Screened
Berlin International Film Festival
BERLIN -- Greek master Theo Angelopoulos' new film is the first in an intended trilogy, which he hopes will stand as the summation of all his work. It's a typically poetic film, rich in powerful imagery, which sees a bitter personal tragedy unfold against the major events of 20th century Greece. Although the director doesn't mine any new ground here, either in terms of style or content, it's still a pleasure to sit through nearly three hours of perfectly controlled, visually evocative filmmaking.
"Trilogy: The Weeping Meadow" unspooled in competition at Berlin, where it was a critical favorite. More festival appearances should be assured, while its weighty themes and name director could lead to art house distribution in Europe and the States. Although the film is 170 minutes long, this probably won't hamper its performance at the boxoffice as viewers familiar with Angelopoulos' work will know what to expect.
"Trilogy" features an interesting narrative split between big history and personal drama. It centers on Eleni (Alexandra Aidini), a Greek immigrant from Russia who elopes with the unnamed Young Man (Nikos Poursanidis) -- the son of her much older fiance Spyros (Vassilis Kolovos). The two arrive in Thessaloniki, where he continues his career as a musician and she brings up their two sons. The Young Man then departs to America in search of a better life for his family. But Eleni cannot join him, and she is left in Greece to suffer the ravages of World War II and the Greek Civil War.
Eleni's story is submerged in the film's historical events -- Angelopoulos purposely avoids allowing viewers to build up a strong identification with its main character. Whereas a more conventional historical drama would have used Eleni's story as the engine of the plot, she's just one element of the director's vast historical tableau. Sometimes he focuses on her, sometimes he focuses on events elsewhere. This approach succeeds in depicting the broad sweep of events in 20th century Greece but occasionally leaves the film lacking an identifiable core.
Acting is similarly intriguing, mixing Angelopoulos' usual stylization with techniques drawn from the classical Greek stage. Eleni's final tragic pose is something that's not usually seen onscreen, a deep expression of pathos which has more in common with classical theater than contemporary acting. The director's desire to merge ancient and modern styles -- and themes -- also surfaces in an innovative scene in which the father delivers a soliloquy to refugees sheltering in an abandoned theater.
Angelopoulos' imagery will hold no surprises for his devotees, and it's none the worse for that. His crowd formations are meticulously composed, and a standout scene uses a funereal procession of boats to express the grief of his characters -- something which, again, resonates fully with the Greek classics. Sometimes, however, his imagery runs the risk of appearing obscure. A scene of dead sheep strung up on a tree left many confused, though specialists in Greek literature may know what he's getting at.
Funding for the next two installments of the trilogy is reportedly in place, though scripts have yet to be finalized.
TRILOGY: THE WEEPING MEADOW
Theo Angelopoulos, Greek Film Center, Hellenic Broadcasting Corp., Attica Art Prods., BAC Films, Intermedia, Arte Francais
Credits:
Director: Theo Angelopoulos
Screenwriters: Theo Angelopoulos, Tonino Guerra, Petros Markaris, Giorgio Silvagni
Producer: Phoebe Economopoulos
Director of photography: Andreas Sinanos
Production designers: Giorgos Patsas, Kostas Dimitriades: Music: Eleni Karaindrou
Costume designer: Ioulia Stavridou
Editor: Giorgos Triantafyllou
Cast:
Eleni: Alexandra Aidini: The Young Man: Nikos Poursanidis
Nikos: Giorgos Armenis
Spyros:Vassilis Kolovos
Running time -- 170 minutes
No MPAA rating...
Berlin International Film Festival
BERLIN -- Greek master Theo Angelopoulos' new film is the first in an intended trilogy, which he hopes will stand as the summation of all his work. It's a typically poetic film, rich in powerful imagery, which sees a bitter personal tragedy unfold against the major events of 20th century Greece. Although the director doesn't mine any new ground here, either in terms of style or content, it's still a pleasure to sit through nearly three hours of perfectly controlled, visually evocative filmmaking.
"Trilogy: The Weeping Meadow" unspooled in competition at Berlin, where it was a critical favorite. More festival appearances should be assured, while its weighty themes and name director could lead to art house distribution in Europe and the States. Although the film is 170 minutes long, this probably won't hamper its performance at the boxoffice as viewers familiar with Angelopoulos' work will know what to expect.
"Trilogy" features an interesting narrative split between big history and personal drama. It centers on Eleni (Alexandra Aidini), a Greek immigrant from Russia who elopes with the unnamed Young Man (Nikos Poursanidis) -- the son of her much older fiance Spyros (Vassilis Kolovos). The two arrive in Thessaloniki, where he continues his career as a musician and she brings up their two sons. The Young Man then departs to America in search of a better life for his family. But Eleni cannot join him, and she is left in Greece to suffer the ravages of World War II and the Greek Civil War.
