New York Daily News by Elizabeth Weitzman

Kaurismaki's characteristically minimalist humor and wry empathy make brief appearances, but be warned: His Helsinki is a cold, dark place unfit for all but the hardiest visitors.

Entertainment Weekly by Lisa Schwarzbaum

There's great music, an excellent dog, and that indescribable Kaurismäki tension between misery and a cosmic joke.

New York Post by V.A. Musetto

If you're new to Kaurismaki, the film will make you a fan. If you've seen everything else he's ever done, the comedy will confirm your commitment.

TV Guide Magazine by Ken Fox

It's a handsome production, and a pleasure to watch. With a shadowy palette and a set design reminiscent of Edward Hopper's nocturnes, a soundtrack hearkening back to the sounds of vintage rock 'n' roll, and a cast of characters straight out of a James M. Cain novel.

The A.V. Club by Scott Tobias

Without Kaurismäki to introduce these lonely, forgotten souls to audiences, who's going to be his friend?

Austin Chronicle by Marjorie Baumgarten

Kaurismäki’s spare style and economical storytelling are well-suited to this particular story about loneliness, as the director never muddies the frame with sentimental dross or lugubrious inclinations.

Los Angeles Times by Kevin Crust

There's a dry humor underlying the absurdity of Koistinen's experience. When things cannot possibly get worse, they do.

Variety

Lights in the Dusk finds veteran Finnish helmer Aki Kaurismaki treading water with an amiable but very undercooked noirish fable about a security guard done wrong by a femme fatale.

Salon by Andrew O'Hehir

So stylized and slow-moving (even at a spare 75 minutes) that you may have trouble adapting to its hypnotic rhythms -- but if you can, there are sumptuous visual rewards to be found, plus the faintest emotional uptick right at the end.

Variety by Leslie Felperin

Lights in the Dusk finds veteran Finnish helmer Aki Kaurismaki treading water with an amiable but very undercooked noirish fable about a security guard done wrong by a femme fatale.

Village Voice

Lights in the Dusk derives scant excitement from its melodramatic plot, which satisfies a dismal, ineluctable formula with stultifying efficiency. Nor is it enlivened by the airless performances.

The New York Times by Stephen Holden

This spare, minimalist film is not realistic. It has the simplicity of a silent movie, and the blocking of the actors, especially in the scenes with Koistinen and Mirja, emphasizes the distances between them.

The Hollywood Reporter by Kirk Honeycutt

Lights will put in more appearances at festivals before achieving a brief theatrical window for Kaurismaki devotees to gaze through. Most will do so with discouragement.