Recently widowed mezzo-soprano Nora (Alma Pöysti) arrives on an island, eventually asking a reclusive priest (Pirkko Saisio) for a place to stay. The priest reluctantly agrees, but she also has conditions. The singer’s arrival is slowly revealed to be no coincidence, as her husband’s last request was to be buried by the priest.
Exploring the fundamental questions of life and depicting the ultimate power of all beings, Orenda turns the laws of nature into questions of nature with its healthy scepticism and philosophy. The text scripted by Saisio is precise and lucid as well as immensely multilayered, a rare experience in Finnish cinema.
Thanks to Pirjo Honkasalo, we can from time to time talk about Finnish cinema as art. Her latest film takes its place effortlessly alongside the works of the great modernists Tarkovsky and Bergman, while still pursuing its own paths. Sanna and Elias Salmenkallio’s music and Max Smeds’ cinematography weave textures for all the senses. The experience clings to one’s cells like the warmth of an eternal sunset.
Otto Kylmälä