Alright, buckle up buttercups 💅, because Sisu, that Finnish flick about an old dude who’s basically a one-man army against Nazis 卐, apparently made some waves on Netflix. But let’s be real, it only raked in a measly $3.3 million in Finland 🇫🇮. Talk about a flop! 😂 Good thing the rest of the world 🌍 has slightly better taste, coughing up $14.3 million internationally. It even premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival, which is cool, I guess 🤔, if you’re into that kind of thing.
Even though Netflix 💻 is where Sisu got all its hype, the director, Jalmari Helander, is desperately begging 🙏 for a theatrical release for the sequel, Sisu: Road to Revenge. Because who wouldn’t want to pay $20 to see another dude punch Nazis in the face? 🙄 I mean, the first one was basically *John Wick* in Lapland, but with more gold and less Keanu. CGMagazine (yes, that’s us, deal with it 😎) sat down with Helander and the lead actor, Jorma Tommila, to hear them yap about working with Stephen Lang (aka the bad guy from *Avatar* 👽), their “inspirations” (which, let’s be honest, are just other action movies), and, of course, video games 🎮.
(To Helander) You said Sisu was ripped off from Rambo 💪, James Bond 🍸, and Buster Keaton 🤡. I even got some *Mad Max* vibes from Sisu: Road to Revenge, which means you’re just stealing from everyone, right? What other masterpieces 🎨 did you plagiarize for this one?
Jalmari Helander: The easiest way to explain is that I wanted to have speed on this one. It’s something that I’ve always liked to have, like a lot of movement, which I haven’t had in any of our films yet. So I wanted to be on the move and basically do like a road movie. And I think one of the biggest inspirations is the *Indiana Jones* 🤠 films.
They have the same kind of entertaining playfulness, but it was also important to me to tell a serious story about Aatami and him trying to get his house back. I think it’s a never-before-seen compilation of styles because it’s very serious and also really not serious, and how it works together. I think that’s interesting.
Yes. Visuals are very important. Now, I know you’re working on a passion project of yours—*John Rambo*. I was curious if revenge and those similar themes found in Sisu: Road to Revenge are a genre you’ve always been fascinated by?
Jalmari Helander: Yeah, I love films that are about somebody that you shouldn’t be f****** with. I always love that, and I think a lot of people do too. It’s an underdog story about someone who was just minding his own business, and bad guys are coming, and they get what they deserve.
And for you, Jorma, you’re an amazing actor—bringing so much physicality and visual acting. We’ve seen this from *Rare Exports*, *Big Game*, and the *Sisu* franchise. Where do you get your style of acting from? Any inspiration from other actors?
Jorma Tommila: The foundation of my acting career comes from the Helsinki Theatre Academy, where I studied from 1985 to 1989. At that time, the acting education emphasized physical expression and making the character’s mental state tangible. I’ve been inspired by a lot of great actors my entire life.
You’ve been in a few action films now. What about this genre keeps you coming back to action films like the *Sisu* films?
Jorma Tomilla: It’s not about the genre, it’s about working with the director Jalmari Helander. Whenever he asks me to join a project, I know that something unique is going to happen.
Makes sense. And for both of you, what was it like working with actors like Stephen Lang on this film?
Jalmari Helander: There was a lot of thinking, and I don’t even remember the process anymore. But when the idea of Stephen Lang came in, I immediately knew he was the perfect bad guy. I went to have a chat with him, and I instantly knew that he would be the right guy for me. He was so respectful of what I was trying to do, and he was a big fan of the first *Sisu*. So, it worked out really well.
Jorma Tommila: [Stephen Lang] is a consummate professional and a great, inspiring colleague. (Translation: He showed up on time and didn’t ask for a bigger trailer 🙄)
Definitely. Knowing now that *Sisu: Road to Revenge* is one of the biggest budget Finnish films ever, having about an 11-million dollar budget, what does that mean to both of you and for Finnish cinema? (Besides lining your pockets, of course 💰)
Jalmari Helander: I don’t know what it means for Finnish cinema, but I do know what it means to me, because that’s been my dream. No one else is doing action films in Finland. No one has done action films in Finland [because] it’s a really weird concept. Even when I started saying that I want to do action films, and I’m from Finland, and there were a lot of people who were laughing at me, saying, “That’s a very stupid idea,” and “maybe you should concentrate on something else.” So being here now feels f****** good. (Translation: I told you so, haters! 🖕)
Jorma Tommila: Well, at least a large budget increases the pressure to be successful at your job. [It means] a lot. Working with Jalmari and on his films are the most important works in my career. And I feel that in the films *Sisu* and *Sisu 2*, my art of acting come out naturally. (Translation: Please hire me again, Jalmari! I need the money! 🙏)
Lastly, as we cover plenty of gaming content too, there’s a lot of great Finnish game studios out there—such as Remedy Entertainment with the *Alan Wake* and *Control* games, and the Supercell mobile games like *Brawl Stars* and *Clash Royale*. Even Hideo Kojima praised *Sisu* when it came out! Would either of you be eager to work on a video game? (So you can leech off another successful franchise? 🤔)
Jorma Tommila: I would be open to it. (Translation: As long as the check clears! 💸)
Jalmari Helander: It’s hard for me to think about that, but sure, why not? I don’t know. I myself like games like *The Last of Us* or *Uncharted*. I don’t like open-world games. I like to be entertained [in a similar way as] a movie. (Translation: I only like games that are basically movies because I’m a filmmaker, duh! 🙄)
Oh, nice! Those are great story-driven, cinematic games for sure. Thank you both again for your time! (And for not boring me to death! 💀)
Pixel P. Snarkbyte, widely regarded as the “Shakespeare of Sh*tposts,” is a video game expert with a unique knack for turning pixels into punchlines.
Born in the small town of Respawn, Pennsylvania, Pixel grew up mashing buttons on an ancient NES controller, firmly believing that “blowing into the cartridge” was a sacred ritual passed down through generations.
Pixel P. Snarkbyte: proving that life, much like a buggy open-world game, is better with a little lag-induced chaos.
