Advocaatje leef je nog?

The advocate from the title is Paul Bovens, a renowned criminal lawyer who used to defend suspects of the most serious category of crimes. In May 2001, he survived a bomb attack on his office. The culprit has as yet not been found; a few months later, Bovens decided to close his office. In this stylised portrait - using a smoothly gliding camera, atmospheric music and a mix of colour and black-and-white - the former lawyer looks back on his career. `Sometimes I come across rather merciless', he admits. `I'm no hail-fellow well met.' Berkvens combines interviews and images of Bovens' private life with excerpts from news programmes. Bovens dons his bands and gown once more for a visit to the (empty) courtroom and also dresses up for other occasions, visiting his parents, celebrating carnival. Meanwhile, he talks about compassion, loneliness and the reactions from his surroundings.