'Everyone Is Suffering': Crisis Plays Leading Role in Greek Films
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June Samaras
Feb 16, 2013, 11:38:08 PM2/16/13
to HELLAS-GREECE
http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/crisis-plays-leading-role-in-greek-berlinale-films-a-883466.html
'Everyone Is Suffering': Crisis Plays Leading Role in Greek Films
By Kristen Allen
Times are tough in Greece, and three films from the country that
premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival this week reflect
that difficult reality. Dark, surreal and frightening by turns, they
zoom in on a society under massive pressure.
From the outside, the Greek financial crisis is easily reduced to an
exhausting series of bailouts, austerity deadlines and protests. But
to the people who live with the fallout each day, it's an existential
threat, and one that raises fundamental questions about their identity
as Greeks.
ANZEIGE
These questions and the crisis itself play a leading role in three
Greek films that premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival
this week, all of which explore its cultural, psychological and
interpersonal effects. Though they each take a different approach to
the subject, from the bleak docufiction "To the Wolf," to the surreal
"The Eternal Return of Antonis Paraskevas," to the thriller "The
Daughter," one thing is made abundantly clear -- things are grim in
Greece.
The darkest of the three is doubtlessly "To the Wolf," ("Sto Lyko"),
which follows two real-life shepherd families in a down-and-out
village in the mountains of the western Nafpaktia region.
"Greece is finished. It's dead. Everyone is suffering. They are
fighting for a lost cause," mutters the wizened old shepherd Adam
Paxnis as the film begins. And things don't get much better from
there, in what directors Christina Koutsospyrou and Aran Hughes
describe as an "unsettling allegory of modern-day Greece."
Against the contrasting backdrops of a stormy and inhospitable
countryside and their oppressively dingy homes, the two work-worn
families, already accustomed to a meager existence, are stretched to
their limits, suffering decreased demand for their livestock and cuts
to benefits. Scenes document conversations about their debts and
whether they should spend their last bits of money on cigarettes or
beer. There's another painful moment when it becomes clear there's not
even enough money to buy flour.
From the time they began filming in 2010 to when they finished in
2012, the effects of the crisis on the two families had become "quite
extreme," says co-director Koutsospyrou. "Most of them lost weight."
The struggle to meet their basic need isn't just physical, though.
"There is a psychology behind this crisis and we were trying to
present the emotions behind it, the downward spiral," says
Koutsospyrou, who adds that there is a general mood of depression in
the country.
Nostalgia for 'Past Glory'
This "social crisis" is also part of what director Elina Psykou says
inspired her to write "The Eternal Return of Antonis Paraskevas" ("I
aionia epistrofi tou Antoni Paraskeua"), a drama that follows aging
national television hero Antonis Paraskevas as he stages his own
kidnapping to escape his debts and increase ratings for his morning
show.
Holed up in a luxury hotel that been closed, he tries his hand at
making molecular spaghetti, watches TV updates on his case and
frequently plays the DVD of his "greatest hits" from past broadcasts
-- including New Year's Eve of 2001, when Greece introduced the euro.
He also starts losing his mind.
"My focus was on an existential crisis and a lack of identity," Psykou
says. "I think it is very common these days, for example with the
people who had a lot of money and then lost their jobs, had their
salaries cut, or lost their homes. The character loses his high
ratings, and this creates a lack of identity. My country lost its
identity too."
Paraskevas's obsession with his celebrity persona reflects a Greek
fixation on "past glory" and hero worship, she says. "You see it
everywhere, not just in my character but in everyday life," she says.
As a TV presenter, her protagonist is representative of the media
apparatus that Psykou says helped establish and perpetuate the crisis
through "cultural education."
Psykou's film, though it takes a disturbing turn in the second half,
does have a bit of comic relief, at least. But even that leaves a
bitter residue. "It's a black humor," she says. "I am highlighting the
vanity of these efforts to overcome."
Desperate Measures
Such efforts can become desperate, as director Thanos Anastopoulos
shows in his thriller "The Daughter" ("I Kóri"), in which a
14-year-old girl kidnaps the 8-year-old son of her father's business
partner, who she blames for bankrupting her father's lumberyard and
forcing him to flee his debts.
The film includes images of the crisis, such as protests in the
streets of Athens, that lend to the real-life tension that many Greeks
are feeling, but Anastopoulos wanted to explore the effect this has on
young people. "Since I am a young father, my view has shifted to how
this violence and tension is affecting children and the relationship
between the generations," he says. "This next generation is marked by
the experience of violence. The situation is tough, and during tough
times people tend to make extreme choices."
The film, which deals heavily with the themes of responsibility and
betrayal, is the director's "nightmare" and a projection of his fears,
he says.
Interestingly, the directors say that they didn't initially intend for
the crisis to play such a prominent role in their films -- or even any
role at all -- as was the case with "To the Wolf." It began as an
unromantic portrait of the last generation of Greek shepherds. "But as
our work progressed, the crisis became unavoidable," co-director Aran
Hughes says. The filmmakers had planned to center it around a local
café, but after economic reforms dictated that the elderly owner would
have to keep more detailed records instead of running tabs for
customers, it shut down.
"There's a sense that this is an important time and with film you can
document this," Hughes says.
The adversity appears to be inspiring a great deal of creativity among
Greek filmmakers. "Now there is a solidarity between filmmakers and
artists in general," says Psykou. "Of course we want to tell the story
of this situation, but there is a new sense of persistence."
