As a Greek, i consider this to be an important movie. It doesn't matter if i find it to be a good or a mediocre film regarding it's cinematic value. It is not a masterpiece. What matters is the importance of it. Greece still carries the scars from the era portrayed here. Yes the civil war is gone. But any Greek who is a political being, will tell you that Greece means polarization. And our peace looks fragile. Our democracy also looks like a democracy drenched in hypocrisy. And learning about real stories from our past, can only be helpful.
This film here is a real story about American journalist George Polk. Specifically, it is about what took place after his murder. The film follows the real story.
Polk, an American journalist working as a freelancer for the CBS and for American newspapers, was already kind of a little thorn on the side of both the Greek and the American governments. Newspapers in USA had already published articles by him, that criticized Greek politicians and even talked about connections between the Americans, the Greek police and even dark figures active in the black markets of that era. And here i need to explain some things.
In Greek history, black marketeers are known as mavragorites. Those people where Greeks who instead of helping other Greeks during the Nazi occupation of their homeland, turned instead to black marketeers, feeding off like vultures from the starving population. People would give their golden crosses for just some bread. Their tools for potatoes. Their only pair of shoes for a piece of bread. They were also collaborators of the occupational forces, both Italian and German, as it was simply impossible to take products from the countryside and take them into Athens without getting stopped at one of the blocks. Therefore they collaborated with them by providing them with goods. In return, the occupational forces let them do their nasty business and they also protected them from the anger of the people. Naturally, after the Nazi's left Greece, the Greeks with one voice started condemning them. The hate of the population for the black marketeers was so big, that today, the word black marketeer in Greek, means mostly a person who is a traitor or a scumbag. USA knew how the population felt about the black marketeers, so any connection between USA and them, would make the people explode. It is extremely important to know that we are talking about the time when USA takes over Greece, replacing the British. Imagine getting associated from the very start, with people everyone in Greece saw as traitors. So anyone can understand that Polk's articles where indeed a serious problem.
Already a person considered to be a thorn for both governments, Polk announces to fellow journalists that he is trying to reach the military leader of the communists, Markos Vafiades. At the time, the communists had strongholds in Western Macedonia and in Epirus. Polk leaves his hotel to meet a source and he never returns. Some days later, a fisherman finds his body floating. He had been shot in the head and he had tied hands and tied feet.
The Greek state went into panic mode. The Americans were furious as their journalists were saying that it is ridiculous for the American citizen to pay taxes, only for Greeks to murder US citizens. They demanded a swift procedure and swift results. The Greek prime minister announced that solving this case was a matter of honor. And the minister sitting above the police, tells the police that, "this here is a political murder committed by the communists. All you have to do is find a way to prove it.".
After a while, the police arrests journalist Grigoris Staktopoulos, a communist sympathizer. They also arrest his mother, and they accuse two communists on the run, Mouzenidis and Vasvanas, as the killers who murdered Polk with the precious help from Staktopoulos. Staktopoulos and his mother were both tortured . At some point they simply said yes and signed confessions, just to get away from the physical and mental pain they were experiencing while in custody. The evidence against the mother of Staktopoulos was a letter send to the police which had Polk's journalist id inside. The police claimed that a professional graphologist confirmed that the woman's writing and the writing on that letter received by the police, were written by the same person.
The trial found all three men -two of them tried in absentia- as guilty for the murder but dropped the charges against the mother. Soon after, it was revealed that at the time the murder took place, Mouzenidis was already dead, and Vasvanas was abroad. The public sees the trial as joke and a clear attempt to do harm to the communists by portraying them as common thugs. At the same time, an independent investigation by an American called Kellis, comes to the conclusion that the communists did not have the means to do such a thing.
In 1960, Staktopoulos was released(pardoned), as basically every Greek knew he was completely innocent. He demanded a re trial four times, but the supreme court refused. The real murderers were never found, but the innocence of Staktopoulos and the communists was finally out, and not even fanatic right wingers dare to challenge it.
The movie as a movie to pass your time, is not recommended. It is a movie about Greece and it is made for Greeks and for those around the world who know history and history of politics. Especially the history of of post world war 2 in countries like Greece and Italy, who were both affected in various ways by the acts of the new at that time super power, USA. This real story here is just another example of the climate of that era. It was the beginning of the cold war and when USA demanded something, Greek state would deliver. Innocent lives getting destroyed was the norm. Similar things took place later on in Italy during the so called years of lead.
The cynicism of the great power is delivered in one of the scenes brilliantly.
