Sebastian Meise’s film Great Freedom, described as “personal, political, and sensual” (Variety), arrives at New York’s Film Forum on March 4 and Los Angeles’s Laemmle Royal and Playhouse on March 11 before expanding to theaters across the US.
Set in post-war Germany, this stirring portrait of gay resistance and resilience turns a humanist eye towards a heartrending past. Unfolding across three decades, the film traces the repeated imprisonment of one man under Paragraph 175 — a law criminalizing homosexual activity.
After being “liberated” by Allied forces in 1945, Hans is transferred directly from a concentration camp to prison to finish out his sentence. There, he forms an unlikely connection with his cellmate Viktor, a convicted murderer. As Hans is jailed again and again, their relationship blossoms into something tender and transformative.
Anchored by a revelatory star turn from Franz Rogowski (Transit), Great Freedom weaves together moments across time to form a sensual yet arresting epic. In the process, this Oscar-shortlisted feature triumphs as a depiction of love in the face of injustice.
Learn more and get tickets at mubi.com/greatfreedom. A MUBI Release.
“The best gay film of the year… truly astounding” — EDGE Media
