Vogelfrei

This film by four Latvian directors can be seen as a generation film bringing a fresh breeze to the local film industry. All the directors have studied abroad and this is their first feature film, on which they worked for four years. The film had many reactions and was considered by the Latvian press to be a new beginning after a long period of stagnation.
Vogelfrei consists of four novellas in which nature and its seasons, as well as a man and the four parts of his life play a part: childhood, adolescence, maturity and old age. The children are free as birds in the first episode, but man's desire for freedom is felt throughout all the stages of his life. All the four stages are presented by different episodes in the life of one man. Their contemplative character lets the main protagonist as well the audience think about the meaning of a human life. The main character, who symbolizes the connecting element of the four parts, is Teodors and in each episode he is played by a different actor. Only a few characters are played by professional actors. Each of the four stories retains its sovereignty and the four are smoothly interwoven together. (LC)