
Acting
Kari Heiskanen
Born 1955-03-16 · Hämeenlinna, Finland
Kari Heiskanen is a prolific Finnish actor with over 70 credited roles since his debut in 1978 upon graduating from the Finnish Theater School. He has also acted in, written and directed several plays, now regarded as one of the pillars of the Helsinki City Theater. Originally focusing on television, he first became well-known for the TV series 'Velipuolikuu' in 1983 and remained a fixture of popular Finnish television series for the remainder of the decade before establishing a greater presence in leading cinematic roles. In 1991 Heiskanen received the State Prize for Cinema and later the Pro Finlandia Medal in 2008.
Acting credits
6.0It is the summer of 1941 and the Finnish army has been mobilized along the border with Russia. A platoon led by Lt. Eero Perkola is waiting for orders to go on the offensive. The platoon receives orders for a recon mission through the wilderness around the Lieksa lake to search for possible Russian defensive positions.
Ambush
1999
6.3Eero’s career as an author is spiraling down: he just can’t get started with his new novel. The ambitious actor Pihla is about to get her international break. Neither of them is willing to sacrifice their career even though their relationship is doing worse than ever. Void is a comedy-drama about the price of success and the agony of failure, and about situations where your partner just doesn’t get it.
Void
2018
7.0A group of men all called Frank—except for one named Pekka—have had enough of life in their working-class neighborhood, so they set off for a better existence in the magical seaside district of Eira. But the way is long, and the group face many hurdles including stray dogs and defunct streetlights.
Calamari Union
1985
5.8The story of a modest man, played by Ilkka Heiskanen, who decides to become a mercenary in the Yugoslavian civil war. This decision leaves him completely destitute. His parents do not approve of his decision, nor do his friends at the local bar.
Palkkasoturi
1997
7.0A lawyer pays a visit to Matti Ojanperä, a bum living under a bridge in the Helsinki harbour, to inform him that he is about to inherit an American aunt of his. The sum 1,000,000 Fmk would be his, if only he meets the qualifications set by his aunt. He must show that he is capable of 'living properly' and possessing a 'respectable occupation and a family he can support'. Otherwise the money would go to a foundation the chairman of which the lawyer himself happens to be!
Cha Cha Cha
1989
10.0In this somber, psychological drama about the conflict between a man's innermost feelings and a society that puts these feelings in a strait jacket, the mood is ruminative and depressing throughout. Alone, Viktor (Sven Wolter) heads off for his usual summer vacation to some islands where he can ostensibly look for antiques for his wife's shop in Stockholm. His marriage is a failure or worse -- he raped his wife before he left home, and he is obsessed by erotic imaginings. Once on the islands, he makes friends with a little girl whose mother is mentally disturbed and is kept by her husband in a locked room. The islanders are as tight-lipped as Viktor, and any communication is stiff and artificial. Viktor's own alienation begins to slip as he takes surprising, violent action to turn around the imprisoned mother's life -- but it does not work, nothing seems to work -- and his last actions indicate that he may not be willing to simply give up.
Sista leken
1984
5.0A 16 year old girl claims she was abducted. Two police officer are tasked with investigating whether her story is plausible.
Police Investigates
2012
5.2In a small village in Eastern Finland in 1918, Patrick, who has taken care of the chaplain, teacher and physician, has been filled with loneliness and brutal spirit of work for five years.
Lunastus
1997
5.6A film group is making movie in the little town. Writer Pentti Töysä interrupts film group's press conference and claims that script is written by him and it is based on true story. Töysä also says that he has written a new ending to the movie and that it reveals an old murder. Not everyone is happy about the new twist.
Kaikki pelissä
1994
A short about a boxing match
The Boys of Jesus
1982
5.6The story recounts the breakup of a thirty-something professional couple - Juhani, a family therapist, and his wife, Tuula, a successful business trainer.
The House of Branching Love
2009
5.5The three men enjoy the evening at a bar whose fate is threatened by pandemic restrictions. Bartender Heikki offers discussion help to his friend Risto, who works in the first line of healthcare, and who has just finished a difficult shift. The evening gets a new twist when a stranger looking for a mobile phone charger pops in and refuses to leave.
Gracious Night
2021
5.8In a multicultural suburb of Helsinki, a bullied Russian immigrant decides to fight back, a young woman dreams of superstardom at any cost, and a junkie couple schemes their way out of debt.
Naked Harbour
2012
7.0Drug dealer Aki is taken to hospital after a violent attack where he loses his merchandise and money. One of the paramedics, old Eino, befriends Aki later in the hospital and offers him a summer job after hearing that he has training in first aid. Eino even offers Aki a place to stay next to his ambulance garage. This provides Aki a perfect hiding place from his former employers who are after him. At the garage, Aki learns about life and the art of archery from peaceful Eino, and falls in love with Eino's daughter Lena who works at the ambulance switchboard. But no hiding place is good enough to last forever.
Jousiampuja
1982
5.5A documentary about Helsinki's nightlife, soundtracked by rock band Sielun Veljet, theater troupe Ryhmäteatteri, and radio DJ Teppo Turkki.
Laulu
1986
5.3On her way home from an evening shift at a men's clothing store, Saara Nevanen is raped by a man whom she recognizes as her regular but eccentric customer, Antti Kaironen. The doctor and policemen question Saara in an insensitive manner,and she breaks down with guilt. When the court releases the perpetrator inlack of evidence, Saara's aggressive brother Jari talks her mild-mannered husband Sakari into a self-made revenge plot. Armed with two rifles, Jari and Sakari take matters into their own hands.
Lain ulkopuolella
1987
6.8Anni wants a new mommy for herself and a new wife for her dad. But dad has forgotten how to find a wife and needs Anni's help.
Mother Wanted
1989
7.0Ossi hasn't seen his daughter for over ten years. Suddenly she arrives to figure out what kind of person her father is and why she wasn't good enough for him.
Muuttolinnun aika
1991
5.7Three middle aged men, long time friends, get together in a normally closed Karaoke bar to drink their failed lives away. Secrets are revealed and sometimes discovered and they sing their miseries one by one during Karaoke sessions. The arrival of a lone woman to the bar will facilitate revealing of the final secret.
Three Wise Men
2008
TV play about the legend of Lalli.
Kauhea murhamies Lalli
1981
9.0Documentary on the history of Ryhmäteatteri theatre company.
Ryhmäteatteri
2018
5.8Sari is a young, beautiful and intelligent girl who is busy studying at university,but she suffers from epilepsy and has to face death on a daily basis. Mikko is hersomewhat older university teacher, who is tired of life, and who one day decides toabandon his wife, children and idea of a perfect life. Both characters have been tooscared to live their lives to the brim for too long. But they meet, and in spite oftheir prejudices and reserved natures, they manage to create a dramatic and movingmodern romance which confronts numerous taboos. While the imagery explores theboundary between life and death in a most poetic way, the odd couple's romance istold with both bite and humour. Society - be it in the shape of angry ex-wives,overprotective parents, conservative aunts or embittered colleagues - is doing whatit can to put a spanner in the works."
The Year of the Wolf
2007
5.7A small Finnish town bank manager gets caught in the midst of local politics, with dire effects on his family and himself.
Syksyllä kaikki on toisin
1978
3.8Älä itke Iines is an absurd comedy about an eccentric community that lives on the roofs and attic of an apartment building, struggling to improve their living conditions. The dialogue is entirely improvised by the actors.
Älä itke Iines
1987