Zorba the Greek (1964) Alexis Zorbas (original title)

Director:

Mihalis Kakogiannis

Writers:

Nikos Kazantzakis (from the novel by)
Mihalis Kakogiannis (screenplay)

Release Date:

10 March 1965 (Argentina)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama

Tagline:

Life. Lust. Love. Zorba.

Plot:

An uptight English writer traveling to Crete on a matter of business finds his life changed forever when he meets the gregarious Alexis Zorba.

Plot Keywords:

Greek | Greece | Joie De Vivre | Monastery | Throat Slitting

Awards:

Won 3 Oscars. Another 4 wins & 16 nominations

Cast

Anthony Quinn	...	Alexis Zorba
Alan Bates	...	Basil
Irene Papas	...	Widow
Lila Kedrova	...	Madame Hortense
Sotiris Moustakas	...	Mimithos
Anna Kyriakou	...	Soul
Eleni Anousaki	...	Lola
Yorgo Voyagis	...	Pavlo (as George Voyadjis)
Takis Emmanuel	...	Manolakas
Giorgos Foundas	...	Mavrandoni (as George Foundas)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
George P. Cosmatos	...	Acne Faced Boy (uncredited)

Directed by
Mihalis Kakogiannis		(as Michael Cacoyannis)

Writing credits
Nikos Kazantzakis		(from the novel by)
Mihalis Kakogiannis		(screenplay) (as Michael Cacoyannis)

Produced by
Mihalis Kakogiannis	....	producer (as Michael Cacoyannis)
Anthony Quinn	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Mikis Theodorakis

Cinematography by
Walter Lassally		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Mihalis Kakogiannis		(uncredited)

Art Direction by
Vassilis Photopoulos

Makeup Department
Alex Archambault	....	hairdresser
Monique Archambault	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Yannis Petropoulakis	....	unit manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Franco Cirino	....	first assistant director
George P. Cosmatos	....	assistant director (as George Cosmatos)
Panagis Roussos	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Mikes Damalas	....	sound

Camera and Electrical Department
George Antonakis	....	camera assistant

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Anna Stavropoulou	....	wardrobe

Editorial Department
Johnny Dwyre	....	assistant editor

Other crew
May Capsaski	....	continuity
Vassilis Mariolis	....	location manager
Anis Nohra	....	production co-ordinator: International Film Service, Rome
Giorgos Provias	....	choreographer (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation (as 20th Century Fox)

Distributors

• International Classics (1964) (USA) (theatrical)
• CBS / Fox Video (1985) (USA) (VHS) (pan and scan)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2005) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Centfox (1965) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Fox Film (1965) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Fox Films (1965) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2012) (USA) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• Odeon (2012) (Greece) (DVD) (blu-ray)
• SF Home Entertainment (2005) (Sweden) (DVD)
• SF Home Entertainment (2012) (Sweden) (DVD) (Blu-ray)

Other Companies

• Finos Film  all technical facilities (as Finos Films Athens)

Also Known As:

"Alexis Zorbas" - USA (original title)

Runtime:

142 min

Country:

USA | Greece

Language:

English | Greek

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Australia:M (alternate rating) | Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | Norway:15 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | USA:Unrated | UK:PG (video rating) (1988) | UK:X (original rating) | Iceland:12 | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Canada:R (Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Brazil:12 (DVD rating) | West Germany:16

Filming Locations:

Crete, Greece

Company:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

Simone Signoret was offered the part of Madame Hortense initially, and turned it down. She came to regret that decision. The role went to Lila Kedrova who ended up receiving an Academy Award for her role.

Quotes:

Alexis Zorba:Am I not a man? And is a man not stupid? I'm a man, so I married. Wife, children, house, everything. The full catastrophe.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Get Smart: Absorb the Greek (#4.19)" (1969)

Alexis and Basil

Nikos Kazantzakis' novels lend themselves to cinematic treatment. Jules Dassin made a great adaptation of "He Who Must Die", and Michael Cacoyannis was equally successful in bringing "Alexis Zorbas" to the screen. Watching this film for a second time puts into perspective a lot of things that escape many a viewer the first time around.

Michael Cacoyannis changed the order of events in the book, as well as Nikos, who he transforms into Basil, the Englishman. The changes are not without merit since all the elements contribute to blend well together in the finished product. The director was fortunate to find such collaborators as Mikis Theodorakis, the genial composer of the music score and Walter Lassally, who photographed the barren area where most of the action takes place. Viewing the film on cable recently, shows Lassally's crisp black and white photography in mint condition.

The film is totally dominated by Zorba, who is a figure larger than life, as he takes Basil under his wing from the start. Anthony Quinn was a perfect choice for playing the title character. Mr. Quinn had worked with other brilliant directors, Federico Fellini, being one of them. It's almost impossible to think of Mr. Quinn as being an American because the magnificent transformation he undergoes here to portray Zorba.

Alan Bates, who is seen as Basil, the Englishman of Greek descent, who is going to Crete to see the family's land and mine. By underplaying Basil, Mr. Bates set the right tone, in sharp contrast with Anthony Quinn's exuberance. Alan Bates, in the end, made perfect sense with the way he played Basil.

Lila Kedrova is another surprise in the film. She is the tragic Madame Hortense, who has lived in the island for quite a while. It's ironic that love always eluded her until she finds in Zorba a reason for keep on living. Irene Papas is equally intense as the widow who is haunted by all the men in town. She has little to say, but just a look from her smolders the screen, be it, for the lust she felt for Basil, or the hatred for the town male population.

Michael Cacoyannis uses these men, as a sort of Greek Chorus, so important in Greek tragedies. The same could be said of the older women of the town who resent the arrivals of strangers. The Greek cast one sees is quite effective in the context of the movie.

"Alexis Zorbas", or "Zorba, the Greek", is a film that will stay with the viewer for quite a while because of what the director accomplished with it.