For harde livet

In his films Norwegian documentary filmmaker Sigve Endresen shows how difficult it is for people with an antisocial way of life to hold their own in 'normal' society, as soon as they fall outside the safe rules of their subculture. In Store gutter gråter ikke Endresen points his camera at a number of hardened criminals following a rehabilitation programme. In For harde livet he does the same thing with a group of young drug addicts. He depicts their lives in the streets of Oslo and under the severe prison regime, up until the moment when they try to regain a little sense of responsibility in the Norwegian mountains, as part of the programme. The film demonstrates that an addict who has decided to kick the habit still has to remove a lot of obstacles before being able to function again in civilian society. By showing that, this award-winning film tries to put aside prejudices and romantic ideas about junkies. (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam)