The Harvest Month
•
1hr
34mins
Directed by
Matti Kassila,
Mauno Mäkelä,
Starring
Toivo Mäkelä,
Emma Väänänen,
Rauni Luoma,
Aino-Maija Tikkanen
...
The title of the Finnish film Elokuu translates to August. Directed by Matti Kassila, one of Finland's premiere filmmakers, Elokuu was adapted from a novel by Nobel prize winning finnish author F.E. Sillanpää. Simply put, the story concerns the decline and fall of a once-proud family, thanks to the alcoholism of its paterfamilias. Toivo Makela delivers a powerfully effective performance as the inebriated protagonist, avoiding the usual "drunken" cliches. The overlong running time, coupled with the downbeat nature of the subject, limited the film's worldwide appeal.