Tom of Finland
2017
***
Director: Dome Karukoski
Cast: Pekka Strang, Lauri Tilkanen, Jessica Grabowsky, Taisto Oksanen, Seumas F. Sargent, Jakob Oftebro, Niklas Hogner, Werner Daehn, Christian Sandström, Martin Bahne, Kari Hietalahti
Touko Laaksonen is a gay man who must hide his true self in post-war Finland, but his controversial homoerotic drawings, eventually published under the name of Tom of Finland, turn him into a worldwide icon in the gay community. Dome Karukoski's well staged but frustratingly formulaic biographical drama only goes skin deep. Laaksonen was gay and he drew some pictures, and that's as much as we learn about him. At times, the dialogue sounds anachronistic and the timeframe stops making sense, especially as it's unclear which decade we are in at any point. Although Pekka Strang gives a strong performance, the character he plays seems to be permanently in his 30s, until he is suddenly an old man. Lauri Tilkanen plays his life partner, but this relationship is so ambiguous that it doesn't leave any impression.
