Zeta, Floretta, Niki

Love comes as a reaction to a world grown intractable in “Evdokia,” directed by Alexis Damianos. Average, everyday men and women are trapped in “Order” (original title: “Parangelia!”) directed by Pavlos Tasios. An individual is subjected to the violence of money, family, and social class in “The Price of Love” by Tonia Marketaki. The films are to be introduced by the film critic Alexandros Papageorgiou, and the journalist and screenwriter Maria Louka.

Program

17:00 | “The Price of Love” by Tonia Marketaki | 1984 | 110´ | 35MM

20:00 | “Evdokia” by Alexis Damianos | 1971 | 105´ | DCP | In Greek with English subtitles

23.00 | “Order” by Pavlos Tasios | 1980 | 90´ | 35MM | In Greek without subtitles

Introduced by Alexandros Papageorgiou and Maria Louka

“The Price of Love” by Tonia Marketaki

In the Greek island of Corfu, at the turn of the 20th century, a disgraced bourgeois is determined to marry the eldest daughter of a female worker, so as to get hold of her frugal savings. After he decides to “abduct” the girl (with her own consent), time comes for him to discuss the dowry with her mother. A film – one of the Tonia Marketaki’s masterpieces – that comes to direct confrontation with morals, manners, and choices: Money, family and social classes keep switching, releasing their hollow, yet perfectly articulate violence against one single person, while Annie Loulou presents Greek cinema with one of the most graceful performances in its history.

Awards/Distinctions

Best Film, Best Screenplay, Best Leading Actress, Best Cinematography, Best Music, Costumes & Make-Up (Greek State Film Awards – Hellenic Ministry of Culture, Thessaloniki Film Festival 1984), First Prize at the Mediterranean Culture Festival (France 1984)

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Still from the “The Price of Love” by Tonia Marketaki (1984)

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Still from the “The Price of Love” by Tonia Marketaki (1984)

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Still from the “The Price of Love” by Tonia Marketaki (1984)

Cast: Annie Loulou, Toula Stathopoulou, Stratis Tsopanelis, Kostas Arzoglou

“Evdokia” by Alexis Damianos

A sergeant meets a hooker, Evdokia, and they end up getting married. Bound by a common destiny, they now have to confront a society that wants to restrain and, ultimately, crush them. The two lovers live on the fringes of a familiar yet surreal universe, full of destitute neighborhoods and harsh landscapes, full of nothingness. Alexis Damianos delivers a wildly free, deeply political film, a triumph of frenzied passion and towering rage; a reaction against a world that refuses to move forward.

Awards/Distinctions

Best Actress Award (Thessaloniki Film Festival 1971), Ciné-Clubs Award (France, 1971), ‘Golden Apollo’ Award by the Greek Film Critics Association

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Still from the “Evdokia” by Alexis Damianos (1971)

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Still from the “Evdokia” by Alexis Damianos (1971)

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Still from the “Evdokia” by Alexis Damianos (1971)

Cast: Maria Vassiliou, Yorgos Koutouzis, Koula Agagiotou, Christos Zorbas, Eleni Roda (Evdokia’s voice)

“Order” by Pavlos Tasios

The film is based on the real story of Nikos Koemtzis, in the early 70s. Three friends with their wives are out together on a Greek popular music tavern. Suddenly, a quarrel breaks after a misunderstanding; someone had ‘ordered’ a song (‘parangelia’ in Greek) to the stage musicians and, according to the custom of the time, only he was entitled to dance to that song. When policemen are involved, the quarrel turns into a bloody incident. The real story became a media and public sensation at the time, as next-door people were found trapped in the multiple chains of an unexpected intense situation.

Awards/Distinctions: 2nd Best Film, Best Actor, Music, Editing & Sound Recording Awards (Thessaloniki Film Festival 1980)