''Lipton Cockton in the Shadows of Sodoma'' (or simply ''Lipton Cockton'') is a 1995 Finnish

dystopian A dystopia (lit. "bad place") is an imagined world or society in which people lead wretched, dehumanized, fearful lives. It is an imagined place (possibly state) in which everything is unpleasant or bad, typically a totalitarian or environmenta ...

crime film Crime film is a film belonging to the crime fiction genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and fiction. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine with many other genres, such as Drama (film and television), dr ...

written and directed by

Jari Halonen Jari Juhani Halonen (born 30 September 1962) is a Finnish film and theatre director, writer and occasional actor. Known as a controversial and outspoken person, his films, such as '' Back to the USSR'' (1992), '' Lipton Cockton in the Shadows of S ...

. It tells the story of a

private investigator A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI; also known as a private detective, an inquiry agent or informally a wikt:private eye, private eye) is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. ...

living in a near-future

federal state A federation (also called a federal state) is an entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a federal government (federalism). In a federation, the self-governing status of the c ...

who begins to investigate unexplained explosion deaths. The film stars

Jorma Tommila Jorma Tommila (; born 1959) is a Finnish actor. He won the Jussi Award for Best Actor in 1997 and played Aatami Korpi in the film ''Sisu'' (2022). Early and personal life Tommila was born in Rauma, Finland and spent his youth in Kiukainen. His f ...

. Halonen has said in the 2011 interview that

Ridley Scott Sir Ridley Scott (born 30 November 1937) is an English film director and producer. He directs films in the Science fiction film, science fiction, Crime film, crime, and historical drama, historical epic genres, with an atmospheric and highly co ...

's ''

Blade Runner ''Blade Runner'' is a 1982 science fiction film directed by Ridley Scott from a screenplay by Hampton Fancher and David Peoples. Starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, and Edward James Olmos, it is an adaptation of Philip K. Di ...

'',

Jean-Luc Godard Jean-Luc Godard ( , ; ; 3 December 193013 September 2022) was a French and Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic. He rose to prominence as a pioneer of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s, alongside such filmmakers as ...

's '' Alphaville'' and

Terry Gilliam Terrence Vance Gilliam ( ; born 22 November 1940) is an American-British filmmaker, comedian, collage film, collage animator, and actor. He gained stardom as a member of the Monty Python comedy troupe alongside John Cleese, Eric Idle, Michael Pa ...

's ''

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

'' served as inspirations for the film. Halonen has said that he wanted to deal with criticism of

individualism Individualism is the moral stance, political philosophy, ideology, and social outlook that emphasizes the intrinsic worth of the individual. Individualists promote realizing one's goals and desires, valuing independence and self-reliance, and a ...

and its effect on humanity in the theme of film. During the production process, the creators aimed at foreign markets, but the success both at the domestic box office and in foreign sales remained modest. Instead, the film toured many festivals, such as at the 1995

Fantasy Filmfest The Fantasy Filmfest (FFF), is an international genre film festival held annually around September in major German cities. Award In 2006, the Fantasy Filmfest established an audience award, named ''Fresh Blood Award'', for the best first or s ...

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. Jukka Uusitalo, Ilmari Hakala and Jouni Nikkanen won the

Jussi Awards The Jussi Awards are Finland's premier film industry prizes, awarded annually to recognize the achievements of directors, actors, and writers. History The first Jussi Awards ceremony was held on 16 November 1944 at the Restaurant Adlon in Hel ...

for best production design in 1996.

Plot

The year is 2037. The peripheral regions of

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

, united into a giant federal state, have weakened sharply, which has caused huge migrations. The events focus on Vladivostok, the easternmost metropolis of the federal state, in which a person explodes in the Ugrian district. Federal Police Chief Brand Marlon (

) hires private investigator Lipton Cockton (

) to investigate this terrifying series of serial murders. In connection with the investigation, Cockton befriends a

fighting cock Cockfighting is a blood sport involving domesticated roosters as the combatants. The first documented use of the word gamecock, denoting use of the cock as to a "game", a sport, pastime or entertainment, was recorded in 1634, after the term ...

destined to be eaten, while at the same time drifting towards experiments organized by a mega-corporation LTD-Productions, experiencing a journey from a decayed social system and a failed human life towards the light of reality, the understanding of which makes the detective reflect on his problematic relationship with his mother (Iris-Lilja Lassila) and his sexual identity, to which the

Marilyn Monroe Marilyn Monroe ( ; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; June 1, 1926 August 4, 1962) was an American actress and model. Known for playing comic "Blonde stereotype#Blonde bombshell, blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex ...

-looking woman Dazzle Dent ( Outi Mäenpää) somehow seems to be related.

Cast

as Lipton Cockton / Launo Käkkyrä * Tarja-Tuulikki Tarsala as She-Detective * Hannu Huuska as Edgar Hampton * Outi Mäenpää as Dazzle Dent * Rauno Juvonen as prostitute * Iris-Lilja Lassila as Lipton Cockton's mother *

as Brand Marlon * Riitta Pasanen as Eartha *

Pentti Korhonen Pentti Korhonen (born 14 June 1951) is a Finnish former professional motorcycle road racer. He competed in Grand Prix motorcycle racing between 1969 and 1979. Korhonen was born in Rantasalmi, Finland. He had his most successful year in 1975 wh ...

as George the bartender * Abdeslam Chellaf as Kent Lumumba

Reception

Helena Ylänen from ''

Helsingin Sanomat , abbreviated ''HS'' and colloquially known as , is the largest subscription newspaper in Finland and the Nordic countries, owned by Sanoma. Except after certain holidays, it is published daily. Its name derives from that of the Finnish capital ...

'' said in her review that "Halonen's visions are an interesting combination of theatricality and modern action cinema", adding that "the expression is very full; there is a lot of stuff in the images, there are layers in the sound." Paavo Ihalainen from ''Elitisti'' praises "Halonen's ingenuity to create a powerful visual environment with little money thanks to his theater experience."

References

External links

* *
Lipton Cockton in the Shadows of Sodoma
' at

AllMovie AllMovie (previously All Movie Guide) is an online database with information about films, television programs, television series, and screen actors. , AllMovie.com and the AllMovie consumer brand are owned by RhythmOne. History AllMovie was ...

{{Jari Halonen 1990s dystopian films 1995 science fiction films Films about sexuality Films about trans men Films directed by Jari Halonen Films shot in Finland Finnish crime films Finnish detective films Finnish science fiction films Finnish thriller films Films about gang rape

Plot

Cast

Reception

See also

References

External links