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Helmet Film Challenge Vol. 2: 7/50

An American teen film:

High School Musical (2006), directed by Kenny Ortega

Why it fits the challenge:

A TV movie that turned into a phenomenon. I was tempted to watch it at an outdoor cinema event at a local café/bar, but my experience was hindered by the fact that we couldn’t find seats and ended up sitting on a staircase. The film itself wasn’t very good in my opinion, though plenty of others seemed to enjoy it!

My rating: ⭐⭐

Original challenges on the Helmet website.

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Helmet Film Challenge Vol. 2: 6/50

A film where someone knows how to fly:

Mary Poppins (1964), directed by Robert Stevenson

Why it fits the challenge:

A classic musical about a magical nanny that has an ability to fly with her umbrella. I'm not a big musical person so I wasn't overly keen on this one. Not bad though.

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐

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Helmet Film Challenge Vol. 2: 5/50

An animated film:

Kiki’s Delivery Service ('魔女の宅急便', 1989), directed by Hayao Miyazaki

Why it fits the challenge:

A cute coming-of-age story from Studio Ghibli. Not one of my favourites from Miyazaki but I did enjoy this a fair bit.

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐

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Helmet Film Challenge Vol. 2: 4/50

A film written and directed by a woman:

Titane (2021), directed by Julia Ducournau

Why it fits the challenge:

Surrealist and provocative body horror drama by Julia Ducournau that won the Palme d'Or at Cannes Film Festival. To be completely honest, I couldn't decide whether I liked it or not when I saw it back then in theaters, and that is still the case.

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐

Original challenges on the Helmet website.

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Helmet Film Challenge Vol. 2: 3/50

A mockumentary:

Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga (2020), directed by David Dobkin

Why it fits the challenge:

A musical comedy that parodies the Eurovision Song Contest in a somewhat mockumentary style. As someone who knows Eurovision a bit too well, I noticed several moments where the film bends or ignores the actual rules and workings of the contest for the sake of the plot and the core audience in America, so the parody doesn’t always land as well as I would like. Still, there are some genuinely funny moments, and it’s clear the cast is having a great time. “Ja Ja Ding Dong” guy and the elves were definite highlights for me.

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐

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Helmet Film Challenge Vol. 2: 2/50

A film with a ghost in it:

Ghost (1990), directed by Jerry Zucker

Why it fits the challenge:

A supernatural romantic drama with some strong moments. It leans a bit too heavily into melodrama for my taste, but Whoopi Goldberg delivers a standout performance that brings much-needed humor to the film.

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐

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Helmet Film Challenge Vol. 2: 1/50

A film about climate change:

Don’t Look Up (2021), directed by Adam McKay

Why it fits the challenge:

Adam McKay's attempt at satirizing the world’s response to an impending global catastrophe mostly misses the mark. It's overlong, not particularly funny, and the satire feels heavy-handed. While the cast is packed with Hollywood A-listers, they’re largely underutilized.

My rating: ⭐⭐

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Introduction 🎬

Welcome, dear reader! Since 2019, the amazing folks at Helsinki Metropolitan Area Libraries have been running an annual Helmet Film Challenge — 50 unique film-themed challenges designed to stretch your watchlist and broaden your cinematic horizons. Now in its 7th year, the challenge is going strong, and I’ve decided to chronicle my own adventure through it right here.

I actually started doing the challenge in 2024, but thanks to my active Letterboxd account, I have been able to fill some gaps from the earlier years as well.

Each challenge pushes me to explore something new, obscure, unexpected, or completely out of my comfort zone — and that’s half the fun. This blog will serve as a logbook of sorts: brief thoughts and reactions, discoveries, and maybe the occasional detour into film nerd territory.

Here are the personal guidelines I've been trying to stick to for this challenge:

🎥 All forms of film are fair game — short films, feature-length movies, and documentaries are in. TV series are out. 🔁 No re-watches, unless a challenge specifically asks for it. 🎞️ Sequels, prequels, and spin-offs are avoided — unless I already have watched the whole series. 1️⃣ One film per challenge and vice versa — no doubling up! This is the only rule I'm going to be really strict on.

