So I’ve watched this and man I love it due to the fact it paints war as actual hell, compare this to Amercian Sniper (a film oozing with jingoistic propaganda), its night & day.

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  5. It’s still got those movie ass action scenes that are there because they look cool

    If you want to see something a bit more realistic watch Winter War

  7. Doesn’t American Sniper show PTSD and he gets killed by a guy suffering from PTSD at the end? Well they show him leaving to shoot at a range.

  8. To be fair, the experience of a Finnish soldier during WWII was probably a lot more hellish than the experience of the average American soldier in any modern war. For example. when I read Finnish veterans’ accounts of the war, they’re always talking about how hungry they were all the time. And there was a shortage of medical supplies too, surgeons would had to work without gloves or masks, and nurses would collect wild berries so that the patients would get some vitamins. Even when watching grittier American movies, like Saving Private Ryan, I’m always struck by how much food and medicine they seem to have. And they never run out of bullets or grenades!

    Another thing that would probably affect the war experience, is that American soldiers always knew that regardless of they won or lost the war, their country would always be safe, and their family would be fine. Finnish soldiers knew that their family members were being bombed, they were becoming homeless and starting, and if the Red Army got through, terrible things would happen to the soldiers’ wives and children, and there would be no more Finland. That must have been quite a heavy burden.

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    By the way, my favourite Finnish war movie is Hiljaisuus. It’s about some soldiers and female paramilitaries working at an isolated “Evacuation Centre for Fallen Soldiers”, where they wash and dress the corpses before shipping them home. It’s a strange and slightly creepy psychological study about individuals dealing with death.

  10. Well yeah, Unknown Soldier takes the perspective of a smaller nation defending against a far greater military power. So that would’ve been Iraq.

  12. I think it’s funny that when Americans Sniper came out there were people on both sides saying it was pro war and military propaganda and on the other saying it was anti American and anti soldier

  14. Does anyone know where I can watch this with English subtitles, I live in Finland and see it on Netflix but no English subs.

  15. My favorite is the 1985 version. The ending especially. It shows what war is, just a pile of barely 18 year old boys corpses.

  16. What I like about this version of the story, is the way they presented Rokka. Instead of the funny, rebellious super-warrior, this time he is a very frustrated, grown man with a family and a farm (which they end up losing to the enemy). Which probably is how Linna originally meant to portray him. Also, that way the movie really delivers on how the war disrupted the people’s lives. They all had better things to do, which is so well illustrated by focusing on Rokka and his family.

    Another interesting aspect in this interpretation is the nature. In one scene Rokka is petting a little hare, which must have been petrified by the war (or, if any of you hunters / nature walkers know this kind of a thing to be common, please correct me), which I found as a little remark on just how bad war is for the environment. And on the other hand, much of the nature really doesn’t care about the furious fighting of the humans, which I felt was part of the point of having insects carrying on with their stuff in the middle of a battle.

  17. There are plenty American films and series that portray war realistically and without even painting the protagonists as heroic. Generation Kill on HBO is one example (it helps that it _is_ heavily based on a real account of Operation Iraqi Freedom).

  20. Lol American sniper is a one off, and willingly watching that trash says a lot more about you than it does us.

    That movie was made, and panders to the right, which is why they glorify and prop up a liar (in real life he was a lying POS) and glorify sanctioned murder of women and children.

    It’s a Republican wet dream. “Guns, God and country”; it checks all 3 of their boxes.

    We have much more realistic films on war, my guy lol.

    C’mon, now. Let’s not go there lol.

  22. I’ve always wanted to see more movies about the winter war – the Lapland war but I’ve heard the Finnish gov. Discourages it? Inform me

  24. Mostly all, even bit more known, war movies we have portray war that way.

    Hit me some years ago, when I was in meeting with some internet friends, and there was some old war movie from one of Baltic country running, and it had like heroes who did hero stuff, instead of common people stuck to shit situation. Then started thinking what would be kind of similar Finnish movie, and just could not remember any that portrays any glory or fun in actual war war part.

    There are some actual comedy movies about wartime, that were actually made during the war, like Ryhmy ja Romppainen (released 1941), based on comedy character duo from novel series, about two soldiers in war.Classic case of “no point in doing dramatic or tragedy during times when everyone is already living that, make comedy then, then those less funny things when times get better again” happening.

    No wonder that I liked Generation Kill. Also my late grandmother watched Band of Brothers back when it was released and broadcasted on our tv channels, “ooo reminds me of when I was young.”. She was around 18 years old when wars started and worked as Lotta in hospital, and air raid alert watchtowers.

    Also semi relatedly, I remember reaction video to some of Finnish Defense Forces ‘hype videos’ commenting how it was actually surprising and fresh realism that when they acted out raid to building held by enemy, there was acted out casualty, medic working and them evacuating. It was kind of “It is quite rare in most countries to risk showing that something bad can actually happen to you in combat, when building hype and advertising their soldiering”, while in Finnish military and military portrayal culture it is rather common to knowledge that ‘yes friendlies will at some point get hurt and die, that is what happens in firefights and war, no matter how good we are, but being good and training it can happen lot less’. and that wars are sad and unfortunate matters, but our position on map is what it is.

    Creates kind of rareish situation where as pacifist it is preferable to actually serve and train in military, as that statistic of large motivated reserve, with good level of proficiency in military matters, is actually best method of avoiding any war in this and surrounding areas. Also combined with so ingrained sense of our military being defensive military, with focus on defending population and territory for population to thrive in, that idea of being initial aggressor or starter of conflict is utterly alien and repulsive.

  25. If you wanna see American media that actually does depict war as hell check out band of brothers, the pacific, Memphis Bell, and saving private Ryan

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