Leningrad Cowboys Go America (1989)

User Rating:

6.5/10   

Director:

Aki Kaurismäki

Writers:

Sakke Järvenpää (story)
Aki Kaurismäki (screenplay)

Release Date:

24 March 1989 (Finland)

Genre:

Adventure | Comedy | Music

Plot:

The Leningrad Cowboys, a group of Finnish musicians, and their manager, travel to America seeking fame and fortune...

Plot Keywords:

Leningrad Cowboys | Mexico | Manager | Band | Beer

Cast

Matti Pellonpää	...	Vladimir (Manager)
Kari Väänänen	...	Igor (Village Idiot)
Sakke Järvenpää	...	The Leningrad Cowboys
Heikki Keskinen	...	The Leningrad Cowboys
Pimme Korhonen	...	The Leningrad Cowboys
Sakari Kuosmanen	...	The Leningrad Cowboys
Puka Oinonen	...	The Leningrad Cowboys
Silu Seppälä	...	The Leningrad Cowboys
Mauri Sumén	...	The Leningrad Cowboys
Mato Valtonen	...	The Leningrad Cowboys
Pekka Virtanen	...	The Leningrad Cowboys
Nicky Tesco	...	Lost Cousin
Olli Tuominen	...	Siberian Svengali
Kari Laine	...	Siberian Chauffeur
Jatimatic Ohlstrom	...	Father of the Cowboys

Runtime:

78 min

Country:

Finland | Sweden

Language:

Finnish | English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | Australia:M | Finland:S | Sweden:7 | UK:15 | USA:PG-13 | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Del Rio, Texas, USA

Company:

Esselte Video

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: In the opening scene, the frozen bass player's hand moves.

Movie Connections:

Followed by Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses (1994)

A perfect movie

I just saw Leningrad Cowboys for the third time and think it is a perfect film. Whatever else it may be about, it is a quest into the heart of rock and roll. The Cowboys start in New York playing their soulful/klezmerish immigrant blues on a seedy rooftop, then reel back through the roots of the genre--Memphis, Natchez, New Orleans, Honky Tonk and Biker Bars, road house and funeral...to their destination in Mexico where their Finnish filtered rock returns to its original sound, converging on the joyous soulful wedding as they back up a singer whose classic Indian features are not that different from some of the singers'... The esthetic is stylish and dead pan. The cinematography is actually quite beautiful, lyric of industrial decay. If you like Jarmusch (who does a spot as a car salesman) you'll like this movie. The pacing did not seem slow to me at all--but that may just be a sign of my age. The form is a series of theatrical skits and blackouts, and the tension of many scenes owes more to mime or comedia than MTV. I think my favorite is one involving the village idiot and a shoe that is not the one he wants. Poignant and hysterical at the same time. Oh, and maybe his treck with what looks to be a 50lb catfish... If you have a chance to see it, go. It is hilarious and sweet and utterly unlike anything else you've ever seen.