Review: Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale
Earlier this week I had a flashback to my childhood Christmases -- the sound of springs creaking on an unseen attic door as it opened evoked a sense of excitement and anxiety. As a child, I imagined it was Santa Claus coming down from the attic because we did not have a real fireplace. As I grew older I realized that my parents hid our presents up there. It was a bit unnerving and overwhelming to think that Santa knew if whether I was bad or good, and could enter our house at will.
In the movie Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale, opening at Alamo Drafthouse on South Lamar tomorrow just in time for the holidays, Finnish writer and director Jalmari Helander reminds us of the not-so-jovial myths behind the mystic icon of Father Christmas. Helander first introduced his take on the origin and life history of Santa Claus in the short darkly humorous films Rare Exports Inc. (2003) and The Official Rare Exports Inc. Safety Instructions 2005 (2005), which went viral on the internet. Find out where to watch these award-winning short films after the jump.
Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale begins a couple of weeks before Christmas with a secretive dig in the depths of the Korvantunturi Mountains, located on the border between Russia and Finland. An American businessman with a multinational corporation delivers specific safety instructions to the site supervisor, as it is revealed that the "mountain" in which they are digging is actually the ancient tomb of Santa Claus. Two young boys, Juuso (Ilmari Järvenpää) and Pietari (Onni Tommila), misbehave by sneaking in through the border fence to investigate the dig. Pietari researches the story of Father Christmas, and is disturbed by what he finds.
Meanwhile, the seasonal roundup of reindeer for the slaughterhouse is a complete failure when the entire herd is discovered brutally slaughtered, leaving the sparse community bankrupt. Pietari's father Rauno (Jorma Tommila) is one of the reindeer hunters impacted by this tragedy, as he is singlehandly raising his young son, from whom he's rather disconnected. Distracted by their plight, Rauno is oblivious to Pietari's growing concern about the disappearance of local children and footprints outside his bedroom window ... until a peculiar creature turns up in their wolf trap. What happens next is wickedly humorous as the men of the community must save their children from physical harm and poverty.
Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale draws upon the dark side of the origins of the American archetype of Santa Claus, specifically that of the demonic Krampus. As Santa's main helper, he punished the naughty children by beating them with a birch rod or carrying them back to Hell. Santa's elves aren't cheerful toymakers, but ferocious old men who will protect their leader at all costs.
The cinematography and art design of Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale effectively portrays an isolated and dying community caught up in supernatural events beyond their control. The pacing and exposition seemed a little slow in the first act, but evened out quite quickly. The special effects are relatively sparse for the horror/fantasy genre, allowing more realistic settings and images to create the horror and fantasy of the film. I wanted more character development of the three male adult leads, but the central character of Pietari is so engaging that it's forgivable. Where the movie really shines is in the dark satirical writing, especially the final act. Suffice to say it's rather novel and amusing, and I will view mall Santas differently from now on.
Speaking of spoilers, if you want to avoid them for Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale, I would suggest watching the short films afterward, since they feature a slightly different story approach. Be forewarned that both short films fall in the "NSFW" category due to nudity and violence -- Rare Exports Inc. on YouTube and The Official Rare Exports Inc. Safety Instructions on YouTube.
Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale premiered in Austin during Fantastic Fest earlier this year. The movie returns to Austin for a weeklong run starting on Friday, December 10 at Alamo Drafthouse on South Lamar. Get your photo taken with a caged Santa in the lobby Dec. 10 and 11 from 6 -10:30 pm.