If you’re also doing the Helmet Film Challenge this year (or in past years), feel free to follow along, share recs, or just chat about movies! All the challenges can be found from the library website.

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Helmet Film Challenge Vol. 1: 50/50

A Christmas film:

Klaus (2019) Directed by Sergio Pablos

Why it fits the challenge:

A charming animated film about the origins of Santa Claus, and one of the best Christmas movies made in quite a while.

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Original challenges on the Helmet website.

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Helmet Film Challenge Vol. 1: 49/50

A film that is a co-production by two or more countries:

A Private War (2018) Directed by Matthew Heineman

Why it fits the challenge:

Produced in the UK and the USA, this is a biopic about war correspondent Marie Colvin, fiercely played by Rosamund Pike. The sharp, documentary-style direction gives the film a realistic feel. The acting alongside Pike is strong throughout, with Jamie Dornan delivering one of his best performances as well.

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Original challenges on the Helmet website.

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Helmet Film Challenge Vol. 1: 48/50

A film where the director plays the lead:

Murder on the Orient Express (2017) Directed by Kenneth Branagh

Why it fits the challenge:

Kenneth Branagh directs and stars as Hercule Poirot in an adaptation of the classic Agatha Christie murder mystery. The film looks quite nice visually, but severely lacks suspense. Branagh is an okay Poirot at best.

My rating: ⭐⭐

Original challenges on the Helmet website.

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Helmet Film Challenge Vol. 1: 47/50

A film recommended to you by someone under the age of 18:

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (2001) Directed by Chris Columbus

Why it fits the challenge:

I never got into Harry Potter as a kid, even though I loved reading and the books were definitely popular at my school back then. My godson is a big fan, though, so I decided to finally watch the films to see what I might have missed. It’s one of those cases where experiencing it at the right age would have made a big difference. A good film but it didn't turn me into a fan.

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐

Original challenges on the Helmet website.

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Helmet Film Challenge Vol. 1: 46/50

A comedy film from 1980s:

Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989) Directed by Stephen Herek

Why it fits the challenge:

A goofy time travel comedy. I would have probably liked it more and had more laughs if I saw it when I was younger, but found it very charming nonetheless.

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐

Original challenges on the Helmet website.

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Helmet Film Challenge Vol. 1: 45/50

A Spanish film:

Pain and Glory (2019) Original Title: Dolor y gloria Directed by Pedro Almodóvar

Why it fits the challenge:

A deeply personal film from the Spanish master Almodóvar, with the achingly tender reunion between Antonio Banderas and Leonardo Sbaraglia’s characters being the highlight for me. This one hit different and instantly became my favourite Almodóvar film.

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Original challenges on the Helmet website.

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Helmet Film Challenge Vol. 1: 44/50

A film starring your favourite actor/actress:

Joker (2019) Directed by Todd Phillips

Why it fits the challenge:

There are way too many actors I like to pick a clear favourite, but Joaquin Phoenix is definitely among them. I would say his manic performance singlehandedly elevates this film. Without the amazing central performance the film's narrative would feel even more like a copy of Taxi Driver and The King of Comedy, even though this grimy approach kinda works and feels relatively refreshing in the DC Comics context.

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Original challenges on the Helmet website.

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Helmet Film Challenge Vol. 1: 43/50

A film that came out in 2019:

The Farewell (2019) Directed by Lulu Wang

Why it fits the challenge:

One of the positive surprises of its release year. A warm, occasionally humorous drama about family and cultural identity. Awkwafina is great in this.

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Original challenges on the Helmet website.

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Helmet Film Challenge Vol. 1: 42/50

A film that takes place in a fantasy world:

The Green Knight (2021) Directed by David Lowery

Why it fits the challenge:

A dreamlike take on the Arthurian legend of Sir Gawain set on a haunting fantasy world. A strange but visually stunning film.

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐

Original challenges on the Helmet website.