Milka: A Film About Taboos (1980)
Based on a novel by the late Finnish writer Timo Mukka, this simple story focuses on what happens when Milka (Irma Huntus), a girl barely out of childhood, gets pregnant by Ojanen (Matti Turunen) a rustic fieldhand. Her own mother had been hoping to marry Ojanen, and her daughter's pregnancy turns their lives around. Set in the Lapp country of northern Finland, the scenery is breathtaking, made even more so by the isolation of the region. A sense of natural solitude is underscored by a slow-moving dialogue interspersed with long silences, and the connection between nature and the dialogue is underscored as the young Milka recites poetry while out in the countryside. The fate of Milka and her mother, however, is connected to the decision that Ojanen makes at the end.
Director:
Rauni Mollberg
Writers:
Seppo Heinonen, Jussi Niilekselä, Rauni Mollberg, Veikko Aaltonen.
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Irma Huntus as Milka Sierkkiniemi |
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Leena Suomu as Anna Sierkkiniemi |
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Matti Turunen as Ojanen |
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Eikka Lehtonen as Malmström |
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Esa Niemelä as Auno |
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Hellin Auvinen-Salmi as Villager |
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Voitto Harju as Villager |
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Sonja Joensuu as Young Milka |
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Kerttu Juusela as Villager |
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Toivo Lampela as Host of Laanila |
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Jussi Lappalainen as Villager |
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Tauno Lehtihalmes as Dean |
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Sirkka Metsäsaari as Hostess of Laanila |
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Anna Pesonen as Villager |
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Eljas Siitonen as Villager |
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Ulla Tapaninen as Ojanen's Woman Friend |
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Toivo Tuomainen as Villager |
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Irja Uusisalmi as Villager |
| Directing | Rauni Mollberg | Director |
| Costume & Make-Up | Eija-Leena Lehmuskallio | Makeup Artist |
| Editing | Tuula Mehtonen | Editor |
| Directing | Veikko Aaltonen | Assistant Director |
| Writing | Seppo Heinonen | Screenplay |
| Sound | Kari Rydman | Original Music Composer |
| Art | Seppo Heinonen | Production Design |
| Sound | Tuomo Kattilakoski | Sound Re-Recording Mixer |
| Editing | Antti Kokko | Colorist |
| Writing | Jussi Niilekselä | Screenplay |
| Editing | Marjatta Niiranen | Assistant Editor |
| Directing | Ulla-Maija Alppi | Script Supervisor |
| Writing | Timo K. Mukka | Novel |
| Sound | Seppo Anttila | Sound Assistant |
| Writing | Rauni Mollberg | Screenplay |
| Writing | Veikko Aaltonen | Screenplay |
| Camera | Henrik Paersch | Camera Operator |
| Camera | Raimo Paananen | Assistant Camera |
| Camera | Esa Vuorinen | Director of Photography |
| Camera | Markku Lehmuskallio | Director of Photography |
| Sound | Johan Hake | Production Sound Mixer |
| Production | Rauni Mollberg | Producer |