Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses

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Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses
German theatrical poster
Directed by	Aki Kaurismäki
Written by	Aki Kaurismäki Mato Valtonen
Produced by	Aki Kaurismäki
Starring	Matti Pellonpää Kari Väänänen André Wilms Nicky Tesco The Leningrad Cowboys
Cinematography	Timo Salminen
Edited by	Aki Kaurismäki
Music by
Distributed by
Release date	16 February 1994 (1994-02-16)
Running time	94 minutes
Countries	Finland Germany France
Language	English

Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses is a 1994 film directed by Aki Kaurismäki. It is a sequel to the popular 1989 film Leningrad Cowboys Go America that introduced the fictional Russian rock band Leningrad Cowboys which, subsequently, became a notable real life rock band in Finland.

Plot[]

Picking up where Leningrad Cowboys Go America left off, the band has settled in Mexico after charting a top ten hit there. However, many band members become alcoholics spending most of their day drinking tequila. Before long, more than half of the band members have died from excessive drinking. The surviving five members and their road manager Igor (Kari Väänänen) have, in the meantime, become naturalized Mexicans, complete with mustaches and Mexican wardrobes.

Down on their luck and out of practice, the band receive an anonymous telegram, inviting them to perform at a hotel at Coney Island in New York. When they arrive, they reunite with their ex-manager Vladimir (Matti Pellonpää) who claims to be born again and now calls himself Moses. Moses gathers the group at his room, and plans a return trip to the Promised Land (Siberia), for purposes that are explained later. While the others head to Europe by boat, Moses stows away on the wing of a plane, taking with him the Statue of Liberty's nose as a souvenir. The stolen nose attracts the attention of Johnson, a CIA agent (André Wilms).

Moses falls off the plane and meets up with the band at a beach. Several of their people from Siberia—new band members—arrive in a rented bus to pick them up. Because their rubles have no value, Moses goes to secure the band gigs for money throughout the journey eastward. Johnson catches up with them at a hotel in Amiens and, posing as a record producer, provides them with money to play for a wedding at the hotel. Johnson goes to the bus to find the nose there, but is knocked unconscious by Igor. The next day, they learn of his real identity from the CIA logo on his cigarette holder, and take him for the rest of the trip.

• In Frankfurt, Moses is recognized by a gas station attendant, and phones the police. Igor is able to get some street toughs to bust them out, and they play a show before they set off again.
• In Leipzig, Moses and a fellow band member exchange phrases from the Bible and Communist Manifesto respectively. Later, they both tell the others of the birth of a sacred calf in their homeland, the reason for their journey home.
• In the Czech Republic, the band wash their clothes in the spring water. Johnson grows a beard and claims to be born again as well, renaming himself Elijah. While in the area, the band plays for a local family. Later, Elijah is asked by Moses to sing the next song.
• In Poland, one band member gets sick, so after playing for money, they leave him by a hospital doorstep. Elijah attempts to bribe the sick member into bringing the nose back to America, but is turned down.

Before they cross the border to Russia, Moses states that, according to The Holy Bible, he never sees the promised land. As Vladimir once again, he turns in empty bottles to the customs office as a distraction while the others sneak the bus across the border. Everyone is happy to see their return and have a party that evening. The film ends with Elijah being left alone with the nose.

Cast and characters[]

• Leningrad Cowboys – themselves
• Matti Pellonpää – Moses/Vladimir, the band's born again manager
• Kari Väänänen – Igor, the mute road manager
• André Wilms – Lazar/Johnson/Elijah, a CIA agent pursuing Moses for stealing the Statue of Liberty's nose
• Nicky Tesco, who played the American cousin in Leningrad Cowboys Go America, was listed in the credits but did not appear

Music[]

There has not been a soundtrack album released for this film. Music credited in the film include:

• "Rosita" – Written by M. Helminen
• "Nolo Tengo Dinares" – Written by Mauri Sumén
• "Kasatchok" – Traditional, arranged by Leningrad Cowboys
• "Kili Watch" – Written by G. Derse, arranged by Mauri Sumén
• "Wedding March" – Written by Erkki Melartin, arranged by Mauri Sumén
• "Matuschka" – Written by Ben Granfelt, arranged by Mauri Sumén
• "Lonely Moon" – Written by Toivo Kärki (as Pedro de Punta), Reino Helismaa (as Orvokki Itä), English lyrics by H. Tervaharju, arranged by Mauri Sumén
• "I Woke Up This Morning Last Night" – Written by Leningrad Cowboys, M. Helminen, arranged by Leningrad Cowboys
• "Rivers of Babylon" – Written by F. Farian, B. Dove, G. Reyam, J. MacNaugton, arranged by Leningrad Cowboys
• "Uralin pihlaja" – Traditional, arranged by Mauri Sumén
• "The Sunbeam and the Goblin" – Written by Reino Helismaa, English lyrics by Juice Leskinen, arranged by Mauri Sumén
• "U.S. Border" – Written by Tokela, Jouni Marjaranta

See also[]

• Cinema of Finland
• List of Finnish films: 1990s

External links[]

• Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses at IMDb
• Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses at AllMovie
• Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses at the British Board of Film Classification
• Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses at the British Film Institute
• Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses at Elonet (in Finnish)
• Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses at Rotten Tomatoes
• Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses at the Swedish Film Institute Database
• Criterion Collection Essay