Strella (2009)

Director:

Panos H. Koutras

Writers:

Panajotis Evangelidis (writer)
Panos H. Koutras (writer)

Release Date:

18 November 2009 (France)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

George is released from prison after 14 years of incarceration for a murder he committed in his small Greek village...

Plot Keywords:

Hotel | Transsexual | Prostitute | Athens Greece | Release From Prison

Cast

Mina Orfanou	...	Strella
Yannis Kokiasmenos	...	Yiorgos
Minos Theoharis	...	Alex
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Akis Ioannou	...	Wilma
Argyris Kavvidas	...	Nikos
Christos Mazis	...	Kolokousis
Konstadinos Siradakis	...	Antonis
Betty Vakalidou	...	Mary

Also Known As:

A Woman's Way (International: English title)

Runtime:

111 min | Germany:113 min (Berlin International Film Festival)

Country:

Greece

Language:

Greek

Color:

Color

Filming Locations:

Athens, Greece

Trivia:

Mina Orfanou, the lead actress of the film is a real life transsexual. This is her first appearance in film.

Surprisingly well played and excellently written

I had the honour to see that movie at it's world premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival. This surprising story of a man coming out of jail and falling in love with a transsexual is excellently written and surprisingly well played. Nearly all the actors are amateurs, but who needs trained actor with a cast like that: Especially Mina Orfanou in the role of 'Strella' is a revelation. Panos Koutras finds a way to tell a complicated story and to keep the audience interested in the main characters without following paths of Pedro Almodovar, though both have the wicked humor in common and both obviously love a good melodramatic story line every now and then. And he knows how to end a story, something that isn't often seen in queer movies nowadays. I sincerely hope 'Strella' will find a broader audience as it is clever and entertaining.