I Hired a Contract Killer

Despite the English settings and French lead, there's no avoiding how Finnish this film is: cold, taciturn, dryly funny. Aki's surrogate Helsinki is an immersive world, rendering a broad palette of emotion in the monochromatic hue of the absurd.

Kaurismaki working in English kind of reminds me of Kusturica working in English -- the tone is the same, but it seems like the heart isn't in it. There are some really, really funny bits of dry, black humor (Leaud's firing is a scream) but the non-comedic bits feel empty and rote.

An excellent movie, Kaurismäki's usual minimalism and subtle black humor translate well into UK English and the actors totally get him. I even enjoyed Léaud's performance, although I had found his performances weak or grating in some of the classic French films that had made him famous.

Starts off promising, creating a wonderfully drab atmosphere. Every shot is filled with decay and quiet sadness. Doesn't quite keep the momentum though, making it a bit of a slog to get to the end.

"The working class has no fatherland" and other droll insights.