Fred does not approve of this world. Why should he live here, driven by the same inexorable power that forces a blade of grass through the concrete? He loses his job at a newspaper because his review of Terrence Malick’s Tree of Life is peppered with monosyllabic expletives. Since the editor in chief is quite furious, he has to leave the office before he is able to retrieve his first novel from the photocopier. Back at home, his girlfriend Susanna reveals she’s pregnant. His fear of new responsibilities drives him into a deep crisis, and a dubious offer from the editor helps Fred realize that working as a writer would mean selling his soul. He thus decides to try manual labour. As a forklift driver, he slaloms his truck back and forth, artfully stacking containers into towers that grow as tall as a house, all the while filled with increasing despair at the meaninglessness of even the smallest gestures in this new world. Veiko Õunpuu’s third feature film was shot on 16 mm, with its riveting soundtrack recorded from vinyl, and is full of the same tremendous longing for freedom and independence in the here and now as the piercing, light-blue eyes of its hero. (Verena von Stackelberg)
Production: Homeless Bob Production, Tallinn
Screenplay: Veiko Õunpuu, Robert Kurvitz
Camera: Mart Taniel
Cast: Lauri Lagle, Jaanika Arum, Laura Peterson, Peeter Volkonski
Format: DCP Cinemascope, Colour
Running time: 104 min
Language: Estonian
Photo: © Homeless Bob Production
Free Range – Ballaad maailma heakskiitmisest
Free Range
Veiko Õunpuu
Estonia 2013
