''The Hair'' ( fi, Karvat) is a 1974 Finnish

erotic Eroticism () is a quality that causes sexual feelings, as well as a philosophical contemplation concerning the aesthetics of sexual desire, sensuality, and romantic love. That quality may be found in any form of artwork, including painting, scul ...

dark comedy Black comedy, also known as dark comedy, morbid humor, or gallows humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally considered serious or painful to discus ...

thriller film Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre ...

written, produced and directed by Seppo Huunonen. It was loosely based on

Lionel White Lionel White (9 July 1905 – 26 December 1985) was an American journalist and crime novelist, several of whose dark, noirish stories were made into films. His books include ''The Snatchers'' (made into a film as ''The Night of the Follow ...

's 1962 suspense novel ''Obsession'', like

Jean-Luc Godard Jean-Luc Godard ( , ; ; 3 December 193013 September 2022) was a French-Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic. He rose to prominence as a pioneer of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s, alongside such filmmakers as Fran� ...

's 1965 French film '' Pierrot le Fou''. It tells the story of a middle-aged man who becomes deeply involved with the affairs and criminal connections of a mysterious girl. The main roles are played by Mikko Majanlahti and dancer Arja Virtanen, of which ''The Hair'' was the actress's only film. Virtanen's voice has been replaced by the voice of actress Tiia Louste. ''The Hair'' has generally been called "the worst Finnish film ever made".Mikko Majanlahti, 87, sai seksikohtauksista nivustulehduksen – tällaista oli tehdä Suomen huonoimmaksi sanottua elokuvaa
''

Ilta-Sanomat ''Ilta-Sanomat'' () is one of Finland's two prominent tabloid size evening newspaper and the second largest paper in the country. Its counterpart and biggest rival is ''Iltalehti''. According to the National Media Research done in 2019 ''Ilta- ...

'' May 10, 2021. (in Finnish) It was one of the films that premiered in a year known as the trough of Finnish film production, being one of the least viewed Finnish films ever. In addition, it is also the second Finnish film, after

Teuvo Tulio Theodor Antonius Tugai (23 August 1912 – 8 June 2000), better known as Teuvo Tulio, was a Finnish film director and actor. Beginning his career as an actor at the end of the silent film, silent era, Tulio turned to directing and producing in t ...

's ''

Sensuela ''Sensuela'' is a 1973 Finnish drama film directed and written by Teuvo Tulio. The film is based on Tulio's 1946 film ''Rakkauden risti'' which itself was based on ''The Stationmaster'', a short story written by Alexander Pushkin. ''Sensuela'' wa ...

'', that was rated 18 by the

Finnish Board of Film Classification The Finnish Board of Film Classification ( fi, Valtion elokuvatarkastamo; sv, Statens filmgranskningsbyrå) was an official institution of the Finnish Ministry of Education. From 1946 until the end of year 2011, the VET/SFB was responsible for ...

. Critics were scathing in their reviews about the film. Eeva Järvenpää from ''

Helsingin Sanomat ''Helsingin Sanomat'', abbreviated ''HS'' and colloquially known as , is the largest subscription newspaper in Finland and the Nordic countries, owned by Sanoma. Except after certain holidays, it is published daily. Its name derives from that of ...

'' summed up her assessment: “''The Hair'' is trying to offer sex and humor, a show and momentum, violence and drama. In all of this, it fails miserably.”Karvat (1974) – Elonet
(in Finnish) Timo Malmi from ''

'' considers the film to be one of the "worst Finnish films ever" and in his assessment calls the film's “plot so confusing and tense that its progression is not even interesting, and the "alternative" fantasy ending does not make the viewing experience any easier.” In connection with the 2011 DVD release, Janne Rosenqvist from Film-o-Holic site found something positive in the film as well: “At its best, ''The Hair'' offers smooth physical black comedy spiced with jazz, but the outright obsession with experimentation is too much of a burden.”Rosenqvist, Janne
Kolmen epätasainen kopla miehen maailmasta
Film-o-Holic August 19, 2011. (in Finnish)

Cast

Mikko Majanlahti Mikko is a Finnish masculine given name and equivalent of the English name Michael, having been borrowed into the Finnish language. The given name Mikko is shared by the following notable people: * Mikko Alatalo, Finnish musician and politician * ...

as Pekka Halme * Arja Virtanen as Maria Virkola * Pauli Virtanen as Eero Melanen * Eeki Mantere as Kala Korpela * Eeva Varjonen as Marjatta Halme

References

External links

*
''Karvat'' – eroottinen jännäriharvinaisuus 1970-luvulta
at

Yle Teema Yle Teema was a Finnish television channel owned and operated by Finnish public broadcasting company Yle. The channel was dedicated to culture, sciences and learning. The channel was known for its "Theme Saturday" (Teemalauantai/Tema Lördag) which ...

(in Finnish) *Miska Rantanen:
Onko tässä Suomen historian huonoin elokuva?
– ''

'', 2 August 2022. (in Finnish) {{DEFAULTSORT:Hair, The 1974 films 1970s Finnish-language films 1970s Spanish-language films Finnish multilingual films Finnish crime comedy films Finnish thriller films Finnish erotic films Films shot in Finland Films shot in Spain Films based on American novels 1974 multilingual films

Cast

See also

References

External links