Kravgi gynaikon (1978) User Reviews

Not as depressing as it looks.

[mark.waltz · 6/10 · 22 March 2022]

This film it's worth saving simply for the performances of Greek acting legend Melina Mercouri and American acting legend Ellen Burstyn. Mercouri is an aging film legend who has been forgotten by the movie-going public and has turned to the stage, starring in a revival of Euripudes' "Medea" and doing research for the role by interviewing the imprisoned Burstyn who is serving a sentence for killing her three children in the same way that Medea does in the play. Like the tragedy of Medea and Jason, Burstyn's character sought revenge against her philandering husband and chose the most desperate way to destroy him, and while Mercouri is premiering in the play, Burstyn's flashbacks of the tragedy sends her into a downward spiral, leading to a tragic ending much like the play.

These great actresses give their all to the tough roles they play, and it may be a challenge to audiences to deal with the transitions of the language from Greek to English and back again (without subtitles for the Greek scenes), and Mercouri allows the haggard naturr of the character's destructing soul to really show when the performances begin after some very intense rehearsal periods. Burstyn has less to do, but she makes a very sympathetic variation of the classic tale which as seen in classic Greek theater terms and modern times an interesting parallel. The creative process of putting together a play is greatly detailed, and there are moments of light-heartedness that helps to make the viewer deal with the tragic elements that otherwise would have had this all very depressing movie. Director Jules Dassin does a great job to keep the audience engrossed. Not as morbid as I thought it would be, and of course the two actresses (along with Despo as Mercouri's best friend) are sensational and makes it a riveting experience if not a perfect one.

Esoteric, ambitious, weird, sometimes disturbing, at other times pretentious

[gridoon2024 · 6/10 · 19 January 2020]

Not entirely successful (the Greek Tragedy Chorus parts are rough), but worth a look for when you're feeling adventurous. On one level, it's about art vs. reality, with references to Bergman and Bertolucci; on another, it's about Melina Mercouri herself, in her last film appearance (and last of many collaborations with husband-writer-director Jules Dassin), returning to her roots and baring herself (figuratively, not literally) in front of the camera. The acting by the entire cast is strong and committed to this off-the-wall project. **1/2 out of 4.

An actress prepares to perform Medea...

[N.L. · 10/10 · 5 June 2000]

Melina Mercouri plays Maya, a jet-setting Greek actress who returns to her homeland to undertake the role of Medea. Searching for inspiration and clues as to how a mother could kill the children she loves, Maya discovers Brenda (Ellen Burstyn), a bible-spouting American woman serving time in an Athens prison for that very crime. The actress's jail cell meetings with the murderess lead up to the movie's climax -- a gripping, parallel sequence of Maya in rehearsal/performance of the original text in Greek and Brenda's emotional reliving of the horrific night she murdered her babies. This film brings to life the woman-scorned essence and bloody passion at the heart of Medea, awaking a 2,500 year-old classic of dramatic literature.

Opulent, gripping

[Kansas-5 · 10/10 · 24 February 2002]

Perhaps the best film Ellen Burstyn ever did. Mercouri, Dassin, etc., dazzle. The retelling of Medea is unbelievably powerful, astoundingly complex. A classic for the ages, but not a film for airheads. The scenery is breathtaking, particularly the part filmed in an old Greek theatre.

Ms. Medea!

[dwingrove · 19 April 2004]

Early on in A Dream of Passion, the embattled Greek diva played by Melina Mercouri is accused of "reducing the tragedy of Medea to the level of Ms. Magazine!" Blindly oblivious to his own warning, writer/director Jules Dassin goes on to do precisely that for the next hour-and-a-half. The result is one of those irresistibly awful films that contrive, somehow, to be more compelling than most good ones.

Returning to her native Greece to shoot a film of Euripides' tragedy, Mercouri's jet-setting grande dame meets and becomes obsessed with a dowdy, Bible-spouting American housewife (Ellen Burstyn) who committed the crime of Medea in real life. In other words, she murdered her three children as a way to punish her unfaithful husband. As the two women meet, merge and swap identities, Dassin tries hard to navigate the tortuously trendy Life-Or-Art labyrinth so beloved of Ingmar Bergman and Carlos Saura.

Unfortunately, Dassin is far too lumpish and literal-minded a director for such high-falutin head games. Mercouri flings herself headlong into her role as a glamorous tragedienne. It is, truly, a piece of Acting in the Grand Manner. Burstyn, predictably, is much more subtle - or about as subtle as a deranged fundamentalist child-murderer can possibly be. Alas, the acting styles of the two ladies are so diametrically opposed, it's impossible to picture them in the same universe, never mind the same film.

No matter. A Dream of Passion did hold me riveted throughout. If only for the mind-blowing, jaw-dropping pretentiousness on display!

