The name is Finland. Tom of Finland.
December 12, 2017 7:53 PM   Subscribe

Earlier this year, Finland submitted the eponymously-titled Tom of Finland as its foreign-language film entry for the 2017 Academy Awards. The film - directed by Dome Karukoski and starring Pekka Strang - is a biopic chronicling the life and artwork of Touko Laaksonen, better known as Tom of Finland. It is currently screening on selected dates in the United States and Canada (direct link to trailer here) . Some links likely NSFW.

Finland honoured Laaksonen's work in 2014 with the release of a Tom of Finland postage series ( The Jack Kirby Of Porn: Celebrating The Happy Hunks Of Tom Of Finland, previously on Metafilter).
posted by mandolin conspiracy (22 comments total) 24 users marked this as a favorite
 
I really hope I get to see this movie. Tom Of Finland is so iconic. I've seen more than a few things about him, and he's an interesting character.
posted by hippybear at 8:47 PM on December 12, 2017


Also: MetaFilter: Some links likely NSFW.
posted by hippybear at 8:47 PM on December 12, 2017


I love Tom of Finland art. It's so unashamed. I hope I can track down this film.
posted by taterpie at 9:53 PM on December 12, 2017


Who doesn't like Tom of Finland?
posted by bongo_x at 10:50 PM on December 12, 2017 [1 favorite]


People who were looking for toothpaste?
posted by thelonius at 10:59 PM on December 12, 2017 [16 favorites]


Who doesn't like Tom of Finland?

It is somewhat conceivable that there are people who don’t care for comics that are ~99% depictions of rape.
posted by Sys Rq at 1:03 AM on December 13, 2017 [1 favorite]


Huh. I don't think I knew until just now that Tom of Finland was actually... of Finland.
posted by lovecrafty at 1:14 AM on December 13, 2017 [4 favorites]


I had the pleasure of seeing the Tom of Finland movie with two awesome, queer friends of mine, including one who is Finnish. We all adored it. It’s well worth watching.
posted by SansPoint at 5:02 AM on December 13, 2017


Who doesn't like Tom of Finland?

well, anyone who isn't attracted to muscular men probably isn't the biggest fan :)

I admire him for his significance to queer culture - just watching this trailer shows how much leather culture was shaped by his art, and I'd really like to see this film. But for art, I'm more of an Erika Moen type.
posted by jb at 5:52 AM on December 13, 2017 [1 favorite]


well, anyone who isn't attracted to muscular men probably isn't the biggest fan :)

I'm not into men sexually at all, but I have liked his art since I first saw it more than 20 years ago. It is possible to appreciate it as art and as something historically important (I mean, how many artists have done that much to define a subculture?) without finding it erotic.
posted by Dip Flash at 6:27 AM on December 13, 2017 [1 favorite]


I've always appreciated how over-the-top these are. Sort of in the same way I appreciate Nagel, but more . . . turgid?
posted by aspersioncast at 8:07 AM on December 13, 2017 [3 favorites]


Also TofF is a great way to keep the inlaws from ever coming over again.
posted by aspersioncast at 8:07 AM on December 13, 2017 [1 favorite]


TIL I've been confusing Tom of Finland with Tom's of Maine and I'm awfully glad I learned that from MetaFilter and not, like, while shopping with my mom.
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 8:10 AM on December 13, 2017 [5 favorites]


Cat and Girl did the Tom of Finland/Tom's of Maine joke back in 2005. (Though it might pre-date that, too.)
posted by SansPoint at 9:00 AM on December 13, 2017 [2 favorites]


Also TofF is a great way to keep the inlaws from ever coming over again.

If they pretend to ignore the conspicuously-placed coffee table book, and the duration of the visit means they’ll need to bathe or shower at least once, may I suggest upping the ante with a Tom of Finland shower curtain?
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 10:06 AM on December 13, 2017 [2 favorites]


And/or serving dinner with these oven mitts.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 10:09 AM on December 13, 2017 [1 favorite]


Yeah, I don't think that being sexually aroused by the subject matter is a prerequisite to enjoying the art. I can appreciate things that don't align with my world view.
posted by bongo_x at 12:31 PM on December 13, 2017


I'm with bongo_x. I'm bisexual, but the Tom of Finland, muscle/leather man archetype isn't my thing. But I appreciate the historical role of his work in gay culture, how incredibly well-executed it is, and how it straddles the line between art for porn's sake and art for art's sake.
posted by SansPoint at 1:04 PM on December 13, 2017


Is this the good Tom of Finland movie or the bad one?
posted by kenko at 2:36 PM on December 13, 2017 [1 favorite]


Oh, the bad one. (The good one was going to star Olli Rahkonen and had trailers/fundraising teasers like this.)
posted by kenko at 2:38 PM on December 13, 2017 [1 favorite]


Cat and Girl did the Tom of Finland/Tom's of Maine joke back in 2005. (Though it might pre-date that, too.)

It probably does. I really think I came up with it myself, but maybe I saw and forgot the Cat and Girl strip. But, if calculus could be independently discovered, surely this can too - it's pretty low-hanging fruit, comedy-wise.
posted by thelonius at 3:04 PM on December 13, 2017


I was just answering honestly why I'm not a fan. I'm not a big fan of the style or subject matter - not that it's not significant or good, it's just not my cup of tea.
posted by jb at 7:42 PM on December 13, 2017


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