Vaarala, a reserved romantic photographer, has an odd artistic vision of loneliness: he takes serial photos of an empty park bench in remote spaces of nature. When he meets and falls in love with the spirited, unruly Ansa, his ‘bench’ is suddenly filled. But in order to be with her he has to not only overcome his own frailties, but also the impending danger of Ansa’s volatile ex-con ex, and then Ansa herself, a woman prone to impulsiveness and impetuousness. Someone ends up dead, and in the mess of difficult and fractured relationships reaching far beyond Vaarala and Ansa, it’s not surprising. Madness and mayhem all mixed in with passion and beauty: these are the things we do for love.
Matti Ijäs (b. 1950) is an acknowledged Finnish filmmaker with a history of seven feature films and around 30 TV films. Ijäs is a pioneer of Finnish cinema. His recognisable and warm style has gathered many fans in Finland and in other countries as well. He has also received recognition in numerous festivals with his films The Blue Corner (2002) and Blindfolded (1999).
Crew
Starring: Krista Kosonen, Sampo Sarkola, Tommi Korpela, Hannu-Pekka Björkman, Aurora Kuusisto, Lauri Romakkaniemi, Minna Puolanto
Script: Heikki Vuento, Auli Mantila, Matti Ijäs, J-P Passi
Director: Matti Ijäs
