Reviews

The movie is a point of reference to the 1970s reflecting the life-style of the upper class within all its glamour and exaggeration. One can easily trace the influence of French and Italian sensual cinema in this Greek production and, just like other works by Errikos Andreou and Klearhos Konitsiotis, "Anazitisis" is received by a large audience in Greece as cult, mainly because of all the "glitter" it is sprinkled and the sometimes grotesque dialogs. The presence of a good cast doesn't seem to support what in reality is a weak movie. Intentionally an erotic thriller, the film cannot be labeled as such having a fair amount of romantic drama in it and climax in soap-opera fashion. Although it is uncertain whether that was initially planned, "Anazitisis", like many other films of the same era and genre has become what is widely known as a "silent ad" for tourism depicting the attractions of all-time favourite holiday destinations such as the Greek islands. In my opinion this was just a trend back at the day and not some kind of state-imposed policy. The rare beauty of Elena Nathanail and the atmospheric music by Giannis Spanos (another '70s trademark) are the most important qualities which, without rescuing the film, justify its reputation as cult.

This is actually a bad movie yet beautifully made. The story is as naive as it gets, which can be quite disturbing at times, but the viewer gets immediately carried away by the wonderful pictures of Greece and the nearly breathtaking music of Vaggelis Papathanasiou and Giannis Markopoulos, forgetting all about the plot. The film looks more like an attempt to promote Greek tourism, emphasizing picturesque landscapes and monuments rather than the characters which are built upon stereotypes and presented in a shallow way. Elena, a Mediterranean beauty who works as a tourist guide meets Jan, a good-looking and cheerful blond guy who also happens to be the prince of some unidentified northern European country, a fact that - surprise! - Elena ignores. Stunning Elena Nathanail and German actor Thomas Fritsch, former teen idol in his country, embody the main characters who experience a summer romance with the necessary touch of folklore. The acting is poor but that doesn't really matter as the film was meant to be some sort of travel documentary about Greece, although it has no such value anymore, unless you have a time machine and you can go back to the 1960s. Watch it for the soundtrack, the sceneries and the pretty faces but don't bother if you're looking for something more than that.