''Ihmiset suviyössä'' (''People in the Summer Night'') is a Finnish film from 1948. Directed by

Valentin Vaala Valentin Vaala (born Valentin Yakovich Ivanoff, Russian: Валентин Якович Иванов; 13 October 1909 in Helsinki – 21 November 1976 in Helsinki) was a Finnish film director, screenwriter and film editor. His career spanned sever ...

, it is based on

Frans Eemil Sillanpää Frans Eemil Sillanpää (; 16 September 1888 – 3 June 1964) was one of the most famous Finnish writers and in 1939 became the first Finnish writer to be awarded the Nobel Prize for literature "for his deep understanding of his country's pea ...

's 1934 novel of the same title.

Plot

The film concentrates on the destinies of a small group of people during one summer night. All events in the film are told from two different perspectives. During the night people are falling in love, fighting drunk, dying, and being born. Nature is just as important a part of the movie as the actors are. The novelist Sillanpää himself had told Vaala to keep in mind that there should be only one main character, and that is the summer night.

Reception

''Ihmiset suviyössä'' received mostly positive reviews from Finnish critics. They especially praised

Eino Heino Eino Ilmari Heino (22 February 1912 – 10 May 1975) was a Finnish cinematographer. During his career, he received three Jussi Awards, two for feature films ''Linnaisten vihreä kamari'' (1945) and ''Loviisa – Niskavuoren nuori emäntä'' (1947 ...

's cinematography, stating that such beautiful and sensitive capturing of Finnish nature had never before been seen in domestic films. The film received four

Jussi Awards The Jussi Awards are Finland's premier film industry prizes, awarded annually to recognize the achievements of directors, actors, and writers. History The first Jussi Awards ceremony was held on 16 November 1944 at the Restaurant Adlon in Hels ...

; in addition to actors

Martti Katajisto Martti Viljami Katajisto (6 December 1926 – 25 January 2000) was a Finnish actor. He is best remembered as a young and angry man Nokia in a film '' Ihmiset suviyössä'' (1948). For this role, he received a Jussi Award as the best actor in a le ...

Eero Roine Eero Rafael Roine (10 February 1904 – 8 June 1966) was a Finnish actor. He had a long career on stage and also appeared in several films. Actress Eila Roine is Eero Roine's daughter. Selected filmography * ''Tukkijoella'' (1937) * '' Ihmiset ...

and

Kaisu Leppänen Katri Sisko "Kaisu" Leppänen (13 October 1904 – 4 March 1993) was a Finnish actress. She worked for over 40 years in the Finnish National Theatre and appeared in 41 films between 1929 and 1987. She was born in Turku, and was married to actor I ...

, also Valentin Vaala and

Lea Joutseno Lea Ruth Margit Joutseno (formerly Jönsson, 6 November 1910, Helsinki – 20 June 1977) was a Finnish actress, screenwriter and a translator. She became known as a blonde comedian in the 1940s after appearing in several Valentin Vaala's films. Al ...

were awarded for the screenplay.

Main cast

Eila Pehkonen Eila Mirjam Pehkonen (since 1948 Kostermaa, 18 October 1924 – 10 September 1991) was a Finnish actress. In theatre and films Pehkonen was born into a family of five children. She was interested in acting and theatre since childhood, and in 1 ...

as Telirannan Helka *Martti Katajisto as Nokia *

Emma Väänänen Emma Väänänen (22 December 1907 – 20 February 1970) was a Finnish film actress. She appeared in 49 films between 1941 and 1969. She was a member of the jury at the 1st Moscow International Film Festival in 1959. Selected filmography * ' ...

as Syrjämäen Hilja *Eero Roine as Syrjämäen Jalmari *

Matti Oravisto Matti Kustavi Oravisto (23 October 1921 – 15 November 2001) was a Finnish actor who appeared in theatre, film and television. Oravisto started to work as an actor in the Finnish National Theatre immediately after graduating from theatre school ...

as Arvid *Toivo Hämeranta as Telirannan isäntä *Tyyne Haarla as Telirannan Martta-emäntä *Maija Nuutinen as Telirannan vanhaemäntä *Kaisu Leppänen as Mettälän Santra *Matti Lehtelä as Mettälän Jukka *

Tarmo Manni Tarmo Manni (30 July 1921, in Saarijärvi – 24 September 1999, in Helsinki) was a Finnish actor. He worked for the Finnish National Theatre 41 years of his 44-year career and appeared in 65 films between 1944 and 2000. Manni was known as a fla ...

as Iivari Pietilä

Commentary

The character Nokia is considered to be the first gay character in Finnish cinema.

References

1948 films Films based on Finnish novels Finnish drama films Finnish LGBT-related films 1948 drama films Finnish black-and-white films 1940s Finnish-language films 1940s LGBT-related films {{Finland-film-stub