The Man Without a Past

The Man Without a Past
The Man Without a Past
	International poster
Directed by	Aki Kaurismäki
Written by	Aki Kaurismäki
Produced by	Aki Kaurismäki
Starring	Markku Peltola; Kati Outinen; Juhani Niemelä;
Cinematography	Timo Salminen
Edited by	Timo Linnasalo
Music by	Leevi Madetoja
Release date	1 March 2002;
Running time	97 minutes
Country	Finland
Language	Finnish
Budget	€1,206,000
Box office	$9,564,237

The Man Without a Past (Finnish: Mies vailla menneisyyttä) is a 2002 Finnish comedy-drama film produced, written, and directed by Aki Kaurismäki. Starring Markku Peltola, Kati Outinen and , it is the second installment in Kaurismäki's Finland trilogy, the other two films being Drifting Clouds (1996) and Lights in the Dusk (2006). The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 2002 (the only Finnish film so far) and won the Grand Prix at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival.^[2]

Plot[]

The film begins with an unnamed man arriving by train to Helsinki. After falling asleep in Kaisaniemi Park, he is mugged and beaten by hoodlums and is left with severe head injuries, losing consciousness. He awakes and wanders back to the train station and collapses in its toilet. He awakes the second time in a hospital and finds that he has lost his memory. He starts his life from scratch, living in a shipping container, finding clothes with help from the Salvation Army and making friends with his poor neighbours.

Cast[]

Markku Peltola as M
Kati Outinen as Irma
Juhani Niemelä as Nieminen
Kaija Pakarinen as Kaisa Nieminen
Sakari Kuosmanen as Anttila
Annikki Tähti as Manager of Flea Market
Anneli Sauli as Bar Owner
Elina Salo as Dock Clerk
Outi Mäenpää as Bank Clerk
Esko Nikkari as Bank Robber
Pertti Sveholm as Police Detective
Matti Wuori as himself (lawyer)
Aino Seppo as Ex-wife
Janne Hyytiäinen as Ovaskainen
Antti Reini as Electrician

Production[]

The Man Without a Past was co-produced by the Finnish companies and YLE, the German companies Bavaria Film Studios and and the French company .

Critical reception[]

The film received overwhelmingly positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rating of 98%, based on 99 critics, with an average rating of 7.98/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Kaurismäki delivers another droll comedy full of his trademark humor."^[3] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 84 out of 100, based on 29 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".^[4] Roger Ebert awarded the film three-and-a-half stars out of 4, saying he "felt a deep but indefinable contentment".^[5] Kirk Honeycutt of The Hollywood Reporter said the film "contains not one false note. It is the work of an artist fully in control of his art."^[6] Barbara Scharres of the Chicago Reader said that Kaurismäki "perfects his trademark formula of deadpan humor and arctic circle pathos in this brilliantly ironic 2002 comedy."^[7]

Awards and nominations[]

List of awards and nominations
Award	Year	Category	Recipient	Result	Ref.
ACCEC Awards	2002	Best Foreign Film	Aki Kaurismäki	Won	^{[citation needed]}
Academy Awards	2002	Best Foreign Language Film		Nominated	^[8]
Argentinean Film Critics Association Awards	2002	Best Foreign Film		Nominated	^{[citation needed]}
Bangkok International Film Festival	2003	Best Actress	Kati Outinen	Won	^[9]^[10]^[11]
		Best Screenplay	Aki Kaurismäki	Won
		Best Film	Aki Kaurismäki	Nominated
Bodil Awards	2002	Best Non-American Film	Aki Kaurismäki	Nominated	^{[citation needed]}
Camerimage	2002	Golden Frog	Timo Salminen	Nominated	^{[citation needed]}
Cannes Film Festival	2002	Best Actress	Kati Outinen	Won	^[12]
		Grand Prize of the Jury	Aki Kaurismäki	Won
		Prize of the Ecumenical Jury	Aki Kaurismäki	Won
		Golden Palm	Aki Kaurismäki	Nominated
		Palm Dog	Tähti	Won
Chicago Film Critics Association Awards	2002	Best Foreign Language Film		Nominated	^{[citation needed]}
César Awards	2002	Best European Union Film		Nominated	^{[citation needed]}
European Film Awards	2002	Audience Award - Best Director	Aki Kaurismäki	Nominated	^{[citation needed]}
		Best Actor	Markku Peltola	Nominated
		Best Actress	Kati Outinen	Nominated
		Best Cinematographer	Timo Salminen	Nominated
		Best Director	Aki Kaurismäki	Nominated
		Best Film	Aki Kaurismäki	Nominated
		Best Screenwriter	Aki Kaurismäki	Nominated
Fajr Film Festival	2002	International Competition - Best Screenplay	Aki Kaurismäki	Won	^{[citation needed]}
Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards	2002	Best Foreign-Language Film		Nominated	^{[citation needed]}
Flanders International Film Festival	2002	Grand Prix	Aki Kaurismäki	Won	^{[citation needed]}
Guldbagge Awards	2002	Best Foreign Film		Won	^{[citation needed]}
Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists	2002	Best Director - Foreign Film	Aki Kaurismäki	Nominated	^{[citation needed]}
Jussi Awards	2002	Best Film		Won	^{[citation needed]}
		Best Actress	Kati Outinen	Won
		Best Cinematography	Timo Salminen	Won
		Best Direction	Aki Kaurismäki	Won
		Best Editing	Timo Linnasalo	Won
		Best Script	Aki Kaurismäki	Won
		Best Actor	Markku Peltola	Nominated
Lübeck Nordic Film Days	2002	Audience Prize	Aki Kaurismäki	Won	^{[citation needed]}
National Society of Film Critics Awards	2002	Best Foreign Language Film		Won	^{[citation needed]}
Nordic Council	2002	Nordic Council's Film Prize	Aki Kaurismäki	Won	^{[citation needed]}
Palm Springs International Film Festival	2002	FIPRESCI Prize	Aki Kaurismäki	Won	^{[citation needed]}
Robert Festival	2002	Best Non-American Film	Aki Kaurismäki	Nominated	^{[citation needed]}
San Sebastián International Film Festival	2002	FIPRESCI Film of the Year	Aki Kaurismäki	Won	^{[citation needed]}

