Great Freedom (German: Große Freiheit) is a 2021 drama film directed by Sebastian Meise [de].[3] In June 2021, the film was selected to compete in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival.[4] At Cannes, the film won the Jury Prize in the Un Certain Regard section.[5] It won the Golden Giraldillo at the Seville European Film Festival.[6] It was selected as the Austrian entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards,[7] and on 22 December 2021, it was shortlisted for the award ceremony.[8]

Great Freedom
Theatrical release poster
GermanGroße Freiheit
Directed bySebastian Meise
Written by
  • Thomas Reider
  • Sebastian Meise
Produced by
  • Sabine Moser
  • Oliver Neumann
  • Benny Dreschel
Starring
CinematographyCrystel Fournier
Edited byJoana Scrinzi
Music by
Production
companies
  • FreibeuterFilm
  • Rohfilm Productions
Distributed by
  • Filmladen Filmverleih (Austria)
  • Piffl Medien (Germany)
Release dates
  • 8 July 2021 (2021-07-08) (Cannes)
  • 18 November 2021 (2021-11-18) (Germany)
  • 19 November 2021 (2021-11-19) (Austria)
Running time
116 minutes
Countries
LanguageGerman
Box office$217,227[2]

The film was released theatrically on 18 November 2021 in Germany by Piffl Medien and the following day in Austria by Filmladen Filmverleih.[9][10]

Plot

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In post-World War II West Germany, Hans is imprisoned by the post war government having previously been imprisoned in a concentration camp for infringing the Nazi anti-gay laws, which are still on the statute. Hans develops a relationship with his cellmate Viktor, a convicted murderer.[1][11][12][13]

Cast

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Reception

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Critical reception

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On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 97% based on 60 reviews from critics, with an average rating of 8.1/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "With intelligence and sensitivity, Great Freedom draws on past injustices to present a beautifully crafted tribute to the persistence of the human spirit"[14] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 89 out of 100, based on 18 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[15]

