Milka: A Film About Taboos

Milka: A Film About Taboos

110 mins | Drama | Dec. 19, 1980

Based on a novel by the late Finnish writer Timo Mukka, this simple story focuses on what happens when Milka (Irma Huntus), a girl barely out of childhood, gets pregnant by Ojanen (Matti Turunen) a rustic fieldhand. Her own mother had been hoping to marry Ojanen, and her daughter's pregnancy turns their lives around. Set in the Lapp country of northern Finland, the scenery is breathtaking, made even more so by the isolation of the region. A sense of natural solitude is underscored by a slow-moving dialogue interspersed with long silences, and the connection between nature and the dialogue is underscored as the young Milka recites poetry while out in the countryside. The fate of Milka and her mother, however, is connected to the decision that Ojanen makes at the end.

Milka: A Film About Taboos

110 mins | Drama | Dec. 19, 1980

Milka: A Film About Taboos
Based on a novel by the late Finnish writer Timo Mukka, this simple story focuses on what happens when Milka (Irma Huntus), a girl barely out of childhood, gets pregnant by Ojanen (Matti Turunen) a rustic fieldhand. Her own mother had been hoping to marry Ojanen, and her daughter's pregnancy turns their lives around. Set in the Lapp country of northern Finland, the scenery is breathtaking, made even more so by the isolation of the region. A sense of natural solitude is underscored by a slow-moving dialogue interspersed with long silences, and the connection between nature and the dialogue is underscored as the young Milka recites poetry while out in the countryside. The fate of Milka and her mother, however, is connected to the decision that Ojanen makes at the end.
IMDb rating 5.9
Producers Arctic-Filmi
Original title Milka
Directors Ulla-Maija Alppi, Rauni Mollberg, Veikko Aaltonen
Writers Jussi Niilekselä, Seppo Heinonen, Timo K. Mukka, Rauni Mollberg, Veikko Aaltonen

Cast

Irma Huntus

as Milka Sierkkiniemi

Leena Suomu

as Anna Sierkkiniemi

Matti Turunen

as Ojanen

Eikka Lehtonen

as Malmström

Esa Niemelä

as Auno

Hellin Auvinen-Salmi

as Villager

Voitto Harju

as Villager

Sonja Joensuu

as Young Milka

Kerttu Juusela

as Villager

Toivo Lampela

as Host of Laanila

Jussi Lappalainen

as Villager

Sirkka Metsäsaari

as Hostess of Laanila

Anna Pesonen

as Villager

Eljas Siitonen

as Villager

Ulla Tapaninen

as Ojanen's Woman Friend

Toivo Tuomainen

as Villager

Irja Uusisalmi

as Villager