EFP 86: Deniz Sarisakal on Kaurismäki's Drifting Clouds

This episode of the podcast takes us to Finland and the irresistibly dry and droll comedies of Aki Kaurismäki. A major figure in World cinema since the early 1980s, few filmmakers have created such a distinctive universe through their films. As critic and historian Michael Brooke has noted, in Kaurismäki’s films ‘we’re in ‘a never-never land somewhere between the 1930s and the 1980s, where people drive Cadillacs, listen to old-time rock’n’roll, dance the tango, and issue such wise aphorisms as 'Life is short and miserable – be as merry as you can.’ This year marks the 30th anniversary of Drifting Clouds (1996), one of Kaurismaki’s key works and Pasquale discusses it in the company of one of the 2025/26 MSc Film Studies students, Deniz Sarisakal. Drifting Clouds is the story of a Helsinki couple in their late 30s who both lose their jobs and find themselves struggling to survive.  It sounds like the plot line of an Italian neorealist picture, or maybe a Ken Loach film, but this is Aki-land, and deadpan humour is never far away. Deniz and Pasquale begin by talking about Kaurismäki’s background and his distinctive formal and thematic approach. They also touch upon his influences, including his love of Japanese auteur Yasujiro Ozu. Discussion then turns to Drifting Clouds and elements such as plot, characterisation and mise en scene as well as sound and music.