Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale
2010/US/83mins/Dir. Jalmari Helander
Cast: Per Christian Ellefsen, Peeter Jakobi, Tommi Korpela
A film for those who think they don’t believe in Santa Claus anymore.
In the depths of the Korvatunturi mountains, 486 metres deep, lies the closest ever guarded secret of Christmas. The time has come to dig it up!
In the Finnish Arctic, young Pietari (Onni Tommila) lives with his widowed father, Rauno (Jorma Tommila), at an economically depressed reindeer slaughterhouse. Nearby, a mysterious American science expedition has stumbled upon a great find, apparently connected to the legend that Santa is buried here: the malevolent character of local folklore. The day before Christmas, Rauno and his neighbours stumble on a field of dead and mutilated reindeer. The adults assume some large, savage wolf is to blame, but Pietari and his friend Juuso (Ilmari Jarvenpaa) know there’s a more sinister force at work, and the following day they realize all the local children are missing.
Based on award winning shorts of director Jalmari Helander that have already acquired a cult reputation in the internet.
‘If you’re a bah-humbug type looking for an alternative to Santa Claus: The Movie or Miracle On 34th Street, this could be a holiday perennial.’