Everything changes for rural farmer Juha and his wife Marja when a sophisticated stranger is brought fatefully into their lives after his car breaks down in their village. Soon, Marja is seduced by the city slicker and runs away with him, only to find herself in a dire situation in the metropolis.

Move over The Artist, there’s a new black-and-white silent-movie pastiche in town. Given his characters’ penchant for monosyllabism, it’s surprising it took Kaurismäki so long to make a silent film. Stunningly shot by Timo Salminen, this wistful melodrama is a stylistic triumph of parodic affection.