How to make a film like Theo Angelopoulos

Ingredients:

1. A CD with music by Eleni Karaindrou.

2. A photo album, the kind you find in the lounge usually with scenery or black and white pictures.

 

Instructions:

1. Play the music.

2. Flick through the photos.   Really slowly.  1-5 minutes on each usually is OK.

3. You can (slowly!) move your gaze across the page occasionally.

4. Think or don’t think of anything you like.

 

The overall effect is remarkably similar to a Theodoros Angelopoulos film in my opinion.

In a country stuggling to get a film industry working, Angelopoulos was a symbol of success though he didn’t actually much help improve anything.    Some loved him, other considered him Rotten Tomato material.

In a country battling with anarchy the question why an old man (albeit a famous old man) was allowed to walk across a busy street and what sort of safety protocol his production company was following begs an answer.

Personaly I won’t miss him at all.   Other than a striking resemblance to my dear uncle who shares his first name I found little of interest in his film and much to critique in his actions.   Greece has bigger problems than whether or not his films were boring.   If there is a budding new Theo Angelopoulos in the wings let’s hope he has a better idea how best to help his country abroad than the one that just passed.

 

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