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Ariel

Play trailer Poster for Ariel Released Oct 20, 1990 1h 14m Comedy Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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Tomatometer 3 Reviews 87% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
An out-of-work Laplander (Turo Pajala) seeks his dark destiny in a white Cadillac convertible.

Critics Reviews

View All (3) Critics Reviews
Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times It's too tired to be angry. It's resigned. The more you think about it, the last scene, the "happy" ending, may be the only really angry scene in the movie. Rated: 3/4 Mar 6, 2002 Full Review Rene Jordan El Nuevo Herald (Miami) Ariel is more interesting in what it foretells than what it achieves. [Full review in Spanish] Oct 26, 2022 Full Review Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Rated: 4/5 Dec 18, 2004 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (66) audience reviews
Dani G Pure Kaurismaki style. Short film, without extending it innecesarily, enjoyable as almost all of the director's films Rated 2 out of 5 stars 11/23/23 Full Review dave s The middle portion of Aki Kaurismaki's Proletariat Trilogy, Ariel tells the story of Taisto, who leaves his rural home after the coal mine closes and makes his way to the city, where he meets Irmeli, a somber woman of many trades, who ultimately leads him to some form of salvation. It's a grittier film than the other two from the trilogy (Shadows in Paradise, The Match Factory Girl), laden with violence and criminality, but is consistent in both theme and style. Dialogue is a secondary issue to Kaurismaki, it would seem, used only when necessary to advance the plot. Otherwise, he relies on carefully composed images to set the mood and develop his characters, who seem to exist for the sole purpose of escaping. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review William L In Finland, when the local mine shuts down, you hand the keys to your boat-sized Cadillac convertible before heading into the restaurant bathroom to shoot yourself, it's just the way things are done. A solid black comedy that takes employs some surprising visual jokes to compliment its slightly less on-the-nose narrative humor. Solid and entertaining characters, like the monotone, Luger-wielding kid, help the film to transcend language barriers, but the universality of the humor already take the film most of the way. The runtime is condensed and the pace never really flags, just a well-made piece of film that gives more belly laughs than the Coen Brothers, but shows a bit more restraint than Taika Waititi. (4/5) Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/13/21 Full Review Audience Member It is definitely offbeat, the quick dialogue and performances demonstrate that, but it has a certain charm to it, almost strangely cool, making it an enjoyable watch. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/13/23 Full Review s r This one had the quirkiness, but with a better plot. 1001 movies to see before you die. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member another 'road trip' pix Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Ariel

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Cast & Crew

Movie Info

Synopsis An out-of-work Laplander (Turo Pajala) seeks his dark destiny in a white Cadillac convertible.
Director
Aki Kaurismäki
Producer
Aki Kaurismäki
Distributor
Kino Pictures
Production Co
Villealfa Filmproduction Oy
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Original Language
Finnish
Release Date (Theaters)
Oct 20, 1990, Original
Release Date (DVD)
Sep 23, 2008
Runtime
1h 14m
Sound Mix
Surround