--
June Samaras
2020 Old Station Rd
Streetsville,Ontario
Canada L5M 2V1
Tel : 905-542-1877
E-mail : june.s...@gmail.com
'Everyone Is Suffering': Crisis Plays Leading Role in Greek Films
By Kristen Allen
Times are tough in Greece, and three films from the country that
premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival this week reflect
that difficult reality. Dark, surreal and frightening by turns, they
zoom in on a society under massive pressure.
From the outside, the Greek financial crisis is easily reduced to an
exhausting series of bailouts, austerity deadlines and protests. But
to the people who live with the fallout each day, it's an existential
threat, and one that raises fundamental questions about their identity
as Greeks.
ANZEIGE
These questions and the crisis itself play a leading role in three
Greek films that premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival
this week, all of which explore its cultural, psychological and
interpersonal effects. Though they each take a different approach to
the subject, from the bleak docufiction "To the Wolf," to the surreal
"The Eternal Return of Antonis Paraskevas," to the thriller "The
Daughter," one thing is made abundantly clear -- things are grim in
Greece.
The darkest of the three is doubtlessly "To the Wolf," ("Sto Lyko"),
which follows two real-life shepherd families in a down-and-out
village in the mountains of the western Nafpaktia region.
"Greece is finished. It's dead. Everyone is suffering. They are
fighting for a lost cause," mutters the wizened old shepherd Adam
Paxnis as the film begins. And things don't get much better from
there, in what directors Christina Koutsospyrou and Aran Hughes
describe as an "unsettling allegory of modern-day Greece."
Against the contrasting backdrops of a stormy and inhospitable
countryside and their oppressively dingy homes, the two work-worn
families, already accustomed to a meager existence, are stretched to
their limits, suffering decreased demand for their livestock and cuts
to benefits. Scenes document conversations about their debts and
whether they should spend their last bits of money on cigarettes or
beer. There's another painful moment when it becomes clear there's not
even enough money to buy flour.
From the time they began filming in 2010 to when they finished in
2012, the effects of the crisis on the two families had become "quite
extreme," says co-director Koutsospyrou. "Most of them lost weight."
The struggle to meet their basic need isn't just physical, though.
"There is a psychology behind this crisis and we were trying to
present the emotions behind it, the downward spiral," says
Koutsospyrou, who adds that there is a general mood of depression in
the country.
Nostalgia for 'Past Glory'
This "social crisis" is also part of what director Elina Psykou says
inspired her to write "The Eternal Return of Antonis Paraskevas" ("I
aionia epistrofi tou Antoni Paraskeua"), a drama that follows aging
national television hero Antonis Paraskevas as he stages his own
kidnapping to escape his debts and increase ratings for his morning
show.
Holed up in a luxury hotel that been closed, he tries his hand at
making molecular spaghetti, watches TV updates on his case and
frequently plays the DVD of his "greatest hits" from past broadcasts
-- including New Year's Eve of 2001, when Greece introduced the euro.
He also starts losing his mind.
"My focus was on an existential crisis and a lack of identity," Psykou
says. "I think it is very common these days, for example with the
people who had a lot of money and then lost their jobs, had their
salaries cut, or lost their homes. The character loses his high
ratings, and this creates a lack of identity. My country lost its
identity too."
Paraskevas's obsession with his celebrity persona reflects a Greek
fixation on "past glory" and hero worship, she says. "You see it
everywhere, not just in my character but in everyday life," she says.
As a TV presenter, her protagonist is representative of the media
apparatus that Psykou says helped establish and perpetuate the crisis
through "cultural education."
Psykou's film, though it takes a disturbing turn in the second half,
does have a bit of comic relief, at least. But even that leaves a
bitter residue. "It's a black humor," she says. "I am highlighting the
vanity of these efforts to overcome."
Desperate Measures
Such efforts can become desperate, as director Thanos Anastopoulos
shows in his thriller "The Daughter" ("I Kóri"), in which a
14-year-old girl kidnaps the 8-year-old son of her father's business
partner, who she blames for bankrupting her father's lumberyard and
forcing him to flee his debts.
The film includes images of the crisis, such as protests in the
streets of Athens, that lend to the real-life tension that many Greeks
are feeling, but Anastopoulos wanted to explore the effect this has on
young people. "Since I am a young father, my view has shifted to how
this violence and tension is affecting children and the relationship
between the generations," he says. "This next generation is marked by
the experience of violence. The situation is tough, and during tough
times people tend to make extreme choices."
The film, which deals heavily with the themes of responsibility and
betrayal, is the director's "nightmare" and a projection of his fears,
he says.
Interestingly, the directors say that they didn't initially intend for
the crisis to play such a prominent role in their films -- or even any
role at all -- as was the case with "To the Wolf." It began as an
unromantic portrait of the last generation of Greek shepherds. "But as
our work progressed, the crisis became unavoidable," co-director Aran
Hughes says. The filmmakers had planned to center it around a local
café, but after economic reforms dictated that the elderly owner would
have to keep more detailed records instead of running tabs for
customers, it shut down.
"There's a sense that this is an important time and with film you can
document this," Hughes says.
The adversity appears to be inspiring a great deal of creativity among
Greek filmmakers. "Now there is a solidarity between filmmakers and
artists in general," says Psykou. "Of course we want to tell the story
of this situation, but there is a new sense of persistence."
--
June Samaras
2020 Old Station Rd
Streetsville,Ontario
Canada L5M 2V1
Tel : 905-542-1877
E-mail : june.s...@gmail.com
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