• Pop Culture
    • Movies
    • Television
    • Comic Books
    • Video Games
    • Toys & Collectibles
  • Features
    • News
    • Reviews
    • Articles and Opinions
    • Interviews
    • Exclusives
    • Flickering Myth Films
    • FMTV
  • About
    • About Flickering Myth
    • Write for Flickering Myth
    • Advertise on Flickering Myth
  • Socials
    • Facebook
    • YouTube
    • Bluesky
    • Instagram
    • Flipboard
    • Linktree
    • X
  • Terms
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy

Flickering Myth

Geek Culture | Movies, TV, Comic Books & Video Games

  • News
  • Reviews
  • Articles & Opinions
  • Write for Us
  • The Baby in the Basket

Raindance Film Festival 2019 Review – Aurora

September 22, 2019 by Matt Rodgers

Aurora, 2019.

Directed by Miia Tervo
Starring Mimosa Willamo, Amir Escandari, Oona Airola, Chike Ohanwe, Ria Kataja, Hannu-Pekka Bjorkman

SYNOPSIS:

Aurora (Mimosa Willamo) is a free-spirit-cum-alcoholic, who dreams of a life away from her job at a Lapland nail bar, or as the carer for her similarly sozzled father. Her path crosses with Darian (Amir Escandari), an asylum seeker desperate to secure a future for his daughter, so-much-so that he agrees to let Aurora find him a Finnish bride in exchange for the money she needs to begin her new life in Norway.

It takes a dash of something special in order to make a rom-com or dramedy stand-out from a crowded marketplace full of titles you’ll happily skip past on a streaming service menu. A When Harry Met Sally or (500) Days of Summer don’t come along very often, and while Miia Tervo’s sweet-natured slice of loveable melancholy doesn’t do that much new with the formula, there’s enough in the winning performances and timely social commentary to mark it out as a feel-good modern romance worth falling for.

Most of this is due to a firebrand performance from Mimosa Willamo, whose effervescence is so contagious that it threatens to melt the snow around her. An immediately intriguing presence, Willamo plays Aurora as a character always teetering on the edge of something: it could be a joke, it could be a meltdown, it could be a sad karaoke rendition that she’s quickly snatched from by one of her impromptu changes of mood. It’s this unpredictability, this sadness of wearing multiple facades, that draws you towards Aurora. It’s a complex performance from Willamo, earning adoration and contempt from the audience, but it’s undeniably the main reason that Tervo’s film works.

Circling the human maelstrom that is Auroa are an ensemble of complimentary performances, most notably Amir Escandari, who is so much more than just a love-interest in the guise of a topical talking-point. Yes, his asylum status is integral to the plot, and a commendable foundation on which to build the narrative thread for a love-story, but it’s his character that’s important in making Aurora’s arc that much more believable, and ultimately satisfying. Their individual situations might be heightened for dramatic effect (immigrant and alcoholic), but the two of them always feel authentic.

Tervo ensures that the Lapland locales are also as much of a character as those peppered throughout the story, with the purity of the snow a visual and metaphorical contrast to the bright, loud personality at the heart of the story. It greatly accentuates the isolation that both characters are suffering from. How can you find your place in the world, because that’s what they’re both trying to do, when your starting point feels so disconnected from everything?

Wonderfully shot, brilliantly acted, and tender in execution, Aurora takes the familiar and gives it distinctly unique twist in the form of its impressive leading lady.

Flickering Myth Rating – Film ★ ★ ★ ★ / Movie ★ ★ ★ ★

Matt Rodgers – Follow me on Twitter

Filed Under: Matt Rodgers, Movies, Reviews Tagged With: Aurora, Chike Ohanwe, Emir Escandari, Hannu-Pekka Bjorkman, Miia Tervo, Mimosa Willamo, Oona Airola, Raindance 2019, Raindance Film Festival, Ria Kataja

FMTV – Watch Our Latest Video Here

WATCH OUR MOVIE NOW FOR FREE ON PRIME VIDEO!

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:

An Exploration of Bro Camp: The Best of Campy Guy Movies

The Essential Gene Hackman Movies

Philip K. Dick & Hollywood: The Essential Movie Adaptations

Crazy Cult 80s Movies You May Have Missed

How Will Quentin Tarantino Bow Out?

The Film Feud of the 90s: Steven Seagal vs Jean-Claude Van Damme

7 Mad Movie Doctors Who Deserve More Recognition

10 Great Recent Horror Movies You Need To See

Brilliantly Simple But Insanely Thrilling Movies

10 Essential Action Movies from 2005

Top Stories:

4K Ultra HD Review – Quatermass 2 (1957)

Movie Review – Sovereign (2025)

“Dexter In Space” – Michael C. Hall talks 20 years of Dexter and where the killer will go next

Movie Review – Abraham’s Boys (2025)

Matilda Lutz is Red Sonja in trailer for long-delayed fantasy reboot

Great Tarantino-esque Movies You Need To See

Crazy Cult 90s Horror Movies You May Have Missed

Movie Review – Daniela Forever (2025)

STREAM FREE ON PRIME VIDEO!

FEATURED POSTS:

The Return of Cameron Diaz: Her Best Movies Worth Revisiting

The Rise and Disappointing Disappearance of Director Richard Kelly

The Craziest Takashi Miike Movies

Cannon’s Avengers: What If… Cannon Films Did the Marvel Cinematic Universe?

Our Partners

  • Pop Culture
    • Movies
    • Television
    • Comic Books
    • Video Games
    • Toys & Collectibles
  • Features
    • News
    • Reviews
    • Articles and Opinions
    • Interviews
    • Exclusives
    • Flickering Myth Films
    • FMTV
  • About
    • About Flickering Myth
    • Write for Flickering Myth
    • Advertise on Flickering Myth
  • Socials
    • Facebook
    • YouTube
    • Bluesky
    • Instagram
    • Flipboard
    • Linktree
    • X
  • Terms
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy

© Flickering Myth Limited. All rights reserved. The reproduction, modification, distribution, or republication of the content without permission is strictly prohibited. Movie titles, images, etc. are registered trademarks / copyright their respective rights holders. Read our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. If you can read this, you don't need glasses.


 

Flickering MythLogo Header Menu
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Articles & Opinions
  • Write for Us
  • The Baby in the Basket