When folks think of "Zorba the Greek" they think of Anthony Quinn. Many actors get forever associated with one of their film roles but few more than Quinn in this movie. That's because the film is a good match for his acting talents and it gave him a chance to show off his stuff. And, as such the film is a great character study for him. However, while many consider it to be a classic, Quinn's performance cannot make up for weak writing--and, aside from his character, the film is quite difficult to love. First, the plot is meandering--too meandering. It strains a person's attention span since it is so slow and, at times, plot-less. Second, although Quinn's character as well as the French woman's (Lila Kedrova) were very good, the rest of the characters are pretty flat. The other Greeks seem more like window dressing than people. I am not Greek but I wonder if the film does them a disservice. Surely they are not all knife-wielding men and SHREIKING women--but in this film, apart from a few exceptions, that's all they seem to be. But the worst of them is the role given to the British man (Alan Bates), as he is almost zombie-like in the film. Sure, I understand that he was supposed to be repressed and stiff--but not to the point of rigor mortis! He had all the emotional range and intensity as Mr. Potatohead--and he SHOULD have been far more complex and interesting as a counterpart to Quinn's fun-loving Zorba.
My advice is to see the film for Quinn's bravura performance but accept that it really isn't that great a film. A classic? Hardly. But a darn good part for an actor who, up until this point in his career, was seen as a supporting actor and not a major player.
My advice is to see the film for Quinn's bravura performance but accept that it really isn't that great a film. A classic? Hardly. But a darn good part for an actor who, up until this point in his career, was seen as a supporting actor and not a major player.