Nominee
This film is interesting to me because it does what I usually fault most 60's films for not doing, and fails at what most 60's films usually do best. That is to say, it found it's own visual creative niche, and had a very laudable performance from Anthony Quinn, yet came up short when it came to the plot itself.
I was impressed by the narrative motif of dance that was echoed back in some of the handheld camera motions throughout the film. It was surprising to see the camera sweeping with reckless abandon in some of the sequences and I appreciated it greatly. This sort of self awareness in the shooting was not very common in the time.
In addition, I found that Anthony Quinn's performance as the vivacious and spirited Zorba was one that truly stood the test of time. He found a nuanced realness to this caricature of a person, and seemed to celebrate his flaws as what makes him accessible to an audience.
My two qualms? The plot line was this sort of muddled love story/failed entrepreneur pursuit. It never really found its footing in either, and perhaps only found a glimmer of success at the end when both stories end in failure. The other thing the film focused on is the relationship of Zorba and Basil, an English writer who is trying to revitalize his career. Yet while Zorba is extremely compelling, Basil is completely helpless and incompetent making his character completely foreign to me, and just not worthwhile.
Lastly, although the story itself was flawed, the screenplay had some true depth to it and set up some very human moments. And who doesn't love Greek Music? I mean really.
Overall: Have you ever seen a more splendiferous film? Well maybe yes. But the risk taking the cinematography took and Anthony Quinn's performance make the film worth the watch. And it will certainly make you want to dance no matter how you feel. Opa! And Happy Watching!
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