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The Other Side of Hope

  • Pakolainen (Working title)
All titles (21)
Feature Film | 2016-2017 | Tragicomedy | Finland

Brief synopsis

The film consists of two stories that by chance intersect at the forty-minute mark. The first one is about Khaled, a young Syrian refugee who has lost virtually all of his family. Almost by accident, he drifts to Helsinki as a stowaway passenger on a collier to seek asylum without great hopes for his future life.

Wikström, the other protagonist, is a travelling salesman of about fifty (representing mainly men's shirts and ties). In the beginning of the film he leaves his alcoholic wife and his profession and turns momentarily into a poker shark. With the small amount of money he thus gains he then buys an unprofitable restaurant at the far end of an inner court along a back street in Helsinki.

When the authorities decide to return Khaled to the ruins of Aleppo he, just like many others, decides to stay illegally in the country and disappears into the streets of Helsinki. There he meets, besides various types of racism, also pure kindness. Finally Wikström finds our fellow sleeping in the inner yard of his restaurant. Perhaps he sees something of himself in the battered man because he hires Khaled as a cleaner and a dishwasher.

For a moment life shows us its sunnier side, but fate soon intervenes and the film concludes with an open ending leading either to a respectable life or to the cemetery. For a person driven into a corner, both have their merits.

(The Match Factory)

Cast

ActorRole nameVoice actor / SpeakerVoice actor
Sherwan HajiKhaled [L]
Ilkka KoivulaCalamnius [L]
Sakari KuosmanenWikström [L]
Janne HyytiäinenNyrhinen [SR]
Nuppu KoivuMirja [SR]
Kaija PakarinenN.N. [SR]
Niroz HajiN.N. [SR]
Simon Hussein Al-BazoonMazdak [SR]

Crew

ActivityNameComment
Director of photographyTimo Salminen
Costume designerTiina Kaukanen
DirectorAki Kaurismäki
EditorSamu Heikkilä
ProducerAki Kaurismäki
Production designerVille Grönroos
ScreenwriterAki Kaurismäki
Subtitle editorLynn Johansson
SDH
SDH

Production companies

CompanyComment
Sputnik Oy [fi]
Bufo AB [fi]
co-production
co-production
Pandora Film GmbH & Co. Filmproduktions- und Vertriebs KG
ZDF - Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen
participation / Senderbeteiligung
participation / Senderbeteiligung

Distribution / Sales companies

CompanyComment
Pandora Film Verleih [de]
Deutschland
Deutschland
The Match Factory GmbH [de]
World Sales
World Sales

Awards

Award winnerYearAwardCategory 
Aki Kaurismäki2017European Film Awards
European Director
European DirectorNominated
Aki Kaurismäki2017European Film Awards
European Film
European FilmNominated
Aki Kaurismäki2017European Film Awards
People's Choice Award
People's Choice AwardNominated
Aki Kaurismäki2017Int. Filmfestspiele Berlin
Silberner Bär - Beste Regie
Silberner Bär - Beste RegieWinner
Aki Kaurismäki2017Filmfest München - Friedenspreis des Dt. Films
Regiepreis International
Regiepreis InternationalWinner
Aki Kaurismäki2017TIFF Toronto Film Festival [ca]
Masters
MastersNominated
Aki Kaurismäki2017CIVIS Kinopreis
Publikumspreis
PublikumspreisNominated

TV-broadcast

TypeCountryStationDate / TimeComment
RepeatFrancearteWednesday, 08/05/2019, 11.30 PM
RepeatGermanyarteWednesday, 08/05/2019, 8.15 PM
First showingFranceCanal+ [fr]Saturday, 17/02/2018, 8.50 PMCanal + Cinéma

Cinema releases and premieres

TypeCountryDateComment
Theatre releaseGermanyThursday, 30/03/2017