Review: Sisu: Refusing to die!

Action is one genre which is loved by all strata of viewers from all age groups. The western cinema world has already developed modern techniques to offer authentic and ruthless action to the viewers. Hindi film industry is trying to match their standards. But European films too seen to indulge in raw action, the example being a Finnish/English film #Sisu.
Sisu may be an unfamiliar word to non-Finnish speakers, but its meaning is of great impact. Though there is no direct translation, it can be described as the ability to persevere and remain unstoppable in the face of adversity.

Aatami, is a war veteran, living a lonely life. He finds gold while diging in his backyard and to have a good life he ventures out to the city, a few hundred kilometres away. He wants to encash this gold for money so that he can lead a simple yet good life. But on the way he is faced with difficulties when Nazi soldiers confront him and after finding out about the gold he possesses, they want to kill him. Actually Nazis are fighting a losing battle. Helldorf and his troop want to use the stolen gold to buy their freedom when they become prisoners of war. But they are in for a surprise because the person with whom they have meddled with. Aataba is famous soldiers who is considered Immortal, as he refuses to die. How he tackles Nazi soldiers single handedly forms the crux of the story.

The film, ‘Sisu’ deals with the aftermaths of World War 2. Atrocities meted out to common the people, especially women, is conveyed through the sub text. Director Jalmari Helander has presented this actioner with ample fights with emotional backdrop. He straightforwardly narrates the story and the protagonist doesn’t speak a single word throughout the movie, except for one sentence in the last scene. Though the action scenes are asthetically choreographed, at times they look illogical and unreasonable. But nothing can be taken away from those well executed scenes. All forms are fights are used using knives, machine guns, landmines, and even aerial bombs. The background score accentutes the proceedings on the screen.
Tommila’s performance shines through. He portrays Atami, a retired but famed ruthless soldier with a nickname Koschei, or The Immortal with conviction. Others lend good support.

The action sequences in Sisu are ,,the highlights of the movie and this actioner could be savoured by the action film lovers.

***