Brief Thoughts on 'Fallen Leaves'

Partway through Aki Kaurismäki’s Fallen Leaves (2023), the two protagonists visit a cinema to see Jim Jarmusch’s The Dead Don’t Die (2019). The comparison between Kaurismäki and Jarmusch is an easy one but nonetheless bolstered by this offbeat citation: two lovers, bound yet adrift like fallen leaves, share an appreciation for the famed Son of Lee Marvin. Unlike the two pretentious cinephiles who emerge before them with references to the likes of Godard, would-be lovers Ansa and Holappa are less interested in cinematic intertexuality than meandering their way to meaningful connection.

Fallen Leaves goes down smooth: scenes play out with effortless and ruthless self-assuredness. The humor is all the more scorching for Kaurismäki’s deadpan delivery. Don’t expect cues for when to laugh; that’s what makes it all so funny.

The easygoing flow of Fallen Leaves pairs well with its inimitable romantic optimism. Despite the myriad obstacles thrown in the path of two lost souls, their union feels inevitable, although not quite so much so that it cuts the film’s central tension: will these two find one another?

In fact, as Ansa and Holappa serendipitously meet and lose one another repeatedly, their constant reunion is what seems fated; the only question is: will Kaurismäki end on them together, or apart? The talent of Kaurismäki is in leaving you guessing.

In addition to the appearance of contemporary Jarmusch, the film is grounded by news reports covering the war in Ukraine. It’s a reminder that a larger world exists around Ansa and Holappa, even if Kaurismäki is inclined to show us only their own spheres. Like most people, they live their own bubbles, if only out of necessity. Context be damned.

This ties in to something else: the beauty of Fallen Leaves comes down at least in part to the sheer relatability of the characters, who turn off the news and scarcely see outside themselves; just long enough to see one another.

Fittingly enough, I saw Fallen Leaves the day after publishing a top ten of 2023 list. I’m not sure where the film would have landed. Maybe number one. I can’t get it out of my head. The film was Finland’s Oscar submission. It did not receive a nomination.