Johan

Marit weds farmer Johan, a dull old stick with a poisonous mother living across the river. Along comes a fat-arsed lumberjack who easily seduces Marit away, taking her on a perilous journey over the rapids, with Johan in hot pursuit. It ends with the seducer taking a beating and a penitent Marit returning to the farm - happy ending for Johan, his 'property' restored, but most modern audiences will feel frustrated at Marit's inability to kiss off both these jerks and head for the bright lights. (In Juha, the Kaurismäki remake, she suffers even more grievously.) Stiller deadpans the morality of the tale, more intent on having his camera commune with the rugged Scandinavian landscape. The inter-titles are unusual, being in the form of a trad-sounding ballad with a mocking refrain. From a novel by Juhani Aho.