Eleni's story is submerged in the film's historical events -- Angelopoulos purposely avoids allowing viewers to build up a strong identification with its main character. Whereas a more conventional historical drama would have used Eleni's story as the engine of the plot, she's just one element of the director's vast historical tableau. Sometimes he focuses on her, sometimes he focuses on events elsewhere. This approach succeeds in depicting the broad sweep of events in 20th century Greece but occasionally leaves the film lacking an identifiable core.
Acting is similarly intriguing, mixing Angelopoulos' usual stylization with techniques drawn from the classical Greek stage. Eleni's final tragic pose is something that's not usually seen onscreen, a deep expression of pathos which has more in common with classical theater than contemporary acting. The director's desire to merge ancient and modern styles -- and themes -- also surfaces in an innovative scene in which the father delivers a soliloquy to refugees sheltering in an abandoned theater.
Angelopoulos' imagery will hold no surprises for his devotees, and it's none the worse for that. His crowd formations are meticulously composed, and a standout scene uses a funereal procession of boats to express the grief of his characters -- something which, again, resonates fully with the Greek classics. Sometimes, however, his imagery runs the risk of appearing obscure. A scene of dead sheep strung up on a tree left many confused, though specialists in Greek literature may know what he's getting at.
Funding for the next two installments of the trilogy is reportedly in place, though scripts have yet to be finalized.
TRILOGY: THE WEEPING MEADOW
Theo Angelopoulos, Greek Film Center, Hellenic Broadcasting Corp., Attica Art Prods., BAC Films, Intermedia, Arte Francais
Credits:
Director: Theo Angelopoulos
Screenwriters: Theo Angelopoulos, Tonino Guerra, Petros Markaris, Giorgio Silvagni
Producer: Phoebe Economopoulos
Director of photography: Andreas Sinanos
Production designers: Giorgos Patsas, Kostas Dimitriades: Music: Eleni Karaindrou
Costume designer: Ioulia Stavridou
Editor: Giorgos Triantafyllou
Cast:
Eleni: Alexandra Aidini: The Young Man: Nikos Poursanidis
Nikos: Giorgos Armenis
Spyros:Vassilis Kolovos
Running time -- 170 minutes
No MPAA rating...
Screened
Berlin International Film Festival
BERLIN -- Greek master Theo Angelopoulos' new film is the first in an intended trilogy, which he hopes will stand as the summation of all his work. It's a typically poetic film, rich in powerful imagery, which sees a bitter personal tragedy unfold against the major events of 20th century Greece. Although the director doesn't mine any new ground here, either in terms of style or content, it's still a pleasure to sit through nearly three hours of perfectly controlled, visually evocative filmmaking.
"Trilogy: The Weeping Meadow" unspooled in competition at Berlin, where it was a critical favorite. More festival appearances should be assured, while its weighty themes and name director could lead to art house distribution in Europe and the States. Although the film is 170 minutes long, this probably won't hamper its performance at the boxoffice as viewers familiar with Angelopoulos' work will know what to expect.
"Trilogy" features an interesting narrative split between big history and personal drama. It centers on Eleni (Alexandra Aidini), a Greek immigrant from Russia who elopes with the unnamed Young Man (Nikos Poursanidis) -- the son of her much older fiance Spyros (Vassilis Kolovos). The two arrive in Thessaloniki, where he continues his career as a musician and she brings up their two sons. The Young Man then departs to America in search of a better life for his family. But Eleni cannot join him, and she is left in Greece to suffer the ravages of World War II and the Greek Civil War.
Eleni's story is submerged in the film's historical events -- Angelopoulos purposely avoids allowing viewers to build up a strong identification with its main character. Whereas a more conventional historical drama would have used Eleni's story as the engine of the plot, she's just one element of the director's vast historical tableau. Sometimes he focuses on her, sometimes he focuses on events elsewhere. This approach succeeds in depicting the broad sweep of events in 20th century Greece but occasionally leaves the film lacking an identifiable core.
Acting is similarly intriguing, mixing Angelopoulos' usual stylization with techniques drawn from the classical Greek stage. Eleni's final tragic pose is something that's not usually seen onscreen, a deep expression of pathos which has more in common with classical theater than contemporary acting. The director's desire to merge ancient and modern styles -- and themes -- also surfaces in an innovative scene in which the father delivers a soliloquy to refugees sheltering in an abandoned theater.
