Synopsis
In the Western world, the late 1960s is an era of open minds, sexual freedom, anti-war sentiments, civil rights urgency and exploding creative spirit. Pockets of freedom emerge behind the Iron Curtain, too. In 1968, the short-lived Prague Spring brings a gulp of fresh air to Czechoslovakia, with people attempting to exert control over their lives and reform the Communist system. In the Soviet Union, the free-spirited and colourfully-clad flower children from various Soviet republics come to Riga to listen to Western music and escape the drabness imposed by the regime led by morose men in ill-fitting suits.
Inna, a young transgender person in Soviet Russia, can no longer suppress the inner imperative to free themselves from the foreign body in which they feel imprisoned, and on their quest for freedom, they set off for Riga. A famous and ambitious Latvian surgeon with extensive connections within the Soviet elite, after reading Inna's desperate letter addressed to him, takes on the unprecedented series of operations to change their gender and help "correct nature’s mistake," thereby creating Innokenty in place of Inna.
The film, using unique archive footage and creative reenactments, follows the stages of Inna's transformation – their journey to Riga, the surgeon's doubts and his sources of inspiration, the sexually-charged “tests” of Inna’s femininity, preparation for the series of operations, and the operations unfolding.
The film's narrator is Innokenty, who has since reached old age and, feeling the end of their life approaching, turns to their "creator" in another letter, seeking support in the final transformations of their life. They find themselves back where they started – a regime that does not recognize an individual’s freedom to be themselves. The bond between Innokenty and the surgeon has a lasting pull, hence the need for a final letter. This bond has survived changes in government, family and society, and, ultimately, the surgeon’s death.
Inna, a young transgender person in Soviet Russia, can no longer suppress the inner imperative to free themselves from the foreign body in which they feel imprisoned, and on their quest for freedom, they set off for Riga. A famous and ambitious Latvian surgeon with extensive connections within the Soviet elite, after reading Inna's desperate letter addressed to him, takes on the unprecedented series of operations to change their gender and help "correct nature’s mistake," thereby creating Innokenty in place of Inna.
The film, using unique archive footage and creative reenactments, follows the stages of Inna's transformation – their journey to Riga, the surgeon's doubts and his sources of inspiration, the sexually-charged “tests” of Inna’s femininity, preparation for the series of operations, and the operations unfolding.
The film's narrator is Innokenty, who has since reached old age and, feeling the end of their life approaching, turns to their "creator" in another letter, seeking support in the final transformations of their life. They find themselves back where they started – a regime that does not recognize an individual’s freedom to be themselves. The bond between Innokenty and the surgeon has a lasting pull, hence the need for a final letter. This bond has survived changes in government, family and society, and, ultimately, the surgeon’s death.
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