Lights in the Dusk

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Lights in the Dusk

2006

1h 18m

Drama

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Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

70%

Tomatometer

40 Reviews

72%

Popcornmeter

2,500+ Ratings

Koistinen is a security guard at a shopping center whose dreams of a better life are continually crushed. Things seem to be looking up when Mirja shows an amorous interest in him, but what he doesn't realize is that he's being set up as the fall guy by a gang of jewel thieves. Observing his plight is Aila, who runs a fast food stall and carries a torch for him but is overlooked in favor of Mirja.

Critics Consensus

From its brilliant cinematography to its compassionate characters, Lights in the Dusk is another successful exercise in deadpan minimalist comedy from Aki Kaurismäki.

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J. R. Jones

Chicago Reader

Oct 16, 2007

Kaurismaki creates some beautiful frames, carefully composing his affectless characters against the rooms' colors, but there's something wrong with your story when people are upstaged by the decor.

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Wesley Morris

Boston Globe

Sep 21, 2007

3.5/4

It's a deceptively satisfying, almost magical achievement, like being stranded in a desert yet never going thirsty.

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Marjorie Baumgarten

Austin Chronicle

Aug 25, 2007

3/5

Kaurismäki's spare style and economical storytelling are well-suited to this particular story about loneliness, as the director never muddies the frame with sentimental dross or lugubrious inclinations.

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Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Jun 3, 2011

C+

Though it's the weakest of the three panels that form Kaurismaki's trilogy, which began with Drifting Clouds in 1996, it's still worth seeing.

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Enrique Buchichio

Uruguay Total

Jan 22, 2008

3/5

Un relato crudo, probablemente desconcertante y extrañamente tragicómico, sólo para seguidores incondicionales del director, que repite su estilo sin sorpresas.

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Jennie Kermode

Eye for Film

Dec 7, 2007

4/5

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Sergio A

@Sergio83 Jun 18, 2025

Even if one doesn’t agree with the protagonist’s choices, and despite some seeing it as a pessimistic work, as Aki often does, the film ultimately holds on to a quiet sense of hope and dignity. An absolute masterpiece.

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Abhijit S

@RT51512306 Sep 16, 2024

A must see for Kaurismaki fans. It brilliantly depicts how the more adroit members of society casually exploit the weak without consequence. What constitutes such a weak isolated character is the subject of the film. His infantile dreams, his botched attempt to make something of himself and when this woman enters it seems to him that he’s finally on his way to fulfilling his dreams. And despite knowing he’s been betrayed he refuses to turn in his betrayers.

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Jan 21, 2018

I feel sorry for the poor protagonist. Unfortunately, shit does happen like this.

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Apr 2, 2017

Slow-moving and uninteresting; not one of Kaurismaki's best.

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Jun 26, 2014

Aki is one of my Scandinavian favorites. His films are something for themselves and the ones I've seen from him so far is following pretty close plots. Here we meet a looser type of guy (as always). He's a security guard that no one seem to care much about. He smokes cigarettes, he drinks and he seem to just excist. That's until he meets a lady - a lady that got some intentions of using him. It's a dark film with some dark'ish humor sped around. It's strange, but still naturallistic and true, direct but minimal. It feels like I have seen it before but it's a great recipie. The best feature is that it's short. No unneccessary stuff and it get's straight to the point - the pace is great. Not his best film, but if you have seen other films of him you won't be disappointed. It's a huge symathy shout to the average man trying to keep his dreams up. 7.5 out of 10 grill wagons.

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Aug 9, 2013

Probably the most realistic (yet also very stylish) film noir I've ever seen (and, like any good film noir, a criticism of capitalist society).

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Aki Kaurismäki

Director

Janne Hyytiäinen

Koiskinen

Maria Järvenhelmi

Mirja

Ilkka Koivula

Lindholm

Maria Heiskanen

Aila

Sergei Doudko

Russian

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Synopsis

Koistinen is a security guard at a shopping center whose dreams of a better life are continually crushed. Things seem to be looking up when Mirja shows an amorous interest in him, but what he doesn't realize is that he's being set up as the fall guy by a gang of jewel thieves. Observing his plight is Aila, who runs a fast food stall and carries a torch for him but is overlooked in favor of Mirja.

Director: Aki Kaurismäki
Producer: Aki Kaurismäki
Screenwriter: Aki Kaurismäki
Production Co: Sputnik Oy
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Finnish
Rerelease Date (Theaters): Jun 13, 2007
Release Date (DVD): Oct 16, 2007
Box Office (Gross USA): $13.8K
Runtime: 1h 18m

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