The Woodcutter Story

Mikko Myllylä's distinctive debut, "The Woodcutter Story," had its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in 2022 and won the prestigious Prix Fondation Gan à la Diffusion distribution award during the Critics' Week. In the movie Jarkko Lahti delivers an impressive performance as woodcutter Pepe, whose life is unfairly battered by hardships. Nonetheless, Pepe's expression remains unchanged, and he manages to see everything in a positive light. The wintery town of Puolanka, known as Finland's most pessimistic municipality, provides a fitting settings for Myllylä's absurd debut film, featuring outstanding performances by some of Finland's finest actors, including Hannu-Pekka Bjorkman, Ulla Tapaninen, and Armi Toivanen.

Laura Laaksonen