Deathtrap

A young man has lost his will to live. He feels trapped, like a mouse in a cage endlessly spinning his wheel. His prison is an internal one. Outdoors, a fox slips through the thickets, symbol of a freedom which eludes the young man. Unable to stand his own reflection in the mirror, he decides to end his life. He writes a suicide note, then slides it into a bag with things he is leaving to those close to him. He makes a final visit to his parents, giving them his caged mouse. He gives a girlfriend a sketch-book, in which he has drawn himself in the process of disappearing. A musician friend inherits his harmonica, another a house plant. One by one, the young man closes all the doors to his heart before then plunging into the sea. With his body lying inert at the bottom of the sea, his spirit moves towards the great beyond only to discover that his internal prison has followed him into death. Realizing that suicide is a trap, he decides to return to life to reopen the doors that formed this prison. His body resurfaces... Parents and friends are there to grab the hand he stretches out of the water.

Young Man, Fox, Parents, Parents, Friends

A film without words for 12- to 17-year-olds.

Giffoni Film Festival Award, for the Rights from the Heart Series (3 parts) for all-round constant creative achievement and artistic integrity in the cinema, Film Festival, Giffoni, Italy, 1997