Event Info
GREAT FREEDOM
Under the infamous Paragraph 175 statute, Hans is sentenced to 2 years in jail.
5:30pm - 7:30pm Doors at: 5:30pm
$13.33
Event Description
Franz Rogowski adds another magnetic performance to his already notable career, playing a persecuted gay man in 1968 Germany in one of the year’s headlining queer films.
Under the infamous Paragraph 175 statute, Hans is sentenced to 2 years in jail for his sexual liaisons with other men and it quickly becomes clear that he’s been through this process before, as he returns to familiar faces and old habits. As we flash back through his prison experiences, we get to meet his cellmate Viktor, a convicted murderer who refuses to room with him at first. Slowly though, the two form a bond forged under the cruel treatment of the prison system, as they try to help each other see the next day.
As the film jumps back and forth in time, connecting Hans’ stints in solitary confinement, Great Freedom gives us historical insight into the oppression borne from a law – even in the positive images we see hold of post-war West Germany. All the while, it keeps its focus on the personal, and though their relationship is always on the edge of tumultuous, we see the two men grow closer together, as Hans finds himself returning to the one constant in his life.
– Ammar Keshodia
Tue. February 8th 2022
Odeon Victoria BC
In-Person Event
