To mikro psari

This is a contemporary film noir. A bleak, harsh look at a society in deep crisis not only of an economic nature but a crisis of moral values as well, where people have lost their moral compass and literally everything is for sale.

It's language is really harsh and this serves the story well because on the one hand it has to do with the mob and on the other hand it signifies the lack of any hope of the main character escaping from the path of the existential annihilation that naturally follows in the end.

People who don't appreciate or understand this realistic depiction of the way the mobsters talk in this movie are the same people who never appreciated the message of movies like Natural Born Killers and thus decided to exhaust their criticism talking about the violence and swearing. No, Ekonomides is not Oliver Stone by any means, but still he's one of the most promising Greek directors right now along with Voulgaris.

This movie is not from the faint hearted. It's a black, unforgiving stare into the abyss. And when you look into the abyss, the abyss looks right back at you!

N.

I saw it last night with my wife, so it still plays in my mind.From the technical side it is completely professional.The sound quality amazing.The synchronism and the tremendous clarity of it creates an unusual impression of space where the viewer is absorbed until the last ,righteous moment. The story follows the laws of classic noir narration. So, though the protagonist is a payed killer, a certain ethic guides the story. The action is dense and not always foreseeable. All actors play naturally and very well.

An unusually good film for the Greek standards until now, not a film for the whole family because of some strong language , but certainly a film I highly recommend .

It's dark, full of verbal and physical violence, but down under all those things, there's nothing less than the perfect portrait of a damned person. A person whom one action defined his whole life, a person who found and lost his purpose, an empty person, but still, a person gracefully showing a last act of humanity, before leaving.

Around him, the dark world of crime, a parallel universe that lives side by side with our "normal" one. A universe that is very different to leave, a universe with unspoken laws that bend or break depending on the situation.

Great film, great leading actor, very sharp and intense directing when required. Must see.

Yannis Economidis, the director, started his career by doing something really extraordinary. Something new and daring. His movies do not follow the conventional rules of a "product" that has to sell. His movies have to say something and that's it.Of course sometimes this turns out bad, so Yannis had to do a few things for the first time. Like choosing actors with a very different approach. The team of actors were some well known and recognizable faces, merged with actors that are appropriate in a Yannis Economidis film. If I would be a director, I would have the same aesthetics as Yannis has. I love the photography of the movie. Starting with abandoned places, rust, dirt, same aesthetic as the incredible "dirty street light" scene for a few seconds on Soul Kicking. The sound is nicely layered to the whole film. Keeps realism flowing through the whole film. The music. Well I have to state that there is no fanfare without reason. It is simple and minimalistic yet it is solid and well fit to the whole feeling of the movie. I take the movie as a noir gangster film, that focus on ethics. Stratos is a really nice anti-hero. Well made, having a background, a present situation and finally a redeeming thing to do. The movie plays with the spectator's feelings. It is empty and silent, like a desert of Strato's heart. Yet in the end, it seems that feelings come back to life inside Strato. He is capable to love purely and that makes him do something out of his feelings. Strato's feelings got him into trouble in the past. Now for the second time his feelings will put an end on all of this, but the feelings are different and that is what redeems him.

A full story, well made, with Yanni's signature placed well inside it. Yannis had to deal with the fact that he had to make something more... commercial than his art. He had to care about drawing people to watch his movies. It is irritating I suppose. But yet it is needed. The good thing is that he kept his character and personal signature of his movies into this one too.

I would put a 10/10 because it surpasses every Greek movie I have ever seen, but i still expect more by the director. This is not his peak. So Yannis, I put an 8/10 just to make you do that leap that might make you direct an award winning movie in the end.

Do I recommend it? Of course I do. But it isn't for everyone. It is not a pleasant movie you are gonna enjoy with your girlfriend, drinking cola and eating tortilla dips, no. Such movies, like "Το Μικρό Ψάρι" make you think and feel hard. And that is what I like about them.

I watched "Spirtokouto" with friends. All his next movies, were watched by me into a cinema room, from a seat, just to support and show my respect to one of the greatest and most daring directors Greece has.

Stratos (To Mikro Psari) is a Greek Neo-Noir and it perfectly captures the corrupted and underground life of our protagonist who struggles to find his way into life after jail. The directing is unique, fresh and a perfect match for the style of the movie, making Greek cinema noticable in an ocean of "European Art Films". The cinematography is almost excellent for the film and matches perfectly the directors vision and the feel of the script. The actors are all doing a great job with what they're given and if I had to nitpick and find a flaw(which is not easy) I would probably say that the runtime sometimes feels kind of slow at times but if you're really immersed into the plot, you won't even notice the 137 min passing. In conclusion Stratos is excellent for what it was going for and it really adds something to the genre. Don't miss out on it!