The Match Factory Girl (1990)
This is minimalism done right. I am sure the script is barely more than a couple of pages with so little dialogue. It is a very bleak look into a young womans meager existence, devoid of joy or hope for a better future. Kati Outinen’s plays the expressionless sadness well here. No one is smiling in this movie, but also barely any crying. Yet we still get a ton of expressions and sense of mental state from all those expressionless faces. Aki Kaurismäki understands that violent outbursts of emotions or dramatic scenes isn’t needed to tell it. Implication is enough. In many ways this style of filmmaking reminds of Kieslowki’s Dekalog and I will certainly have a look at more of Kaurismäki’s filmography.
Rating: 4