The Finnish 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 severely injured in the head, losing consciousness. He awakes and wanders back to the train station and collapses in its bathroom. He awakes the second time in a hospital and finds that he has lost his memory. He starts his life from scratch, living in container dwellings, finding clothes with help from the Salvation Army and making friends with the poor.
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 Juhani Niemelä, 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 and won the Grand Prix at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival.
The Man Without a Past (2002)
Directed by: Aki Käurismaki
Starring: Markku Peltola, Kati Outinen, Juhani Niemelä, Kaija Pakarinen, Sakari Kuosmanen, Annikki Tähti, Outi Mäenpää, Esko Nikkari, Pertti Sveholm
Screenplay by: Aki Käurismaki
Cinematography by: Timo Salminen
Film Editing by: Timo Linnasalo
Costume Design by: Outi Harjupatana
Makeup Department: Nadja Delcos
Music by: The Salvation Army Band
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some violence.
Distributed by: Sony Pictures Classics
Release Date: March 1, 2002
Visits: 54
