic comedy, Jewish family drama and French bedroom farce, Mikael Buch s Let My People Go! follows the travails and daydreams of the lovelorn Reuben (Regular Lovers Nicolas Maury), a French-Jewish gay mailman living in fairytale Finland (where he got his MA in Comparative Sauna Cultures ) with his gorgeous Nordic boyfriend. But just before Passover, a series of mishaps and a lovers quarrel exile the heartbroken Reuben back to Paris and back to his zany family including Almodóvar goddess Carmen Maura (Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, Volver) as his ditzy mum, and Truffaut regular Jean-François Stévenin as his lothario father. Scripted by director Mikael Buch and renowned arthouse auteur Christophe Honoré (Love Songs), Let My People Go! both celebrates and upends Jewish and gay stereotypes with wit, gusto and style to spare. The result is deeply heartwarming, fabulously kitschy and hysterically funny.
Cast: Nicolas Maury, Carmen Maura, Jean-François Stévenin Director: Mikael Buch Language: Finnish, French
Publisher: TLA Releasing, Year: 2013
To celebrate the start of summer, handsome 17-year-old Miku throws a wild party at his parent s house, which turns destructive quickly. As punishment, Miku is forced to spend the rest of his summer with his family at their secluded country cottage. There, Miku meets the confident, magnetic Elias. The two spend their summer inseparable, discovering themselves, their sexuality and each other. But with an intense holiday romance comes the inevitable spectre of separation, and, as the summer comes to a close, the boys will have to face the realities of potential heartbreak head on.
Equal part erotic summer romance and moving portrait of teen angst, Screwed is both stirring and affecting.
Cast: Valtteri Lehtinen, Mikko Kauppila, Marlene Dumas, Jukka Federley, Sami Huhtala Director: Nils-Erik Ekblom Language: Finnish with English Subtitles
Publisher: TLA Releasing, Year: 2019
