The play 'Antigone', written by Sophocles in 441 BC is not just a great piece of theatre but also raises political, ethical and philosophical issues which render it timeless. The blind Tiresias upbraids King Creon with 'All tyrants are gluttons for their ill-gotten power' and warns him that he will pay a terrible price for having denied Polyneices burial and condemning Antigone to entombment.
Athenians at the time would certainly have related to the folly of tyranny.
Unlike most 'absolute rulers' he relents but alas too late.
This is a very accomplshed adaptation by writer/director Yorgos Tzavallas with a fine score by Argyris Kournadis.
The cast is uniformly excellent. The striking Irene Papas, no stranger to tragic Greek heroines on both stage and screen, deservedly won an award at the Berlin International Film Festival for her performance as Antigone. Her character arouses our sympathy but one should not forget that her grim fate and the play's tragedy stems as much from her own stubbornness as from Creon's intractability. Manos Katrakis is absolutely stupendous as Creon. He too was recognised for his performance at the International Film Festival in San Francisco. Papas and Katrakis went on to excel in 'Electra' for Cacoyannis two years later.
One does not have to be a classical scholar to appreciate this first class film but should seeing it arouse ones interest in the wonders of Greek tragedy then it has more than served its purpose.
