Double Freedom

Twenty-five years after his debut, La Libertad (NYFF39), Argentinean director Lisandro Alonso returns to and expands upon that remarkable first feature with an unexpected sequel of sorts. Double Freedom is a contemplative, emotionally gratifying extrapolation of Alonso’s recurring themes, again following charismatic everyman Misael (Misael Saavedra), a taciturn woodcutter and man of the land who lives in Argentina’s lowland pampas region. Alonso closely observes Misael’s routine with loving attention and care, becalmed long takes emphasizing the beauty and exertion of his labor. Yet Alonso has a curveball for Misael and for us: his mentally unstable sister (Catalina Saavedra, star of the beloved dark comedy The Maid) has been released from a care facility that has lost its government funding, and he must take her in. In enhancing the split between documentary and fiction—and between nonprofessional performer and actor—Alonso has created a drama about the limits of personal freedom that feels both elegantly crafted and weighted by lived experience.