A chance for the two leads to do some heavy emoting...but as dramatic storytelling, a failure

[moonspinner55 · 3/10 · 20 January 2011]

Melina Mercouri and Ellen Burstyn as two sides of an unlikely coin: Mercouri as an actress preparing to play the lead in a Greek stage production of "Medea" (who spites her cheating husband by murdering their children) and Burstyn an American woman jailed in Greece after killing her kids. Rough-hewn production with some florid, off-putting acting and a less-than-rousing script by Jules Dassin, who also directed. Was Dassin attempting a match of wits between the ladies, or a Bergman-esque study in contrast? Either way, the film has no driving force beyond the footlights, and is marred by poor cinematography and color. Select audiences may be willing to go out on a limb with this material, and indeed portions of the picture are arresting or disturbing. *1/2 from ****

To prepare for the role of Medea,,an actress interviews an American woman imprisoned for a crime like Medea's: the murder of her own children.

[sara-fishman · 10/10 · 31 December 2005]

I saw this movie many years ago, and cannot forget it. It is one of the most powerful movie about women's lives ever made. Not too many women actually murder their children (thank G-d), but in my opinion that aspect of the story was secondary, it was a specific case used to tell a general, universal story about women's dependence on men, and what it takes for a woman to actually break free of that dependence. The juxtaposition of the starkly choreographed performance of Medea with the ordeal of the American murderess was positively haunting. The scenes of Melina the actress relaxing, bantering with the men in her life provided a mature perspective that lends balance to the whole, and gives the story a sense of permanence and worldliness.

Extremely powerful film with complex plot, subplots, and with excellent acting.

[invinoveritas1 · 9/10 · 8 February 2009]

This film which I just saw in early February, 2009, 31 years following its original release has, obviously help up over time. It is an extremely powerful and emotional film ostensibly about the filming of the ancient Greek play of the same name by Euripides. However, there develop subplots which are alluded to earlier, then appear, adding considerable complexity to the story line. The powerful and emotional acting by Mercouri, Burstyn, and the smaller role by Katrakis, all contribute to the whole of this under appreciated film - it should be seen by everyone interested in serious film making. I look forward to seeing it again in the hope of finding even greater nuance in the unraveling of this compelling tale.

Dream of Passion is larger than ordinary life, as befits Greek Tragedies.

[LeahLa · 9/10 · 17 December 2006]

See this film. It is provocative. It dares to challenge conventional ideas about womanhood, love, motherhood. It removes a level of denial that keeps us distant from the underlying truths that Greek Tragedy speaks to, especially the tale of Medea.

We live in a society that attempts to dictate and control, through manipulation and legislation, the role of women, to punish women for being visible victims of the hidden agendas of male supremacy and chauvinism. It is a society that sadly fails to understand, much less respect the powerful, passionate love and instincts that inform and drive the feminine half of our humanity. This failure contributes to a degraded quality of life, to the violence and the pain we see around us.

See this film. Mercouri and Burstyn are magnificent, each in her own way. They represent aspects of the feminine goddess, played out through different cultural lenses.

A most powerful film about the actor's creative process

[rmsing45 · 10/10 · 9 March 2006]

This is a powerful film on many levels. While documenting a re-staging of the Medea story, it contrasts its original 2500-year-old story with a surprising modern parallel story. The film enlivens these two stories by exploring the complex relationships among the principal characters. Anyone interested in an actor's creative process of research and rehearsal will find this film most compelling since it shows the development of the character of Medea not only through traditional classic methods, but surprisingly by showing how unique research and a modern approach to character development — less is more — can leave an audience breathless. The title alludes to Hamlet's mussing soliloquy about the Principal Player's commitment to performing Hecuba. The film is filled with visually memorable moments in the ancient Greek Theatre at Epidauros together with stunning moments of movie camera magic.

Hell hath no fury...

[ilovesaturdays · 10/10 · 29 August 2021]

Wow! What an amazing film! The story of 3 women. The first woman is of course Medea. She was the daughter of Aeetes, who she defied in order to help Jason retrieve the Golden Fleece. In lieu of her help, Jason promised to take her away with him & to marry her. However, after 10 years of marriage, Jason decided to leave Medea & marry the king's daughter. Medea & her sons were to be banished from the kingdom. Furious at her husband's deception, unable to return to her father & denied justice of any kind, she hurt Jason in the only possible way she could.

The other woman is Maya, the actress who is playing Medea on stage. In order to generate public interest in her play, she meets Brenda, a convict who is serving a prison sentence for killing her own children in order to punish a cheating husband who deserted her. The publicity stunt goes horribly wrong but Maya returns again to see Brenda. Maya's life is also rife with personal tragedies & regrets. Finding herself pregnant at a very young age, the aspiring actress resented her unborn child & aborted it. She still feels guilty for the same. So, Maya struggles to identify with Medea, the woman who killed her own children. Hence, she visits Brenda repeatedly to understand her motivations.

Meeting Branda confuses Maya at first because Brenda seems like a composed woman who still believes that her actions were justified. Turns out she even refused to plead insanity to explain her actions even if that could have reduced her prison sentence. Later, Brenda tells her tale & describes to Maya how difficult it was for her to really follow through with her plan. Maya is now better equipped to deal with her role & does such a good job that the parallels between Medea's & Brenda's stories come out beautifully. In a manner similar to Bergman's 'Persona' (the film includes a scene from the movie too), the actress inhabits the role of the character so completely that the viewer sometimes feel that Maya is Brenda.

In conclusion, this is high art indeed! Before seeing this film, I never really understood Medea's motivations. And even though I still can't bring myself to condone her actions, I can at least acknowledge that she was a victim too.