Road North (Tie pohjoiseen) (Finland)

In Finnish with English subtitles.

Road movies are a recurring theme at the European Union Film Festival, and this year's lineup includes a Finnish comedy-drama by Mika Kaurismäki, brother of auteur Aki (The Man Without a Past).

In this rambling tale, prodigal father Leo (Vesa-Matti Loiri) reappears drunk on the steps of the apartment of his son Timo (Samuli Edelmann), after abandoning him 35 years earlier.

Where classical pianist Timo is disciplined, cultured, and tightly wound, overweight Leo is unprincipled, indulgent, and shamelessly spontaneous. The character contrasts between the two foreshadow predictable conflict (and resolution) as the pair hit the road together as Leo wants the understandably resistant Timo to accompany him to the north to collect an inheritance.

What keeps things interesting though are the layers of familial secrecy that are progressively unpeeled along the journey. Timo meets several relatives he never knew and learns about his father's checkered past (and, consequently, his own origins). Along the way, there's also a stowaway cat, a pot-smoking closet case, several misshaps, and even a musical number.

Somewhat predictably, the angst-ridden Timo (whose own marriage has collapsed) learns to loosen up after bonding with his irresponsible but life-loving father. Yet while Edelmann plays the straight-laced son with convincing seriousness, that same strength inhibits him from making an effective self-effacing leap to the comedic end of things.

The story's humour, which is more amusing than laugh-inducing, tends towards the silly, and sentimentality inevitably creeps in.

Nonetheless, the film manages to dodge some of the predictability of the buddy road-movie by peppering the story with authentic surprises and twists.

Amid all the quirks and quarrels, the story also manages to impart an appreciation for the need to learn about one's own family, no matter how grating they may be.

Road North plays on Friday (November 28) at 9 p.m. at the Cinematheque as part of the 2014 European Union Film Festival.