Mikres Aphrodites
Encyclopedia
Young Aphrodites is an award-winning drama film of 1963
directed by Nikos Koundouros
based on a script of Vassilis Vassilikos
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Skymnos, a young shepherd, approaches Chloe who walks semi-naked around the rocks and the beach. Among the two children begins a tantalising game, which does not clearly end up with the couple having intercourse; as a sign of his affection, Skymnos catches a pelican for Chloe and mounts it on a gantry. On the other hand, although Arta initially rejects Tsakalos, she finally succumbs and the couple meets in a cave where Skymnos and Chloe can watch through a crack in the rock.
When the shepherds decide to leave, Skymnos refuses to follow them. Lykas, a mute teenage shepherd, finds Chloe and rapes her. When Skymnos witnesses this scene, he unties the dead pelican, throws its corpse into the sea and allows himself to be swept away.
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1963 in film
The year 1963 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* June 12 - Cleopatra starring Elizabeth Taylor, Rex Harrison and Richard Burton premieres at the Rivoli Theatre in New York City....
directed by Nikos Koundouros
Nikos Koundouros
Nikos Koundouros , is a Greek film director, born in Agios Nikolaos, Crete in 1926.He studied painting and sculpture at the Athens School of Fine Arts, and was later exiled because of his political beliefs to the Makronissos island. At the age of 28 he decided to follow a career in cinematography...
based on a script of Vassilis Vassilikos
Vassilis Vassilikos
-Biography:A native of the northern Greek island of Thasos, Vassilikos grew up in Thessaloniki, graduating from law school there before moving to Athens to work as a journalist....
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Plot
In 200 BC, a nomadic group of shepherds, in search of new pastures, leave the mountains to settle close to a fishing village. The women of the village hide and the only ones to venture out are Arta, the fisherman's wife, and a twelve-year-old girl, Chloe.Skymnos, a young shepherd, approaches Chloe who walks semi-naked around the rocks and the beach. Among the two children begins a tantalising game, which does not clearly end up with the couple having intercourse; as a sign of his affection, Skymnos catches a pelican for Chloe and mounts it on a gantry. On the other hand, although Arta initially rejects Tsakalos, she finally succumbs and the couple meets in a cave where Skymnos and Chloe can watch through a crack in the rock.
When the shepherds decide to leave, Skymnos refuses to follow them. Lykas, a mute teenage shepherd, finds Chloe and rapes her. When Skymnos witnesses this scene, he unties the dead pelican, throws its corpse into the sea and allows himself to be swept away.
Production notes
Many of the actors were actually sheepherders. The film is based on the fable of Daphnis and ChloeDaphnis and Chloe
Daphnis and Chloe is the only known work of the 2nd century AD Greek novelist and romancer Longus.-Setting and style:It is set on the isle of Lesbos during the 2nd century AD, which is also assumed to be the author's home. Its style is rhetorical and pastoral; its shepherds and shepherdesses are...
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Awards
- Silver Bear for Best DirectorSilver Bear for Best DirectorThe Silver Bear for Best Director is the Berlin International Film Festival's award for best achievement in direction.-Awards:-Repeated winners:*Mario Monicelli *Satyajit Ray *Carlos Saura -External links:*...
(Berlin Film Festival13th Berlin International Film FestivalThe 13th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 21 June to 2 July 1963.-Jury:* Wendy Toye * Harry R. Sokal* Fernando Ayala* Jean-Pierre Melville* B. R...
) - Nikos Koundouros - International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCIFIPRESCIThe International Federation of Film Critics is an association of national organizations of professional film critics and film journalists from around the world for "the promotion and development of film culture and for the safeguarding of professional interests." It was founded in June 1930 in...
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