Worlds Apart

Christoforos Papakaliatis is a very talented Greek director who has made some of the most amazing series, including Maestro in Blue, of course. However, when it comes to movies none of his work really stands out. The same applies to Worlds Apart. The cast is excellent, cinematography too, the music is good, great attention to every detail (all typical traits of a perfectionist like Papakaliatis) but the plot is simply lackluster. In many instances, it is quite unrealistic, cliche and based on way too many "coincidences". Overall, it is an enjoyable movie to watch but it is neither thought or emotion provoking.

I watched it yesterday and I kept my expectations rather high, because the main theme of the movie and the way it shapes politics concerns me in a direct manner. It was even better than I expected it. The script is extremely interesting, especially if you like movies that have to do with the society and politics. I daresay it depicted my country, Greece, as it is in reality. With both its breathtaking beauty and its ugliness. What mostly enthralled me though, was the directing and the photography. On the whole, it was a movie that captivated you frame by frame. The acting was another surprise, although it should not have been, with such an impressive casting. Niki Vakali and Tawfeek Barhom were two names, which I am going to remember and watch over from right on. Andrea Osvart was pleasantly fitting to her role, like it was written for her. JK Simmons and Maria Kavogianni amazed me with the natural innocence of their romance. There was chemistry and simultaneously their acting was enviable. And, lastly, Christopher Papakaliatis has to be congratulated, because he did not only direct and write the film, but he also gave a fairly good performance.

Ιn spite of the economic crisis, some wonderful films have been recently released in Greece. This is one of them. Though not its target, it will make you too wonder how a country like mine has got to this mess. And perhaps it will push you to discovering it. If you do, you will even more wonder how a nation with such an amazing infrastructure and culture (neat modern cities/towns/villages with beautiful brand new buildings all over, ultra modern cultural complexes among which the unique brand new opera house-national library cultural park in Athens, fantastic museums, hospitals, science and education institutions, modern highways, sport centers etc etc and above all beautiful people+a highly educated modern young and not only generation, the country of M. Kallas, M.Mercury, N.Mouskouri,M. Theodorakis, Nober prize winners Elytis and Seferis, the country of Mykonos-Corfu-Rhodes etc) could ever find itself into such a catastrophic turmoil. This film won't answer your questions but will give you an idea of the causes. And at the same time will touch your heart with its humanistic message of how love (not any love, the specific love that the Greeks have a special name for and that is "Eros") can bring together in a magic way, persons which have learned/have been taught, that the "others" and only, never themselves, are to blame for their misery. Funny thing that though the magic of this place is not at all what the film is focusing on, anything but that, this magic is simply invincible and impossible to hide. The film is a very good one. And i mean in international standards. It will touch your heart and will make you cry even if you find the story a little unrealistic which is partly true. Yet, even if you see it as a modern fairy-tale, you will have to acknowledge that its background is absolutely realistic and true and will probably make you too revise some of your own ideas about things, like its characters do.

I could not expect anything less from Christoforos Papakaliatis! Excellent performances,realistic dialogs and a touch of Greek magic even through difficult yet realistic situations.All three stories kept you waiting anxiously for the conclusion.You get a fairly good picture of how economical crisis has affected different age groups all through a love story. I have to mention the music that gives a more dramatic aspect to every scene. Finally the beautiful scenery of Plaka makes you fall in love with Greece and forget, even if for a moment,all the everyday trouble Greek people go through everyday. I highly recommend it to everyone-Greek or not.

I'm no fan of love stories but I am interested in both Greece and Europe's refugee problem and this film is as much about those as they are about love. As a DVD it seemed a choice that my wife would probably enjoy, and I was right, she loved it and so did I. It's about youth, people at the height of their careers, and love in the twilight years. Surprisingly I related strongly to all three stories which run seamlessly one into another. They're all acted beautifully with J K Simmons left as a sort of dessert with Maria Kavoyianni as the cherry.

The director, Christopher Papakaliatis, who apparently also wrote the script, deserves a real budget and a shot at the best suitable script that comes along. The evidence is abundant in this movie but the best example of it is a dressing down that happens near the end of the movie, it's wonderful.

To think of all the grief that's rained down on Greece thanks to the refugee crisis, and then to watch this compassionate Greek take on the problem makes the US response look positively juvenile.