Ilona Koponen (Kati Outinen), a head waitress at Dubrovnik restaurant, is married to Lauri (Kari Väänänen), a tram driver. The couple live in a small, modestly furnished apartment in Helsinki. As they both come home from work late one night, Lauri surprises Ilona with a new television which he purchased on store credit. There is a short discussion between the two regarding their ability to meet their financial obligations but they agree that the TV payments are manageable.
Valto (Mato Valtonen) lives with his mother, who runs a clothing business. Valto is seen sewing clothes for his mother at the beginning of the film. When he discovers the coffee has run out, and his mother refuses to make him new one right away, he locks his mother in a cupboard, steals her money and goes out. Valto finds Reino (Matti Pellonpää), who has been fixing Valto’s car. They then go on a road trip with no apparent destination. With music coming out of a in-car vinyl player of Valto’s car and Reino’s story about how he got into some legal trouble after he punched someone, the two seemingly enjoy the road trip. This is a typical Kaurismäki’s ordinary-scene-made-interesting moment.
Picking up where Leningrad Cowboys Go America left off, the band has settled in Mexico after charting a top ten hit there. However, many band members become alcoholics spending most of their day drinking tequila. Before long, more than half of the band members have died from excessive drinking. The surviving members have, in the mean time, become naturalized Mexicans, complete with mustaches, Mexican wardrobe but with their pompadours still intact.
The Leningrad Cowboys, a band with foot-long quiff hairstyles and long Winklepicker shoes to match, are seeking success in Siberia, but nobody seems to like their music, except for the mute village idiot, Igor (Kari Väänänen). Thwarted by a lack of local commercial potential, they are encouraged to move to America, for people will "buy anything" there. They depart for New York, bringing with them a band member who had frozen the previous night while practicing outside.
À la suite de la fermeture de la mine où travaillent Taisto Kasurinen et son père, ce dernier se suicide et Taisto part pour Helsinki avec la voiture décapotable léguée par son père. En route, on l'agresse et lui vole toutes ses économies. Il survit en travaillant au noir comme manutentionnaire sur le port et rencontre une jeune femme avec un enfant. Il cherche vainement du travail et retrouve un de ses agresseurs qu'il poursuit et c'est lui qui est emprisonné pour agression à main armée. En prison, il commence à rêver de quitter le pays pour une vie nouvelle. Il s'évade avec son compagnon de cellule mais les choses ne vont pas comme il voulait.
Une adaptation contemporaine du Hamlet de Shakespeare où l'intrigue, relativement bien respectée mais traitée avec l'humour à froid du réalisateur, est transposée dans le cadre d'une grande entreprise familiale.
Nikander est éboueur. Il tombe amoureux d'Ilona, employée de supermarché. Ilona qui va se faire licencier vole la caisse du supermarché et ne sait trop qu'en faire. Afin d'éviter les ennuis, Nikander va la replacer discrètement à sa place. La liaison entre Nikander et Ilona est difficile : ils se séparent. Mais Nikander aime Ilona et il part à sa reconquête.
Calamari Union tells the story of sixteen men, all called Frank (inspired by Frank Armoton) apart from one man called Pekka. Collectively the Franks and Pekka are unhappy with life in Kallio, a working-class district of Helsinki, and decide to move to Eira, an upper-class district, imagining it to be unspoiled. In fact the two districts are not very far apart, but the journey across the city takes on epic proportions, as each of the men falls by the wayside through marriage, work or death.
The people of Kalevala are a peaceful hard working people, they have everything they need and want bar the mystical Sampo, a magical mill which will make grain, salt and gold and give prosperity to whoever possesses it.
Nous sommes à l'été 1941. Une compagnie de mitrailleuses de l'est de la Finlande reçoit l'ordre de restituer leur surplus d'équipement. La société est transférée aux lignes de front. Le lendemain matin, les soldats se réveillent au son des fusils - la guerre a commencé. Les troupes finlandaises attaquent et traversent rapidement la frontière. Les jeunes recrues nerveuses de la compagnie reçoivent leur baptême de feu et les hommes se familiarisent avec la mort et les épreuves de la guerre. Sous la force et mal équipés, ils combattent un ennemi supérieur. Les listes de héros et de morts semblent interminables. L'interprétation épique d'Edvin Laine du roman de guerre de Väinö Linna "Tuntematon Sotilas" constitue un chapitre entier du livre sur l'histoire du cinéma finlandais.
The film, based on pre-Christian Finnish mythology and Sami shamanism, is set in Finnish Lapland and centers on a young woman, Pirita. In the snowy landscape, Pirita and reindeer herder Aslak meet and soon marry. Aslak must spend time away for work, leaving his new bride lonely. In an effort to alleviate her loneliness and ignite marital passion, Pirita visits the local shaman, who indeed helps her out; but in the process turns her into a shapeshifting, vampiric white reindeer. The villages' men are drawn to her and pursue her, with tragic results.
Iiris is withdrawn and friendless, living with her older, alcoholic and unsympathetic mother and stepfather. Looking for escape she seeks company in a nightclub but receives none. Life goes on unchanged until one day she buys a dress using money from her work check, which is usually given to her mother and stepfather. She gives them the money left over but is told to take the dress back. She doesn’t and instead receives 500 markka from her somewhat estranged brother who may not realize the money will be given to her mother. Soon afterwards one night she dresses up a little nicer than usual and goes to the nightclub, where she is selected for a dance by a mysterious man and spends the night with him. The next morning the man leaves her a 1000 markka note when leaving the house. Before leaving his apartment, she leaves him a note with her name and number which says call me. Her life continues on the same but she seems happy, maybe even naively in love. She waits for his call but never receives one, during the early evening she walks by his apartment building and sees his car, but the lights are off and she leaves. About a day or two later she waits outside his apartment door until it opens and a woman leaves, she waits another moment and rings his doorbell. He answers and she asks why he didn’t call, he seems occupied and even bothered, telling her that he will pick her up tomorrow at 8. She gives him her address and leaves.
Henri Boulanger (Léaud), a French man living in London, is laid-off from his job after fifteen years of service. He tries to commit suicide but because he continuously fails, decides to hire a hitman (Kenneth Colley) to finish the job. After making the contract he meets Margaret (Margi Clarke) and finds new meaning to life, however, he is unable to call off the hitman.
A group of local reindeer herders have their Christmas disturbed by excavations on the mountain. A scientist has ordered a team of workers to dig open what he calls "the largest burial mound in the world". An explosive used by the team uncovers what is referred to as a "sacred grave". However, the occupant of the grave is still alive.