Shades of Happiness

(Onnen varjot)
Claes Olsson / FIN, 2005
Finnish version / English subtitles, 114 min

Paula, an art teacher, and her husband Jarkko Tiensuu, a family therapist for the parish, have tried to have a child for some years. Helena and her husband Mikko Raski are career-oriented people, who both work in an IT company. Their relationship is fine until Helena suddenly wants to have a child. The destinies of these couples get mixed in surprising ways after Helena and Paula run into each other at a class reunion. Paula gets pregnant and Helena finds out by accident that Mikko is sterile. Helena’ s obsessive dream of a child frightens Mikko to move out. Paula has a miscarriage and collapses. Helena visits the family therapist Jarkko unaware that he is Paula´s husband. They wind up making love and Helena gets pregnant. Shades of Happiness is a film about love and forgiveness.