Rembetiko

If I where to rate the music ... this would be an easy 10/10. At least and while I don't mean to slam or rather minimize the movie, in comparison it does fade a little bit. But that is nitpicking, because overall it is a great movie/drama. We get a woman and how she became the person she is. The singer, the individual, the character men see and crave.

There might be a few bumps along the ride and certain things may feel uncomfotable to watch to say the least, but the movie stays true to its nature. And yes the music is melodramatic at times, but it is also very apt. It generates emotion that cannot be denied. And if you understand the text, even more so. I remember watching this when I was little and rewatching it gave me goosebumps all over again ... The historical background seals the deal

I was very pleased to find 'Rembetiko' on DVD after so many years! Back then, it only was on for a short time at my local cinema/art-house (Rotterdam, Holland)/ right after, I was *very* impressed and checked for another view, but it was the very last one performance, alas. Since then, this movie became some sort of a myth in my memory.

After seeing the film after almost 25 years it feels very different... (now I'm older I know more in what way Greece also suffered during WWII/ and their drama is still not very well known in Europe, they kept the horror more quiet, IMO). So this knowledge was an extra for me in 2007.

Therefore I disagree with the former poster "dionysianartist", the emphasis on the Nazi-period gives the movie a wonderful twist. Perhaps this way, it also returns the feeling to the true blues of 1920's Rembetica.

My DVD came with these subtitles; *Greek *English *French *Spanish *Italian *German *Turkish (No further extra's).

Check it out; great film, with much of the Greek sphere and feelings involved.

John.

Beautiful film and the music was very moving. This is a great film for people who want to delve deeper in to Greek culture. The many actresses that played Marika were very well chosen. Hats off to Ferris who wrote such a story. The scenery in the film really helped give an idea about the slums. I wish the subtitles were a bit better because I noticed there was more going on and not enough being translated. It is amazing how the blues genre of the world is the same in soul but different in sound. I would have loved a bit more history on Asia minor. The music at the lemon market is my favourite in the beginning. This story is not about the famous Greek singer although a lot of similarities do exist but amazing movie nonetheless.

my first experience of this film was its soundtrack, which my dad had on tape, and had played every now and then. FANTASTIC SOUNDTRACK, XARCHAKOS IS A Genius. The music in this film captures the mood of the real rebetiko perfectly, but unfortunately i have to say that after hearing this soundtrack, i really did expect a lot more than i saw in the film itself. some of the acting was OK, including leonardou's, but much of the filming and editing was heavy handed; the over-saturated colour of the film was also too much for me, and the German occupation either had too much focus for its ultimate importance, or was not developed enough to have the importance that might have been intended. The reason that i haven't totally scrapped this film is for a few reasons. even though the film is not as smoothly cohesive as it could have been, and was a bit inconsistent, there were some very well produced "moments"; individual parts of the film where everything worked perfectly (probably my favorite part was the final scene. in my opinion, this is the only part of the film which really cooperated with the soundtrack. i got chills down my spine). Another thing is that the actors playing smaller characters dd a better job of acting than the protagonist, for example, the old man who dances the slow zeibekiko (and by the way PJA, it's zeibeKIKO, not zeibeTIKO.)

Rembetiko music was the music of the people living their lives on the slums of that time. People using drugs, women who sold their bodies to survive, small time crooks, angels and demons of the ghettos of that era.

The soundtrack of this film, was written exclusively for this project by Xarhakos. One the greatest Greek composers ever. And it is a masterpiece. It has catchy songs, it has songs with political messages, it has hymns to sadness, it is a versatile masterpiece. And in many scenes, Ferris, the director of the movie, managed to lock the musical track playing in the background, with the scenes in front with absolute perfection.

The movie manages to show us how these people lived back then. And their struggles and emotions. But I honestly think i love this film mainly because I am Greek and A, I know the history of my people, and B, I love Rembetiko music. I am not sure it will be a nice cinematic experience for foreigners who ignore historic facts about modern Greece and who have no idea about what Rembetiko music is.

I know for a fact that a lot of Turkish, Arab and Israeli people, who love rembetiko and similar music, loved this film. But even them, they loved it mainly because of the superb music. I state again that the music created for this film, is a collection of masterpieces. The uplifting tracks make you wanna stand up and dance, and the sad ones make you melancholic.

But I cannot say that the film is a great film overall. Chances are that if you dislike Greek rembetiko music, you will also find the film to be irrelevant. Greece being a tiny country, it's modern history is not known to non Greek people. So all films that show bits of that history, are doomed to look less interesting, or confusing to non Greek audiences.

A scene or even just a dialogue might make my heart turn to pieces because I know about the pain of the Greek people of that era.

But an Englishman will probably stand confused. So i would say that Rembetiko as film would be a nice experience for Greeks and for foreigners who love Rembetiko music. But the rest of you will probably find it without any meaning or purpose.