“It’s not a punishment to remember someone you love. The punishment is to forget”
A bittersweet love story set against the tribulations of a 1922 Atlantic crossing of 700 proxy brides, aboard the SS King Alexander, on their way to America. Niki, a seamstress from Samothrace, resigns herself to saving the family honour by marrying a Chicago tailor her sister previously rejected. On the journey, she meets Norman, an American war photographer disheartened by a career and a marriage in tatters. Brides will touch its audience with an unforgettable story of a doomed love affair between star crossed lovers. It follows a journey from east to west, at the same time exploring the inner journey of the people who battle the waves of agony, doubt, courage, resignation, and hope.
Director: Pantelis Voulgaris | Rating: PG | 2004 | Drama |122 minutes | Greek, English, Russian dialogue with English subtitles
Dust Η Σκόνη που πέφτει
I Skoni pou pefti
An unexpected documentary image, which he believes to be that of his father, sends Chronis out of his writer’s block and into a search to uncover the truth about his father’s death. Did he die in battle, as was officially declared? Or did he defect from the nationalist forces to join the leftist guerrillas, as his uncle claimed? His search for the truth becomes an obsession threatening to split his family. The blind trail on which he embarks leads him through Greece, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic. Talking to anyone who can help him with his quest, aspects of his own identity begin to unfold.
Director: Tasos Psarras | Rating: R 18+ | 2004 | Drama |98 minutes | Greek dialogue with English subtitles
Hostage * Όμηρος
Omiros
“One must live with honour, like a man… or die with honour. Yes, there’s the rub.” Sophocles
One morning, a young man boards an inter-city bus on its daily route to Thessaloniki, in northern Greece. He hijacks the bus at gunpoint and takes seven of the passengers hostage. In his left hand he holds a grenade. In the right, a Kalashnikov. This is the story of 25-year-old Albanian immigrant Elion Senia. While his demands include a ransom of half-a-million euros and safe passage to his homeland, his basic cry is simple: “I want my honour”. As events unfold, they are broadcast live on national television. For the next twenty hours, a wild, and at times bleakly comic chase, winds its way through northern Greece. The bus leads a convoy of police cars, television crews, desperate relatives, and bystanders….all the while heading towards the Albanian border….
Director: Constantine Giannaris| Rating: R 18+ | 2004 | Drama |102 minutes | Greek with Albanian dialogue with English subtitles
*Adult themes, strong language, nudity, explicit sex scenes, drug references
Like Chef Like God Είναι ο Θεός Μάγειρας
Ine o Theos Mayiras
“Lately, things haven’t been going so well…”
Thodorakis keeps changing jobs and women, looking for something worth devoting himself to. Despite the affections of an adoring aunt and the spiritual guidance of Agios Fanourios, his rather lackadaisical attitude only changes when he accidentally discovers his talent for cooking. He soon becomes a chef and joins a secret society of cooks. Little by little he becomes engrossed in the quest to create the perfect dish and by doing so prove himself superior to his sceptical peers. However, the infinite choices life dishes up lead him down a self-destructive path. Just before reaching the ultimate impasse, a personal tragedy forces him to put his life into perspective.
Director: Stergios Niziris| Rating: R 18+ | 2004 | Comedy |96 minutes | Greek dialogue with English subtitles
The Counterfeit Coin Η Κάλπικη Λίρα
I Kalpiki lira
The 50th anniversary of the release of one of the most significant films in Greek cinema.
The journey of a counterfeit gold coin and the people who encounter it.
Four stories: humorous, romantic, dramatic. Initially, the coin is made by an honest engraver (Vasilis Logothetidis), who is seduced by the charms of a young widow (Ilia Livikou). The coin then passes into the hands of a beggar (Mimis Fotopoulos) and a prostitute (Sperantza Vrana), moving on to the orphaned daughter of a poor painter and their miserly landlord (Orestis Makris) and finally, a newly-married couple (Elli Lambeti and Dimitris Horn) struggling to make ends meet. A clever and effective screenplay, superb directing and exceptional performances make for an appealing and unforgettable film.
Four stories in a film which marks the height of Giorgos Tzavellas’ success. A prestigious film featuring most of the stars of that era, this gem received accolades from audiences in Greece and abroad.
Director: Giorgos Tzavellas| Rating: R 18+ | 1955 | Comedy / Drama | 127 minutes | Greek dialogue with English subtitles
America America Αμέρικα Αμέρικα
America America
"Elia Kazan gives a penetrating, thorough and profoundly affecting account of the hardships endured and surmounted at the turn of the century by a young Greek lad in attempting to fulfill his cherished dream --- getting to America…” - Variety
America America portrays the odyssey from Asia Minor to America of an innocent young man escaping the horrors of the times. Raised in an Anatolian village, Stavros is sent to Constantinople with the family’s jewels and prayers, however he harbours a dream - to live in America. In Constantinople he is exposed to the harsher realities of life - unemployment, homelessness, muggings, murder and prostitutes. Stavros escapes by swindling a ticket to America and assuming the identity of an Armenian shoe shine boy. Armed with a new name and a job he settles in New York and succeeds in bringing his family to the land of hope and opportunity.
Director: Elia Kazan| Rating: R 18+ | 1963 | Drama | 174 minutes | English
Trilogy: The Weeping Meadow Τριλογία:Το Λειβάδι που Δακρύζει
Trilogia: To Livadi Pou Dakrizi
Trilogy: The Weeping Meadow is Theo Angelopoulos’ first feature since Eternity and a Day which won the Palme d’Or at Cannes in 1998.
Trilogy: The Weeping Meadow is a visually poetic film, rich in powerful imagery. It sees a bitter personal tragedy unfold against the major events of early twentieth century Greece. Russian-born Eleni is adopted by a Greek family which flees to Greece during the period of the Russian revolution. She elopes with Alexis, the son of her much older fiancé Spyros. The two arrive in Thessaloniki, where Alexis continues his career as a musician whilst Eleni raises their two sons. Some years later, Alexis leaves for America seeking a better life for his family, however Eleni cannot join him. She is stranded in Greece to be exposed to the ravages of World War II, the horrors of the civil war and a fate unknown.
Director: Theo Angelopoulos | Rating: R 18+ | 2004 | Drama/Romance | 162 minutes | Greek dialogue with English subtitles
