Strella

I never expected to see a movie in Greece about a transsexual, let alone one that was played by a real transsexual woman. That alone would have been a big deal for me. Thankfully though, there is definitely more to it. This is not a movie about being trans-gendered (or about being an ex convict for that matter), this is a movie about people seeking love in any form, about people trying to make a new start, re-defining themselves and their lives and living not according to stereotypes or social rules and notions as to what "is" right and wrong, but according to their own morality and their sense of what "feels" right and wrong. I loved the direct manner in which the "trans" issue was tackled with, I was taken with the tenderness of the love story - and of course there is that one nude scene that was really moving, honest, courageous, and magical at once. Granted, the plot twist did make me cringe a little bit, it felt somewhat "out there" and at this one instance I was like "this is at the verge of soapiness" but fortunately, it did not cross that line and the ending really did it for me after all. It is not a masterpiece, but it is a good movie, one that stands out from the bunch. Plus, Mina Orfanou is really good, especially considering she is an amateur, she captures the whole essence of the character with her performance, being charming, loving, rough and frustrated all at once.

I had the honour to see that movie at it's world premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival. This surprising story of a man coming out of jail and falling in love with a transsexual is excellently written and surprisingly well played. Nearly all the actors are amateurs, but who needs trained actor with a cast like that: Especially Mina Orfanou in the role of 'Strella' is a revelation. Panos Koutras finds a way to tell a complicated story and to keep the audience interested in the main characters without following paths of Pedro Almodovar, though both have the wicked humor in common and both obviously love a good melodramatic story line every now and then. And he knows how to end a story, something that isn't often seen in queer movies nowadays. I sincerely hope 'Strella' will find a broader audience as it is clever and entertaining.

I think it is a great movie and a very important piece in Greek cinematography and not only Greek, in the global context as well. The way the movie ends is also very important towards creating a better climate and alternative solutions for trans gender people. It breaks the usual pattern of ends that are common to the movies related with LGBTQI people, and I think it's very healthy. A lot of familiar faces, the stars of Koukles, Yannis Kokiasmenos' and Mina Orfanou's acting was a blast! Good luck to the director, the crew and actors, hope to see more great movies made by them. Big thanks! And p.s. to the puritan who says he is not one:)there is something more important than the so called hubris, and that is what they wanted to portray, I guess.

This is the story of Giorgos, an ex-convict who has spent more than fifteen years in prison, sentenced for a crime of honor, and Strella, a transsexual call girl. The opening scene, as Giorgos kisses good-bye his cellmate, is when the viewer is prepared for macho-looking Giorgos' sexual orientations or –if you want- his upcoming "tolerance" to the fact that Strella is not a common girl. Giorgos wouldn't possibly react the way Fergus reacted in Neil Jordan's "Crying Game". As Giorgos is set free to "live his myth" in the dirty city, walking among the human and the urban garbage, one can smell the urine in the narrow mean streets, downtown Athens. Soon, as Giorgos attempts to find more about the whereabouts of his long lost son, one suspects that the film is intended to be a modern version of a Greek tragedy, except it will not be, because Strella knows better! Fortunately, "deus ex machina" will not be required. Humans ought to deal with their issues by themselves, this time. The supporting characters are never becoming grotesque despite the fact that they are queer and that Death is flirting with them throughout the film. Even Strella's impersonation of Maria Callas in its falseness has a bizarre dignity and proves to be a successful tightrope walking mainly –in my opinion- because it has nothing in common and at any time with any of the Almodόvar's transvestite characters. All in all, "Strella" is a worth seeing film and one of those every so often moments the Greek cinematography surprises pleasantly.

Movies like this always confirm that the long hunt for good foreign cinema is always worth it in the end. It always helps to enter the world of film with an open-mind in order to truly appreciate what you're being shown.

Don't limit yourself to a certain type of movie trope or genre, experience the more abstract and see the beauty (if you can) in the flexibility of cinema.