References[]

^ "Production support for Finnish films 1998-2004" (PDF) (in Finnish). Finnish Film Foundation. 6 March 2004. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 March 2012. Retrieved 28 July 2011.
^ Fauth, Jurgen. The Man Without a Past Archived September 6, 2015, at the Wayback Machine, About.com. Accessed February 5, 2008.
^ The Man Without a Past at Rotten Tomatoes. Archived May 18, 2016, at the Wayback Machine Accessed 27 March 2017.
^ The Man Without a Past at Metacritic. Archived February 12, 2010, at the Wayback Machine Accessed 27 March 2017.
^ Ebert, Roger. The Man Without a Past Archived July 7, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, RogerEbert.com, June 27, 2003. Accessed January 30, 2016.
^ Honeycutt, Kirk. The Man Without A Past (Finland), The Hollywood Reporter, January 1, 2005. Accessed February 5, 2008. Archived from the original on December 12, 2006.
^ Scharres, Barbara. "The Man Without a Past". Chicago Reader. Retrieved 30 January 2016.
^ "The 75th Academy Awards (2003) Nominees and Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. AMPAS. Retrieved 20 November 2011.
^ Watson, Nigel. Bangkok International Film Festival 2003, Talking Pix; retrieved 2007-12-22
^ Hessey, Ruth. January 23, 2003. Bangkok finds its Golden Kinaree, The Age; retrieved 2007-12-22
^ Brooks, Brian. 'Talk to Her' takes top prizes at Bangkok International Film Festival, IndieWire; retrieved 2007-12-22^{[dead link]}
^ "Mies Vailla Menneisyytta (The Man Without A Past)". Festival de Cannes. Retrieved 30 January 2016.

External links[]

The Man Without a Past at IMDb
The Man Without a Past at AllMovie
The Man Without a Past at Box Office Mojo
The Man Without a Past at the British Board of Film Classification
The Man Without a Past at the British Film Institute
The Man Without a Past at Elonet (in Finnish)
The Man Without a Past at Metacritic
The Man Without a Past at Rotten Tomatoes
The Man Without a Past at the Swedish Film Institute Database

[1] "Production support for Finnish films 1998-2004" (PDF) (in Finnish). Finnish Film Foundation. 6 March 2004. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 March 2012. Retrieved 28 July 2011.

[2] Fauth, Jurgen. The Man Without a Past Archived September 6, 2015, at the Wayback Machine, About.com. Accessed February 5, 2008.

[3] The Man Without a Past at Rotten Tomatoes. Archived May 18, 2016, at the Wayback Machine Accessed 27 March 2017.

[4] The Man Without a Past at Metacritic. Archived February 12, 2010, at the Wayback Machine Accessed 27 March 2017.

[5] Ebert, Roger. The Man Without a Past Archived July 7, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, RogerEbert.com, June 27, 2003. Accessed January 30, 2016.

[6] Honeycutt, Kirk. The Man Without A Past (Finland), The Hollywood Reporter, January 1, 2005. Accessed February 5, 2008. Archived from the original on December 12, 2006.

[7] Scharres, Barbara. "The Man Without a Past". Chicago Reader. Retrieved 30 January 2016.

[Oscars2003-8] "The 75th Academy Awards (2003) Nominees and Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. AMPAS. Retrieved 20 November 2011.

[Watson-9] Watson, Nigel. Bangkok International Film Festival 2003, Talking Pix; retrieved 2007-12-22

[Hessey-10] Hessey, Ruth. January 23, 2003. Bangkok finds its Golden Kinaree, The Age; retrieved 2007-12-22

[Brooks-11] Brooks, Brian. 'Talk to Her' takes top prizes at Bangkok International Film Festival, IndieWire; retrieved 2007-12-22^{[dead link]}

[festival-cannes.com-12] "Mies Vailla Menneisyytta (The Man Without A Past)". Festival de Cannes. Retrieved 30 January 2016.

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show v t Films directed by Aki Kaurismäki
Feature films	Crime and Punishment (1983) Calamari Union (1985) Shadows in Paradise (1986) Hamlet Goes Business (1987) Ariel (1988) Leningrad Cowboys Go America (1989) (TV film; 1989) The Match Factory Girl (1990) I Hired a Contract Killer (1990) La vie de bohème (1992) Take Care of Your Scarf, Tatiana (1994) Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses (1994) Drifting Clouds (1996) Juha (1999) The Man Without a Past (2002) Lights in the Dusk (2006) Le Havre (2011) The Other Side of Hope (2017)
Documentaries	The Saimaa Gesture (1981) Total Balalaika Show (1994) (short; 2013)
Short films	Rocky VI (music video; 1986) Thru the Wire (music video; 1987) L.A. Woman (music video; 1988) Dogs Have No Hell (segment of Ten Minutes Older: The Trumpet; 2002) Bico (segment of Visions of Europe; 2004) The Foundry (segment of To Each His Own Cinema; 2007)