Angelopoulos' imagery will hold no surprises for his devotees, and it's none the worse for that. His crowd formations are meticulously composed, and a standout scene uses a funereal procession of boats to express the grief of his characters -- something which, again, resonates fully with the Greek classics. Sometimes, however, his imagery runs the risk of appearing obscure. A scene of dead sheep strung up on a tree left many confused, though specialists in Greek literature may know what he's getting at.
Funding for the next two installments of the trilogy is reportedly in place, though scripts have yet to be finalized.
TRILOGY: THE WEEPING MEADOW
Theo Angelopoulos, Greek Film Center, Hellenic Broadcasting Corp., Attica Art Prods., BAC Films, Intermedia, Arte Francais
Credits:
Director: Theo Angelopoulos
Screenwriters: Theo Angelopoulos, Tonino Guerra, Petros Markaris, Giorgio Silvagni
Producer: Phoebe Economopoulos
Director of photography: Andreas Sinanos
Production designers: Giorgos Patsas, Kostas Dimitriades: Music: Eleni Karaindrou
Costume designer: Ioulia Stavridou
Editor: Giorgos Triantafyllou
Cast:
Eleni: Alexandra Aidini: The Young Man: Nikos Poursanidis
Nikos: Giorgos Armenis
Spyros:Vassilis Kolovos
Running time -- 170 minutes
No MPAA rating...
Berlin International Film Festival
BERLIN -- Greek master Theo Angelopoulos' new film is the first in an intended trilogy, which he hopes will stand as the summation of all his work. It's a typically poetic film, rich in powerful imagery, which sees a bitter personal tragedy unfold against the major events of 20th century Greece. Although the director doesn't mine any new ground here, either in terms of style or content, it's still a pleasure to sit through nearly three hours of perfectly controlled, visually evocative filmmaking.
"Trilogy: The Weeping Meadow" unspooled in competition at Berlin, where it was a critical favorite. More festival appearances should be assured, while its weighty themes and name director could lead to art house distribution in Europe and the States. Although the film is 170 minutes long, this probably won't hamper its performance at the boxoffice as viewers familiar with Angelopoulos' work will know what to expect.
"Trilogy" features an interesting narrative split between big history and personal drama. It centers on Eleni (Alexandra Aidini), a Greek immigrant from Russia who elopes with the unnamed Young Man (Nikos Poursanidis) -- the son of her much older fiance Spyros (Vassilis Kolovos). The two arrive in Thessaloniki, where he continues his career as a musician and she brings up their two sons. The Young Man then departs to America in search of a better life for his family. But Eleni cannot join him, and she is left in Greece to suffer the ravages of World War II and the Greek Civil War.
Eleni's story is submerged in the film's historical events -- Angelopoulos purposely avoids allowing viewers to build up a strong identification with its main character. Whereas a more conventional historical drama would have used Eleni's story as the engine of the plot, she's just one element of the director's vast historical tableau. Sometimes he focuses on her, sometimes he focuses on events elsewhere. This approach succeeds in depicting the broad sweep of events in 20th century Greece but occasionally leaves the film lacking an identifiable core.
Acting is similarly intriguing, mixing Angelopoulos' usual stylization with techniques drawn from the classical Greek stage. Eleni's final tragic pose is something that's not usually seen onscreen, a deep expression of pathos which has more in common with classical theater than contemporary acting. The director's desire to merge ancient and modern styles -- and themes -- also surfaces in an innovative scene in which the father delivers a soliloquy to refugees sheltering in an abandoned theater.
Angelopoulos' imagery will hold no surprises for his devotees, and it's none the worse for that. His crowd formations are meticulously composed, and a standout scene uses a funereal procession of boats to express the grief of his characters -- something which, again, resonates fully with the Greek classics. Sometimes, however, his imagery runs the risk of appearing obscure. A scene of dead sheep strung up on a tree left many confused, though specialists in Greek literature may know what he's getting at.
Funding for the next two installments of the trilogy is reportedly in place, though scripts have yet to be finalized.
TRILOGY: THE WEEPING MEADOW
Theo Angelopoulos, Greek Film Center, Hellenic Broadcasting Corp., Attica Art Prods., BAC Films, Intermedia, Arte Francais
Credits:
Director: Theo Angelopoulos
Screenwriters: Theo Angelopoulos, Tonino Guerra, Petros Markaris, Giorgio Silvagni
Producer: Phoebe Economopoulos
Director of photography: Andreas Sinanos
Production designers: Giorgos Patsas, Kostas Dimitriades: Music: Eleni Karaindrou
Costume designer: Ioulia Stavridou
Editor: Giorgos Triantafyllou
Cast:
Eleni: Alexandra Aidini: The Young Man: Nikos Poursanidis
Nikos: Giorgos Armenis
Spyros:Vassilis Kolovos
Running time -- 170 minutes
No MPAA rating...
- 2/26/2004
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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