Career With Suomi-Filmi
During his career, Vaala directed 44 feature-length theatrical films, the second most among Finnish directors, behind only Toivo Särkkä. 38 of those films were made while he was employed by Suomi-Filmi. His first film with the company was the romantic comedy Kaikki rakastavat (1935). It was also the first film that Ansa Ikonen and Tauno Palo starred in together. The film was followed by an urban comedy, Vaimoke in 1936, which starred the same leading pair, and ended up being a popular success and served as the breakthrough film for all involved. The film was an adaptation from a work by Hella Wuolijoki, as was the sequel, Mieheke, which Vaala directed in the same year.
Many of Vaala's films were adaptations of popular classics of Finnish literature, by authors such as Mika Waltari, Aleksis Kivi and Maiju Lassila. Vaala also directed several adaptations on works by Frans Eemil Sillanpää, one of which, Ihmiset Suviyössä (1948), has been called his best film, and is reported to have been one of the director's personal favorites. Another personal favorite of his, and also a popular success, was Loviisa, Niskavuoren nuori emäntä (1946), an adaptation from a Wuolijoki play.
During Vaala's career, his most popular films reached huge audiences in relation to the size of his home country. One of his most popular films, Juurakon Hulda (1937), was seen in cinemas by approximately a million viewers out of a population of 3,5 million. It was also remade in Hollywood as The Farmer's Daughter. Vaala's other popular films included Niskavuoren naiset in 1938 and his adaptations from Mika Waltari's books Gabriel, tule takaisin (1951) and Omena putoaa... (1952). Nummisuutarit in 1957 and Nuori Mylläri in 1958 were also among the most watched films in Finland during their release years.
Vaala's final feature film was Totuus on armoton in 1963, but his career still continued as a director of short films. His last credited work was a short documentary film about the Finlandia Hall, created at the request of the city of Helsinki.
Read more about this topic: Valentin Vaala
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