Kaukopartio (Long Range Patrol) movie poster.
The film crew and some cast members. The premiere night
party at the museum. Sitting in the foreground, a film
director Harri J. Rantala (a submachine gun in his hands)
and a costume designer / a makeup artist Sanna Panula.
Photo by Teisuka. (Click the photo to see it bigger.)
This time, I tell something about a new Finnish war film called Kaukopartio (English: Long Range Patrol), written and directed by Harri J. Rantala, starring Eerik Kantokoski, Ali Ahovaara, Hannu Rantala, Eeva Putro, Kalevi Haapoja, and Kristiina Karhu. The world premiere was held on December 27th 2013 in the Civil Guard and Lotta Svärd Museum. Earlier, the Finnish crew also filmed one scene in the museum.
First of all, I want to explain the term "long range patrol" (Finnish: kaukopartio, Russian: дальний патруль, Chinese: 長距離巡邏, Japanese: ロングレンジパトロール), if some of my readers doesn't know that. Long-range reconnaissance patrols, or LRRPs (pronounced "Lurps"), are small, heavily armed long-range reconnaissance teams that patrol deep in enemy-held territory.
In Finland, long-range patrols were especially notable in the World War II. These units penetrated Soviet lines and conducted recon and destroy missions. During the trench warfare period of the Continuation War (1941-1944), long-range patrols were often conducted by special Finnish sissi troops. In English, a Finnish word "sissi" means something like patrolman, partisan, or commando.
The Finnish movie called
Long Range Patrol is not a typical war film. I mean, it's not a heroic story. It shows the cruel and nasty side of war. To be exact, this movie tells about the Finnish war crime during the Continuation War. In 1943, a Finnish long-range patrol (three young men) makes a campaign to the Soviet Union, and they get a mission to bring a prisoner of war. The mission fails badly, and the end result is ugly. There is one truly shocking scene in the film. Despite this, the two soldiers receive a medal of honor
at the end.
In my opinion, Long Range Patrol is a good movie
in many ways: screenplay, theme, directing, acting, setting, costume design, cinematography, editing – all is well done. The only minus side is a little bit scruffy picture quality (not sharp enough). The running time is only 60 minutes, so the movie could be a little longer, too. Anyway, the shots or scenes are long and lingering, and I like that style.
For me, the movie raised up many questions, but it's just a good thing. The story is not too simple, not too obvious, and black and white. You have to use your brains and think – think hard. Long Range Patrol gives you a food for thought, indeed. What really happens? What's going on? Are there heroes at all, or are they all just an "inglorious bastards"? Well, for my part I believe, there are also heroes and good men in the war, but this film don't tell about them.
All in all, Long Range Patrol is a brave Finnish film. Brave, because we must have courage to talk about the war crimes too, and not only about the heroic acts. I dare to say that Long Range Patrol is the best Finnish war film since
Ambush (Finnish: Rukajärven tie) from the year 1999.
You can find the official Kaukopartio website by clicking
here. Facebook site is also available to everyone, please click
here. Thanks for supporting the Finnish cinema – kiitos! （＾—＾）
Teisuka
A real Finnish ski patrol during World War II.
