When I saw John Wick: Chapter 4, everyone in the theater cracked up for a single standout trailer, and it was the one for Sisu. I was certainly one of those people, even though I had already seen the trailer twice beforehand. At the end of the day, watching anyone carve their way through Nazis is going to be a good time, so the film certainly has that going for it. The question is: is that all Sisu has to offer? Having finally seen it, I can say with some certainty that yeah, that’s pretty much it. Then again, who needs anything else?

Sisu is set in 1944 and follows an aging Finnish commando named Aatami Korpi (Jorma Tommila) who’s forsaken the war in order to pan for gold in Lapland, a desolate region in northern Finland. After happening upon a sizeable gold vein, he mines it with his trusty pickaxe and heads for civilization. Shortly after, however, he runs into a depleted company of German soldiers, led by SS officer Bruno Helldorf (Aksel Hennie). Long story short, Bruno and his soldiers want the gold, but Korpi is not too keen to relinquish it. And so, a bloody battle ensues between the one-man-army and his Wehrmacht opposition.

This movie delivers on what its trailer promises: a badass Fin annihilating Nazis in gruesome fashion. Within fifteen minutes or so, Korpi begins his life-or-death engagement with the bad guys, and the film doesn’t let up from there. The creative kills are the best part of Sisu, as Korpi dispatches his enemies with whatever he can utilize, be it his pickaxe, a submachine gun, or even landmines. And he does so in a variety of stunning environments, including a standout set-piece in a small, crystalline lake. All of this comes together to form a visceral viewing experience, but not one that forgets to be eye-catching. Director Jalmari Helander and his crew should be proud of what they accomplished visually.

However, as I stated in my opening, killing Nazis is “pretty much” what Sisu has to offer, but not entirely. For one, the two lead actors are outstanding. Aksel Hennie, who I always enjoy watching, does most of the movie’s talking, and he’s an appropriate balance of ruthlessly determined and desperately defeated. You see, the Germans are retreating from Finland at this stage of the war, and all signs point to their imminent defeat. Knowing his side is bound to lose, Bruno is trying to secure the gold in order to ensure his post-war survival, given that he likely faces execution for his war crimes. Hennie’s Bruno embodies the desperation of that very well, and I commend the script for giving the Germans a motive beyond simply being evil and greedy.

Ultimately, though, this is Jorma Tommila’s film, and my goodness is he excellent. Without uttering a word, he’s able to express a wide range of emotions, whether it be joy in finding his fortune, anger that someone would try to steal it, or even just compassion for his loyal dog and horse. Tommila also completely sells the physicality of his character, which isn’t a simple task for an actor of his age (63-64 years old). Korpi thoroughly and convincingly demolishes anyone who gets in his way, but he also takes a lot of damage, getting shot, blown up, and beaten to hell. This leads to some gnarly first aid scenes in which he cuts bullets out or stitches up gaping shrapnel wounds. If it wasn’t clear yet: Sisu is not for the faint of heart.

There are also a few bonuses in Sisu that add to its appeal, such as its effective inclusion of female characters in the form of German sex slaves. These women demonstrate the same “sisu” – the Finnish term that vaguely means tenacity – that Korpi does. And when they get their moment to shine, it’s a real crowd-pleaser. In addition, there are intermittent attempts at humor that mostly work. Some of the gore is played for chuckles, and there’s also something genuinely amusing about Korpi’s ongoing refusal to die. That being said, this also plays into one of the movie’s biggest problems.

The problem I’m referring to is the movie’s tendency to skew too close to superhero levels of ridiculousness. Korpi being able to shrug off a leg wound or a kick to the face is one thing, but as Sisu progresses, his durability becomes pretty unbelievable. Without spoiling anything, things are taken to comical levels, the kinds of which diminish all but a few action movies. I know that part of the point of this absurdity was to enhance the “sisu” element, but I can’t help but to think that there’s a way to demonstrate Finnish resilience without crossing over into fantasy land. I just think that if the filmmakers of Sisu had shown a bit more restraint, they would’ve found that perfect balance of grindhouse camp and lionhearted humanity that they seemed to be going for.

In the end, any pedantic complaints that I could single out are far overshadowed by Sisu’s overriding quality: it’s really dang entertaining. Sure, that’s mostly due to the relentless violence, but there are also great performances and funny bits in there too. I haven’t even mentioned the fact that it’s a Nordic film finding a limited but enthusiastic audience in America, which is pretty neat as well. All in all, what makes Sisu a success is easily definable, unlike the word that constitutes its title.

If I had to score it, I’d give Sisu an 8/10.