Awards and nominations

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Award Date of ceremony Category Recipient(s) Result Ref.
Diagonale 13 June 2021 Diagonale Actor Award Georg Friedrich Won [16]
Diagonale Award for Best Camera Crystel Fournier Won [17]
VAM Award for Outstanding Production Achievement Sabine Moser and Oliver Neumann Won [18]
Diagonale Award for Best Editing Joana Scrinzi Won [19]
Cannes Film Festival 17 July 2021 Un Certain Regard Jury Prize Sebastian Meise Won [20]
Queer Palm Won
Sarajevo Film Festival 20 August 2021 Heart of Sarajevo - Best Film Great Freedom Won [21]
CICAE Award Won
Heart of Sarajevo - Best Actor Georg Friedrich Won
Festival du nouveau cinéma 18 October 2021 International Competition, Grand Prize Sebastian Meise Won [22]
Chicago International Film Festival 24 October 2021 Gold Q-Hugo Great Freedom Won [23]
Vienna International Film Festival 31 October 2021 Best Feature Won [24]
ExtraVALUE Film Award - Best Feature Film Won
Seville European Film Festival 13 November 2021 Golden Giraldillo Award for Best Film Won [25]
ASECAN Award Sebastian Meise Won [26]
Best Actor Franz Rogowski Won [27]
Zagreb Film Festival 21 November 2021 Golden Pram - Best Feature Film Great Freedom Won [28]
Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival 28 November 2021 DDA Spotlight Award Won [29]
European Film Awards 11 December 2021 Best Actor Franz Rogowski Nominated [30]
Best Composer Nils Petter Molvaer and Peter Brötzmann Won
Best Cinematographer Crystel Fournier Won
European University Film Award Great Freedom Nominated [31]
Austrian Film Awards 30 June 2022 Best Feature Film Sabine Moser, Oliver Neumann, Benny Drechsel, Sebastian Meise Won [32]
Best Director Sebastian Meise Won
Best Actor Georg Friedrich Won
Franz Rogowski Nominated
Best Supporting Actor Thomas Prenn Won
Best Screenplay Thomas Reider and Sebastian Meise Won
Best Cinematography Crystel Fournier Won
Best Make-Up Heiko Schmidt, Roman Braunhofer and Kerstin Gaecklein Won
Best Music Peter Brötzmann and Nils Petter Molvaer Nominated
Best Editing Joana Scrinzi Won
German Film Awards 24 June 2022 Best Film Benny Drechsel, Sabine Moser and Oliver Neumann Won [33]
Best Director Sebastian Meise Nominated
Best Actor Franz Rogowski Nominated
Best Screenplay Thomas Reider, Sebastian Meise Nominated
Best Cinematography Crystel Fournier Nominated
Best Editing Joana Scrinzi Nominated
Best Costume Design Tanja Hausner, Andrea Hölzl Nominated
Best Make-Up Heiko Schmidt, Roman Braunhofer and Kerstin Gaecklein Won
Deutscher Schauspielpreis 9 September 2022 Best Actor in a Dramatic Leading Role Franz Rogowski Won [34]
Best Actor in a Dramatic Supporting Role Georg Friedrich Nominated
European Film Awards 10 December 2022 Lux Award Great Freedom Nominated [35]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "Great Freedom (Große Freiheit)". Cineuropa. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
  2. ^ "Great Freedom (2021)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
  3. ^ "Great Freedom". Austrian Films. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  4. ^ Sharf, Zack (10 June 2021). "Cannes Film Festival 2021 Lineup: Sean Baker, Wes Anderson, and More Compete for Palme d'Or". IndieWire. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  5. ^ Soriano, Jianne (17 July 2021). "Cannes Film Festival 2021: Full Winners List". Tatler Asia. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
  6. ^ Rivera, Alfonso (15 November 2021). "Great Freedom gets the Golden Giraldillo at the Seville European Film Festival". Cineuropa.
  7. ^ "Oscar-Nominierung 2022: Sebastian Meises Film "Große Freiheit" ist der österreichische Kandidat für den Auslandsoscar" (in German). WKO. 12 October 2021. Archived from the original on 6 April 2022. Retrieved 12 October 2021.
  8. ^ Davis, Clayton (21 December 2021). "Oscars Shortlists Include Beyoncé, 'Spider-Man' and Two Jonny Greenwood Scores as France's 'Titane' Is Snubbed". Variety. Retrieved 22 December 2021.
  9. ^ "Große Freiheit" (in German). Piffl Medien. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
  10. ^ "Große Freiheit" (in German). Filmladen Filmverleih. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
  11. ^ Barraclough, Leo (7 July 2021). "The Match Factory Sells Cannes Festival Title 'Great Freedom' to France's Paname, Debuts Teaser, Poster". Variety. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
  12. ^ Bradshaw, Peter (9 March 2022). "Great Freedom review – formidably intelligent gay prison drama that finds liberty inside". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
  13. ^ Jutton, Lee (2 March 2022). "GREAT FREEDOM: Love In A Hopeless Place". Film Inquiry. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
  14. ^ "Great Freedom". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 9 October 2022.
  15. ^ "Great Freedom (2022) Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 9 October 2022.
  16. ^ "Diagonale-Schauspielpreise'22". Diagonale (in German). Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  17. ^ "Diagonale-Preis Bildgestaltung'22". Diagonale (in German). Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  18. ^ "VAM-Preis für außergewöhnliche Produktionsleistungen". Diagonale (in German). Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  19. ^ "Diagonale-Preis Schnitt'22". Diagonale (in German). Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  20. ^ ""Große Freiheit" gewinnt in Cannes' Un certain regard".
  21. ^ "27th Sarajevo Film Festival Awards". Sarajevo Film Festival. Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  22. ^ "Le 50e Festival du nouveau cinéma dévoile son palmarès et se poursuit en ligne jusqu’au 31 octobre 2021". CTVM, October 18, 2021.
  23. ^ "Festival Award Winners". Chicago International Film Festival. Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  24. ^ ""Große Freiheit" am Ende der große Sieger der 59. Viennale". Plus 24 (in German). 31 October 2021. Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  25. ^ "'GREAT FREEDOM', WINNER OF THE SEVILLA 2021 EUROPEAN FILM FESTIVAL | Festival de Cine de Sevilla". Seville European Film Festival. Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  26. ^ "'GREAT FREEDOM', WINNER OF THE SEVILLA 2021 EUROPEAN FILM FESTIVAL | Festival de Cine de Sevilla". Seville European Film Festival. Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  27. ^ "'GREAT FREEDOM', WINNER OF THE SEVILLA 2021 EUROPEAN FILM FESTIVAL | Festival de Cine de Sevilla". Seville European Film Festival. Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  28. ^ Stojiljković, Marko (23 November 2021). "Great Freedom triumphs at Zagreb". cineuropa. Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  29. ^ Abbatescianni, Davide (29 November 2021). "Andreas Kleinert's Dear Thomas wins the 25th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival". cineuropa. Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  30. ^ "Europäischer Filmpreis: Erste Preise für "Große Freiheit"". Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  31. ^ "Five Films Nominated for EUFA 2021". European Film Academy. Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  32. ^ Pavido, Marina (30 June 2022). "ÖSTERREICHISCHER FILMPREIS 2022 – DIE PREISTRÄGER". Cinema Austriaco. Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  33. ^ "Grosse Freiheit • Deutscher Filmpreis". Deutscher Filmpreis. Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  34. ^ Weis, Manuel (10 September 2022). "Die Gewinnerinnen und Gewinner des Deutschen Schauspielpreises". DWDL. Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  35. ^ "LUX Audience Award – European Film Awards". European Film Academy. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
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