When the American official demands swifter closure of the case, he states : Greece is too important! We cannot trust it's fate to Greeks.
Forget perfect cuts or long heavenly shots like Theo Angelopoulos. This movie is valuable only for one reason. It tells a true story. It is a tiny history lesson.
This film here is a real story about American journalist George Polk. Specifically, it is about what took place after his murder. The film follows the real story.
Polk, an American journalist working as a freelancer for the CBS and for American newspapers, was already kind of a little thorn on the side of both the Greek and the American governments. Newspapers in USA had already published articles by him, that criticized Greek politicians and even talked about connections between the Americans, the Greek police and even dark figures active in the black markets of that era. And here i need to explain some things.
In Greek history, black marketeers are known as mavragorites. Those people where Greeks who instead of helping other Greeks during the Nazi occupation of their homeland, turned instead to black marketeers, feeding off like vultures from the starving population. People would give their golden crosses for just some bread. Their tools for potatoes. Their only pair of shoes for a piece of bread. They were also collaborators of the occupational forces, both Italian and German, as it was simply impossible to take products from the countryside and take them into Athens without getting stopped at one of the blocks. Therefore they collaborated with them by providing them with goods. In return, the occupational forces let them do their nasty business and they also protected them from the anger of the people. Naturally, after the Nazi's left Greece, the Greeks with one voice started condemning them. The hate of the population for the black marketeers was so big, that today, the word black marketeer in Greek, means mostly a person who is a traitor or a scumbag. USA knew how the population felt about the black marketeers, so any connection between USA and them, would make the people explode. It is extremely important to know that we are talking about the time when USA takes over Greece, replacing the British. Imagine getting associated from the very start, with people everyone in Greece saw as traitors. So anyone can understand that Polk's articles where indeed a serious problem.
Already a person considered to be a thorn for both governments, Polk announces to fellow journalists that he is trying to reach the military leader of the communists, Markos Vafiades. At the time, the communists had strongholds in Western Macedonia and in Epirus. Polk leaves his hotel to meet a source and he never returns. Some days later, a fisherman finds his body floating. He had been shot in the head and he had tied hands and tied feet.
The Greek state went into panic mode. The Americans were furious as their journalists were saying that it is ridiculous for the American citizen to pay taxes, only for Greeks to murder US citizens. They demanded a swift procedure and swift results. The Greek prime minister announced that solving this case was a matter of honor. And the minister sitting above the police, tells the police that, "this here is a political murder committed by the communists. All you have to do is find a way to prove it.".
After a while, the police arrests journalist Grigoris Staktopoulos, a communist sympathizer. They also arrest his mother, and they accuse two communists on the run, Mouzenidis and Vasvanas, as the killers who murdered Polk with the precious help from Staktopoulos. Staktopoulos and his mother were both tortured . At some point they simply said yes and signed confessions, just to get away from the physical and mental pain they were experiencing while in custody. The evidence against the mother of Staktopoulos was a letter send to the police which had Polk's journalist id inside. The police claimed that a professional graphologist confirmed that the woman's writing and the writing on that letter received by the police, were written by the same person.
The trial found all three men -two of them tried in absentia- as guilty for the murder but dropped the charges against the mother. Soon after, it was revealed that at the time the murder took place, Mouzenidis was already dead, and Vasvanas was abroad. The public sees the trial as joke and a clear attempt to do harm to the communists by portraying them as common thugs. At the same time, an independent investigation by an American called Kellis, comes to the conclusion that the communists did not have the means to do such a thing.
In 1960, Staktopoulos was released(pardoned), as basically every Greek knew he was completely innocent. He demanded a re trial four times, but the supreme court refused. The real murderers were never found, but the innocence of Staktopoulos and the communists was finally out, and not even fanatic right wingers dare to challenge it.
The movie as a movie to pass your time, is not recommended. It is a movie about Greece and it is made for Greeks and for those around the world who know history and history of politics. Especially the history of of post world war 2 in countries like Greece and Italy, who were both affected in various ways by the acts of the new at that time super power, USA. This real story here is just another example of the climate of that era. It was the beginning of the cold war and when USA demanded something, Greek state would deliver. Innocent lives getting destroyed was the norm. Similar things took place later on in Italy during the so called years of lead.
The cynicism of the great power is delivered in one of the scenes brilliantly.
When the American official demands swifter closure of the case, he states : Greece is too important! We cannot trust it's fate to Greeks.
Forget perfect cuts or long heavenly shots like Theo Angelopoulos. This movie is valuable only for one reason. It tells a true story. It is a tiny history lesson.
