Great Freedom 2022

In 1968, Hans Hoffmann is imprisoned for cottaging. His cellmate is Biktor Bix, who was sentenced to 20 years for a murder. During yard time, Hans notices a young gay man named Leo who used to be his cottaging partner. Hans ends up in solitary confinement and reminisces about his life.

In 1945, Hans was a concentration camp inmate due to his sexual orientation. After the liberation of the camp by the Allied forces, he was transferred into the same prison he went into in 1968, because homosexuality remains illegal. He meets Viktor, who is aggressive towards Hans at first, but then he notices that Hans has a number tattoo on his arm, and offers to cover it up with another picture. Hans agrees.

In 1957, Hans is imprisoned again for secretly cohabiting with his boyfriend Oskar, who is put into the same prison. Oscar is burdened by his inability to live his true life and commits suicide. Viktor relays the news to Hans during yard time, and Hans bursts out in tears. Viktor hugs him in an attempt to help, and they both are thrown into solitary confinement.

When Hans enters the prison in 1968, he sees that Viktor has significantly deteriorated and started using intravenous drugs. Leo informs Hans that he told the police that Hans forced him to commit homosexual acts; Hans signs a confession to that, and Leo is let go. Hans offers Viktor to help him go cold turkey. Viktor bribes a guard, and Hans is transferred into Viktor’s cell. Viktor greatly suffers from withdrawal and tries to secretly inject himself with drugs during the night, but Hans wakes up and notices that, then flushes the drugs down the toilet and hugs Viktor as he tries to break away. In the morning, they wake up in the same bed.

Next year, Hans notices an issue of Der Spiegel with a large story about the partial repeal of Paragraph 175 at the cover: homosexual acts are now decriminalised. Despondent Hans tells Viktor that he is getting released and will not be back.

After release, Hans immediately goes to the basement of a gay bar and sees many men openly having sex with each other. Hans exits the bar, picks a brick and smashes the window of a jewellery shop, takes several items and puts them into his pockets, then sits down at the kerb, waiting for the police to arrive.