Seltsimees laps (2018)
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Directors
Cast
Tambet Tuisk, Helena Maria Reisner, Yuliya Aug, Juhan Ulfsak, Maria Avdjuško, Argo Aadli
When her mother is taken away by Soviet security agents, a six-year-old girl believes her own behavior may determine whether her mother returns.
The story
In 1950 Estonia, six-year-old Leelo lives with her parents: her father, Felix, is a former athlete and physical-education teacher, and her mother, Helmes, is a school principal. One day, Soviet state security employees arrest Helmes. Before being taken away, she tells Leelo to behave well and promises to return. Unable to understand her mother’s disappearance, Leelo comes to believe that her behavior may determine whether she comes back. As she tries to make sense of the world around her, familiar ideas of good and evil become uncertain amid Soviet symbols and propaganda, talk of “enemies of the people,” and adults’ fear of repression.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
The story begins in 1950. Six-year-old Leelo lives with her parents in Estonia. Her father, Felix, is a former athlete and a physical education teacher; her mother, Helmes, is a school principal. One day, employees of the Soviet state security agencies arrest Leelo’s mother. Before they take her away, she asks her daughter to behave well and promises to return. Not understanding why her mother has disappeared, Leelo begins to believe that her return depends on how she behaves. The girl tries to make sense of the world around her, where familiar ideas of good and evil take on a new meaning. She encounters Soviet symbols and propaganda, talk of “enemies of the people,” and adults’ fear of repression. The film depicts the Stalinist period primarily from a child’s point of view.
Genres
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