Cheap Electra (DVD) (Michael Cacoyannis) Price

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Customer Reviews of Electra

Electra
Bitterness in ancient Greece. If you go for Greek tragedy you'll enjoy this. Agamemnon returns home to Mycenae, is murdered by his wife and her lover, and his daughter Elektra schemes revenge. The real Mycenae stands in for itself and the acting is top-notch. Regarding this DVD: beware of using the dubbed English track - the voices don't always say what they should at certain points. Also, the great Irene Papas' powerful voice is "girlie-fied" by whoever dubbed her. Stick to the original Greek track and access the English subtitles instead. The film is in 16:9 format but is not anamorphic. This is not a problem due to the excellent b & w transfer, and no serious graininess is introduced when it is vertically expanded to fit your widescreen TV screen. Recommended.

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"The death of a king is never simple"
I came to view this film the long way around. I have watched the Richard Straus Opera "Elektra" in which there are people of the same name but different spelling than the film. In the play Elektra the eldest daughter is upset because her mother Klytämnestra and her mother's lover Aegisth killed her father the king, Agamemnon. She calls on her father's spirit, and vows vengeance. Her younger sister Chrysothemis tries to talk her out of it. Her mother comes to here drugged and sleepless asking Elektra what can be done to make amends so her nightmares will end. Elektra tells her that the blood of an impure woman must be shed. Later Elektra is told that her brother, Orest is dead so she tells her sister that she must help kill the mother and lover. Orest turns up alive and is coaxed into killing first Klytämnestra and then Aegisth. So much emotional hate and joy is released that Elektra dances until she falls dead. <
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>Then there are several translations of the play by Sophocles 410 BC. <
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>Now we come to the interpretation for this 1962 film play directed by Michael Cacoyannis of "Zorba the Greek" fame. The film takes 113 minutes; Approximately 15 minutes of dialog, 30 minutes of mime to cut out the bulk of the dialog from the play, and the rest filler of people milling around. I do not mean to sound trite but be prepared for long moments where we have to listen to an off key string instrument or a bunch of horns th keep us focused of where the action should be. There is a moving song and a chorus that speaks out now and them. The set is the Greek landscape with a few structures. It is shot in black and white. This is saved by exceptional acting. <
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>There is a touching scene where Agamemmnon retunes to great his wife and children. Then we watch as Clytemnestra and her lover Aegisthus net in Agamemmnon for the kill. Orestes gets led out to a foreign land and Electra is under house arrest until she grows up. She cuts off her hair in protest and is married off to an innocuous peasant. Will she ever get revenge? And is Orestes even alive? What ho, strangers approach. <
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>This is a tale of "...A family so noble and so damned at the same time." <
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>To get a different take on the story you can read "Care of the Soul: A Guide for Cultivating Depth and Sacredness in Everyday Life" by Thomas Moore, where he tells the story a little different in depicting the role of becoming a mother. <
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>The media itself is a DVD with options of Greek: Mono, English: Mono or French: mono. Then the option also of English, French and Spanish Language Subtitles. The singing is done in Greek only but you can use English subtitles to tell what they are singing. There are no pamphlets with this package. <
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Cacoyanis one of the giants directors in any age
Irene Papas as Elektra gives probably her finest perfomance ever. Cacoyanis made an exceptional translating process with this drama from Euripides.
The fundamental atmosphere of the female chorus and all the haunting drama hidden about the revenge to make justice is told
brilliantly.
Cacoyanis shows us why he was blessed by the Gods .
Acquire this superb masterpiece.