One Foot Under

Visa Vuorio, a 35-year-old team leader in Helsinki's city gardening department, is living with a terminal neurological disease with only months to live. He attends a therapeutical support group for people facing terminal illnesses. A young reporter named Hanna Manninen arrives, offering to write a series about his life.

During a routine doctor visit, a mix-up of samples reveals that Visa is perfectly healthy. He is stunned by the news and debates whether to tell Hanna or Riia, ultimately deciding to keep quiet to preserve the article project and his experience. He resolves to keep up the illusion of illness for as long as the articles continue.

Visa confides only in his best friend Harri, who secretly loves Visa's girlfriend Riia. Harri's feelings become a complication that could explode if the truth ever surfaces. The secret creates a fragile balance in Visa's personal web of relationships.

Visa and Hanna travel to Copenhagen, and the two begin to fall in love while there. They neither confess their true feelings at first, enjoying the growing connection in a new city. The trip deepens their attraction even as they stay emotionally guarded.

Back in Helsinki, the therapeutical group hosts a grand party and invites Visa to speak. In a tense moment on stage, he uses the podium to reveal the truth—he is actually healthy—and to confess his love for Hanna. The crowd is surprised by the double twist.

Hanna is shocked by Visa's revelation and rejects him, choosing not to pursue a relationship at that moment. Her decision is influenced by the complexity of their situation and her lingering feelings. The moment shifts the trajectory of both their lives.

Hanna's ex-boyfriend Ilkka seeks a fresh start and proposes to her at a restaurant in Porvoo. The scene marks a new chapter for Hanna, who must decide whether to accept or reject him. The pressure mounts on Visa as his secret status remains unknown to everyone else.

Visa makes desperate efforts to stop the engagement, and at the restaurant door in Porvoo he realizes he is actually sick after all. He collapses on the street, overwhelmed by fear and the reality of his illness. The moment marks a turning point in his plan and in Hanna's life.

Visa is taken to a hospital in Helsinki for treatment, but he immediately makes an escape to continue with his plan. He intends to force the truth to come out and to make Hanna understand his feelings before it's too late. The escape demonstrates his desperation and determination.

In a dramatic move, Visa crashes Hanna's and Ilkka's wedding. He publicly admits his sickness, reiterates his love for Hanna, and attempts to finalize his confession. The interruption shakes everyone present and fractures the celebration.

He shares a final kiss with Hanna, pledging his feelings before life slips away. Almost immediately after the kiss, Visa collapses and dies on the ground, leaving Hanna and the guests in stunned silence. The moment closes the long arc of his turbulent life.