The Other Side of Hope

Waldemar, a shirt salesman, walks out of his job and buys a restaurant with money he wins gambling. At the same time Khaled arrives illegally in Helsinki from Syria, looking for his missing sister Miriam. When his asylum claim is refused he runs and takes shelter in Waldemar's restaurant. Together they find Miriam and have her brought over from Lithuania. The film ends with Khaled being brutally stabbed and then a quiet moment by a riverbank. Aki Kaurismaki wrote, produced and directed it. It won the Silver Bear for Best Director at the 67th Berlin International Film Festival. Rotten Tomatoes sits at 92 percent, with one assessment calling it a touching and clearsighted declaration of faith in people and in movies. The budget was 1.6 million euros and it took roughly 3.3 million dollars worldwide. Kaurismaki said at release that this would be his last film; he came back in 2023 with Fallen Leaves. Who it is for: viewers who like the refugee question told without a sermon and humour kept dry. Who it is not for: anyone wanting emotional intensity. Kaurismaki keeps the register flat even in the heaviest scene, and some viewers find that cold.