Ariel

When the mine closes, Taisto Kasurinen is left without work and a colleague hands him a white 1962 Cadillac convertible, then kills himself. Taisto gets in and drives south to Helsinki looking for a job. He is robbed on the way and ends up in prison. From inside he proposes to Irmeli, a parking enforcement officer. He escapes, robs a bank, and the film ends with the three of them boarding a ship for Mexico. Aki Kaurismaki directed, with Turo Pajala in the lead. It opened on 21 October 1988 and runs 72 minutes. Ariel sits in the middle of the director's Proletariat Trilogy. Kaurismaki has called it the best film of his career. Turo Pajala won the Bronze St George for Best Actor at the 1989 Moscow International Film Festival. The film is included in 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die. Criterion released a restored version through its Eclipse series. Who it is for: viewers who like films that say little, run on dry humour and treat class coldly. Who it is not for: anyone who needs characters to show what they feel. The faces in Kaurismaki stay blank throughout, and that is a deliberate choice.