Set Me Free

In 1963, Hanna begins to navigate puberty while living on a rural Quebec farm with her grandparents and uncle. She experiences her first period and interrupts a family dinner when her father calls, unsettling her grandmother. The moment heightens her discomfort with her growing body and prompts a longing to change her life by returning to Montreal.

Hanna chooses to leave the countryside and move to Montreal to live with her parents in a small, financially strained apartment. The rent is often overdue and sometimes paid with money pawed from household items. This move marks a sharper departure from the stability she formerly knew.

Her father is an aspiring poet and Holocaust survivor who exerts a strong, sometimes abusive grip on the family. He can be harsh, yet he also shows tenderness when connecting with Hanna by sharing memories and his poetry. His presence shapes Hanna's sense of identity and eroding trust.

Hanna's mother is depressive and works long hours at a sewing factory while trying to keep up with her husband's demands. She spends time at home typing his poems, creating a tense, emotionally distant atmosphere. The couple's fragility underscores Hanna's isolation.

Hanna sneaks into a theater to watch Jean-Luc Godard's Vivre Sa Vie and becomes entranced by Nana's independent stance. She begins to imitate Karina's poses and attitudes, drawing inspiration from the film's philosophy of personal responsibility. This experience amplifies her fascination with image and self-definition.

On her first day at a new school, Hanna declares that her parents are not married and that she does not identify as Jewish or Catholic. A classmate taunts her with anti-Semitic slurs, but a teacher comes to her defense and offers support. The encounter pushes Hanna toward embracing her own view of life.

The teacher who resembles Karina admires Hanna's independence but cautions her to develop her own philosophy rather than rely on a film star as a role model. Hanna absorbs this counsel while continuing to shape her personal identity. The dynamic highlights a push toward autonomy.

Hanna continues to adopt Karina-inspired poses and clothing from Godard's film as she navigates her evolving sexuality. The boundary between admiration and imitation blurs as she experiments with how she presents herself to the world.

Hanna attends a dance with Laura, and the two share a kiss, marking a step into intimate experimentation. Later, she introduces Laura to her brother Paul, and the three of them spend time together while they try to understand their feelings.

A quarrel with her husband triggers a suicide attempt by Hanna's mother. Hanna visits the hospital and is distressed to find her sedated mother unresponsive to her pleas for connection. The moment deepens Hanna's sense of parental fragility.

While her father sends Hanna for bread, the baker takes her to the back kitchen and gropes her, then gives bread and money. The incident exposes a predatory threat and compounds Hanna's sense of vulnerability.

After another dispute with her father, Hanna and Paul leave the apartment and wander through the city. She drifts into the red-light district, befriends a stray dog, and begins to imitate a prostitute's persona she admires on screen. A man eventually takes her to a cheap hotel room.

When the man tries to force himself on her, Hanna flees and collapses on her teacher's doorstep. The next morning, she and the dog are found on the teacher's steps, signifying a moment of vulnerability and rescue.

Hanna returns to the family apartment and is greeted by her father with a prepared dinner, signaling a fragile reconciliation. She goes back to school and is loaned a small movie camera by her teacher, hinting at a future creative outlet. The ending shows shots from the camera of Hanna's mother as they head to the grandparents' house for the summer.