Variety
Karukoski's film at least honours its subject's work in some key respects: It's handsome, smoothly executed and eager to entertain.
Full review
Tom of Finland
Biopic on shunned-to-celebrated cult artist Touko Laaksonen and the events that influenced his iconic homoerotic drawings.
"After the trauma of serving in WWII, Tuoko finds no peace at home as he has to go to increasingly greater lengths to hide his homosexuality, even from his family. As the secret affairs and police crackdowns wear on him, he commits more deeply to his art, drawing inspiration from the uniforms that oppress him.
"Tuoko gains confidence from the positive reactions he receives after sharing his explicit drawings of muscular men in sexually uninhibited situations with a select few. But it is only when an American publisher sees them and invites Tuoko over to the West Coast that his life really takes a turn. Finally being able to walk free and proud in Los Angeles, Tuoko dives head first into the sexual revolution, becoming an icon and a rallying point." (Tribeca Film Festival)
2017Rating: R18+, High impact sexualised imagery and nudity115 minsFinland, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, USAFinnish, Germany and English with English subtitles
DramaTrue Story & BiographyWorld Cinema
- Director:
- Dome Karukoski ('The Home of Dark Butterflies', 'Lapland Odyssey', 'Beauty and the Bastard')
- Writer:
- Aleksi Bardy
- Cast:
- Pekka StrangLauri TilkanenJakob OftebroWerner DaehnChristian SandströmNiklas HognerJessica GrabowskyTaisto Oksanen
Tom of Finland / Reviews
The Guardian
Finnish artist Touko Laaksonen, known by his nom de plume Tom of Finland, is brought above the radar of cultural history in this well-acted biopic.
Full review
Slant Magazine
A film that projects some of the superficiality that Laaksonen’s art has been accused of over the years, and that just as surely inspires through its command of visual storytelling.
Full review
FilmInk
... a very watchable, solid, frequently entertaining and sometimes touching true story.
Full review
Empire Magazine
Having taken such pains to establish Tom's Finnish background and its attendant dangers, Karukoski hurtles through the sketchy American section without exploring any of its crucial issues in sufficient depth.
Full review
Share