Lights in the Dusk
A lonely Helsinki night-watchman is manipulated into taking the blame for a jewel robbery in Aki Kaurismäki's starkly comic portrait of human isolation.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Moderate
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Mild
- deadpan
- melancholic
- austere
- quiet evening
- arthouse film night
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film's brilliant cinematography, compassionate characters, and deadpan minimalist comedy, while aggregate scores placed it between mixed and positive reception.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The film uses dry humor, sparse dialogue, and composed performances to frame Koistinen's misfortunes with understated compassion.
Koistinen is friendless, emotionally withdrawn, and unable to interpret the motives of the people around him.
Mirja and her criminal accomplice use Koistinen as the fall guy for a planned jewel robbery.
Koistinen's night-watch work and the Helsinki setting are presented through stark, subdued compositions and lonely streets.
Films like Lights in the Dusk, and why
The Man Without a Past
deadpan minimalist comedy, lonely outsiders, and emotionally restrained social alienation
Le Havre
austere urban melancholy, dark humor, and compassion for marginalized working-class characters
The Limits of Control
minimalist crime plotting, fatalistic atmosphere, and dryly comic treatment of alienated protagonists
Naked
bleak romantic loneliness, understated humor, and stylized working-class realism
Movie Details
- Director
- Aki Kaurismäki
- Release Date
- 2006-02-03
- Runtime
- 78 min
- Rating
- 6.8 / 10 (169)
Cast
- Janne Hyytiäinen
- Maria Järvenhelmi
- Maria Heiskanen
- Ilkka Koivula
- Sergei Doudko
- Andrei Gennadiev
- Artūras Pozdniakovas
- Matti Onnismaa
- Sulevi Peltola
- Antti Reini
Common questions
- What is Lights in the Dusk about?
- A lonely Helsinki night-watchman is manipulated into taking the blame for a jewel robbery in Aki Kaurismäki's starkly comic portrait of human isolation.
- What is Lights in the Dusk like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Lights in the Dusk as measured, its intensity as moderate and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is Lights in the Dusk violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Lights in the Dusk as mild.
- What did critics think of Lights in the Dusk?
- Critics broadly praised the film's brilliant cinematography, compassionate characters, and deadpan minimalist comedy, while aggregate scores placed it between mixed and positive reception.
- Which films are like Lights in the Dusk?
- Films with a similar feel include The Man Without a Past, Le Havre, The Limits of Control, and Naked.
- How long is Lights in the Dusk?
- Lights in the Dusk runs 78 minutes.
