Sisu review – one deadly Finn meets a lot of exploding Nazis

Sometimes you need a film with nuance and sensitivity, a meditation on the nature of human frailty. And sometimes all you want is a grizzled Finnish gold prospector relentlessly slaughtering cartoon evil Nazis in a variety of inventive and messy ways. Anyone in the mood for an unabashedly basic B-movie romp could do a lot worse than this predominantly English-language Finnish production. The story unfolds during the ragged final days of the second world war and pits stoic ex-commando Aatami (Jorma Tommila), nicknamed “the Immortal”, against the retreating German troops who have the poor judgment to steal his gold, taunt his dog and leave him for dead.

The title, Sisu, is a Finnish word that roughly translates as grit, determination, bravery and smarts. Aatami displays all of these traits, plus a knack for turning almost anything he can lay his hands on into a weapon. It’s graphic and gory; the camera is pelted with the assorted body parts of exploding Nazis; the sound design favours lots of extravagantly squelchy blood splattering.