The Ogre of Athens
O drakos
Greece
1956
103 Min
Black and White
Greek
Synopsis
An insignificant bank clerk is about to spend New Year’s Day alone when he suddenly realizes with terror his ressemblance to a notorious criminal whom the newspapers call the “Ogre of Athens”. Because of this misunderstanding, when the police start chasing him he finds refuge in a cabaret and gets acquainted with a gang of criminals who think he is the Ogre and suggest he takes part in a robbery. A cabaret dancer shows interest in him and, driven by his desire to escape his gloomy life and finally become “somebody” he gets entangled in a web of unforeseen events. But the truth will come out and he will come to a sad end . —TFF
Director
Nikos Koundouros
Nikos Koundouros (Greek: Νίκος Κούνδουρος), is a Greek film director, born in Agios Nikolaos, Crete in 1926.
He studied painting and sculpture at the Athens School of Fine Arts, and was later exiled because of his political beliefs to the Makronissos island. At the age of 28 he decided to follow a career in cinematography. He started his career as a director of the film Magiki Polis (1954), where he combined his neorealism influences with his own artistic viewpoint. He cast Thanasis Veggos, who he had met at Makronissos, as one of the characters in Magiki Polis. After the release of his complex and innovative film O Drakos, he found acceptance as a prominent artist in Greece and Europe, and acquired important awards in various international and Greek film festivals. His 1963 film Young Aphrodites won the Silver Bear for Best Director at the 13th Berlin International Film Festival. —Wikipedia
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Rohit
7Jan12
This film has a tremendous sense of unsettling humor under the dark and gloomy surface. Dinos Iliopoulos is iconic as one of the most unlikely noir hero in film history.
Jake La Motta and Dimitris Psachos like this
ruby stevens
20Dec11
stellar film noir, terrific atmosphere. where else u gonna see gangsters dancing before the big heist? loved it
Dimitris Psachos likes this
mais1
13Nov11
O Drakos is recognized as one of the most important films in the history of Greek cinema. This great film deserves wider distribution (my DVD-R copy has no English subs).
House of Leaves and Langston Young like this
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Desire, shame and power (spoilers)
By javier quintero on December 24, 2011
It’s very interesting that Koundouros gives a lot of importance to music and dancing sequences as fundamental rituals for desire, amusement and even sacrifice, all of them part of night life, instead… read review
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