Outstanding Cast, Cinematography and Soundscore
This Greek crime thriller recently dropped on Netflix, I knew nothing about it and went in cold solely on a recommendation. I couldn't even find an IMDb rating because it is listed under the shortened name "Maestro." The story arc follows musician Orestis (Christoforos Papakaliatis) who travels to the idyllic Greek island of Paxos from Athens in 2022 to revive the summer music festival after the worst of the pandemic. It is clear from the opening scenes that nothing on the streets of Paxos goes unnoticed - eyes are everywhere. We are clued off in episode one that, in part, this is a murder mystery.
The best take-aways are the adept and attractive cast ensemble, the storyline (like peeling a multi-generational onion that jettisons sideways), incredibly creative cinematography (DP Antonis Zkeris), and a sound score with song choices by Kostas Christides that are carefully curated. One critic complained about too many entangled romances. For me, the clandestine love scenes, while important to hold the nine episodes together, were not as interesting as the fact that the fate of the lead characters were held together by their participation in criminal activity.
The series is reminiscent of White Lotus, but the latter comes up light in comparison. By episode six of this series, there is a sequence that is pure Yorgos Lanthimos - the reference is unmistakable. Episodes six through nine have a different pace and creative structure, which makes it near impossible to not watch six through nine in a binge.
The best take-aways are the adept and attractive cast ensemble, the storyline (like peeling a multi-generational onion that jettisons sideways), incredibly creative cinematography (DP Antonis Zkeris), and a sound score with song choices by Kostas Christides that are carefully curated. One critic complained about too many entangled romances. For me, the clandestine love scenes, while important to hold the nine episodes together, were not as interesting as the fact that the fate of the lead characters were held together by their participation in criminal activity.
The series is reminiscent of White Lotus, but the latter comes up light in comparison. By episode six of this series, there is a sequence that is pure Yorgos Lanthimos - the reference is unmistakable. Episodes six through nine have a different pace and creative structure, which makes it near impossible to not watch six through nine in a binge.
- jdavisLina
- Mar 26, 2023