Upamanyu Biswas
Netflix’s ‘Little Siberia‘ follows Joel, a pastor whose life is upended following a meteorite landing in a remote Finnish town known as Hurmevaara. Struggling to affirm his faith, Joel becomes obsessed with this new rock, looking at it as a sign of divine intervention. However, it also leads to a catalog of unlikely events that reshape his entire existence, like his wife becoming pregnant. Knowing that he is infertile, the protagonist is wracked by inner conflict as he tries to come to terms with his wife’s so-called infidelity. He embarks on a mission to find out if Krista is cheating on him and, if so, who the baby’s father is. During the adventure, the audience grows accustomed to the frigid environments of Hurmevaara and its cozy attractions, like the Golden Moon bar, which play a prominent role throughout the story.
Hurmevaara is a Fictional Town Brought to Life in Nurmes, Finland
Although ‘Little Siberia’ unfolds in the town of Hurmevaara, the village is a fictional spot conceived by Antti Tuomainen, the writer who drafted the 2018 eponymous novel, which serves as the basis for the film. The film crew utilized the town of Nurmes in the county of North Karelia in Finland as the stand-in for the region. Like its fictional counterpart, it boasts a small population living in a remote community far from any dense urban neighborhoods. Additionally, it serves as a moderately popular destination for tourists, mainly because of its rich Karelian traditions and cultures. It adds authenticity and texture to the fictional backdrop of Hurmevaara, making the town feel real and genuine despite being drawn from Tuomainen’s imagination.
While flipping through the source material’s pages, Hurmevaara is described as a small remote community situated in the Northeastern parts of Finland, deep in the snowy territory. It is so far from mainland civilization it can feel profoundly isolated and removed from the rest of the world. Sometimes, the buildings themselves feel like cardboard cut-outs, adding to the artifice on display. The town’s portrayal in the film distinctly mirrors the pristine, cold, and isolated setting of ‘Fargo,’ the 1996 black comedy crime movie directed by Joel Coen. It brings the same type of calm and chilly atmosphere, with acres and acres of snow surrounding the main crop of buildings. In some ways, it makes the little town feel like an island surrounded by a white, unmoving ocean.
Hurmevaara’s physical appearance can be daunting and intimidating at first glance, but its other oppressive quality is in its small-town communal aspects. Everyone in the village knows everyone else, including the specific details about their life. It creates a stifling and suffocating atmosphere where individuals feel limited by the perceptions of others. This is often addressed through the inner conflict raging within several important characters. They are all struggling to make their life more meaningful in a harsh and brutal landscape that is both beautiful to look at and scary at the same time. Even the possibility of murder is chilling as bodies can be buried underneath piles of snow without anyone ever noticing or hidden underneath frozen rivers that rarely thaw. Nothing escapes the all-encompassing snow.
While filming, the production crew utilized every detail to ensure Hurmevaara felt as claustrophobic and chaotic as possible. To that end, the use of the Finnish weather was a critical part of the shooting process. Much of the town’s foreboding aesthetic comes to life through these natural additions. Moreover, the place feels even more alive because the characters inhabiting the town are jaded and rooted in its orthodoxy. Pastor Joel faces a crisis of faith similar to the turbulent storms gathering on Hurmevaara’s outskirts. Meanwhile, his wife, Krista, longs to leave the place behind to begin a new life somewhere more vibrant and free. There isn’t much to enjoy in the fictional town’s premises. However, that is the point as our main characters rage against their claggy surroundings.
Golden Moon Adds to the Worldbuilding of Hurmevaara
Similar to the other elements of ‘Little Siberia,’ Golden Moon is a fictional destination crafted by novelist Antti Tuomainen. It is a bar in the fictional town of Hurmevaara operated by Karolina, a woman frustrated with her life in the dull village. Although it plays a mildly important role in the story, the bar’s real prominence comes to light when Joel begins investigating every aspect of his wife’s life and whether she may be cheating on him. During this inquest, he runs into Karolina at the bar. Subsequently, the shop appears recurringly, adding another dimension to Hurmevaara, which is often depicted as a place without many leisure attractions for its residents. The Golden Moon is one of the few places inhabitants can hang out after a tedious day of work. It brings some life to the place, even if it remains a fictional spot with no ties to reality.
Read More: Little Siberia Ending, Explained: What is Joel’s Miracle?
