Copyright Variety
With an endearing black comedy set in the provinces, which adopts the visual style of a ’60s Western, prolific writer-director Teemu Nikki salutes his country’s (and his family’s) tradition of sahti-making. “100 Liters of Gold” follows two dysfunctional middle-aged sisters, third-generation makers of the strong farmhouse ale. In their village of Sysmä, sahti is a must to mark births, weddings and funerals, as well as almost everything in between. Touching on issues such as alcoholism and family trauma, but with a light touch, Finland’s international Oscar submission provides a breath of fresh air (albeit one redolent with alcohol) amongst the serious dramas in this category. Pirkko (Elina Knihtilä) and Taina (Pirjo Lonka) live in a ramshackle house on what was once the family farm, but their main source of income comes from their tasty home brew — or it would, if they didn’t consume so much of it themselves. Then, there’s the friends and neighbors, even the local pastor (Vilma Melasniemi ), who continue to make off with full containers on credit. When their younger sister Päivi (Ria Kataja) commissions 100 liters of the golden liquid for her upcoming wedding, Pirkko and Taina promise to concoct a batch worthy of a perfect 10. But 22 days later, when it is ready, they once again get too tempted by their own brewhouse magic and by the time the wedding day nears, there’s no more sahti left. With their reputation as top brewmakers to protect, as well as a feeling of guilt toward Päivi, who lost her lower leg after a car accident when they were all driving drunk, the gals set off with Pirkko’s would-be suitor, the chain-smoking milquetoast Hauki-Hikkanen (Ville Tiihonen) at the wheel. They are determined to get some decent sahti by hook or by crook. Nikki spends a tad too much time on the escapades of their single-minded quest. He also includes multiple showdowns with their nasty, leering cousin Ponu-Paavo (Jari Pehkonen), who covets their business and the special wooden brewing trough (the kuurina) left to them by their grandfather. The kuurina and other tools and tricks of the sahti trade are lovingly incorporated into the storyline, as Pirkko explains the brewing process to Päivi’s fiancé (Jakob Ohrman). Although there’s plenty of boozing in the film, the dangers of over-indulging are made very clear. There’s Päivi’s injury, which continues to haunt Taina; the client who dies before he can pay off his debt; Pirkko’s hospitalization for alcohol poisoning; and the women’s father (Pertti Sveholm), who now depends on Antabuse, but still likes his daughters to leave him samples of their latest batch. No matter how cartoonish the action, the fine ensemble of actors plays it seriously, and you can see the intelligence shine from their eyes. Nikki maintains that he likes to cast before he writes, and with Knihtilä and Lonka, who work in theater as well as film and television, he has a starring pair who give it their all. Nikki and cinematographer Jarmo Kiuru, another Sysmä native, shoot in a 1:2.39 widescreen ratio with a dusty, warm color palette. When Pirkko and Taina face off with Ponu, they could be rival outlaws staring each other down and refusing to give up ground. The colorful costumes by Anna Vilppunen (“Tom of Finland,” “Sisu”) also continue the Western motif, while composer Marco Biscarini was a student of Ennio Morricone. All things considered, Nikki proves himself a native son of which Sysmä can be proud — much like Olavi Virta, the “king of Finnish tango,” whose music the film also celebrates. So far, only Nikki’s previous Finnish Oscar entry, “Euthanizer” (2017) has been distributed Stateside. But with the pace and range of his work, as well as an upcoming English-language project, it shouldn’t be too long before American audiences get a chance to catch up.
