Les petites aphrodites

First, a confession - I was ready to like this film even before I saw it, because it was based on a classical text set in Greece ("Chloe and Dafnis", an early romance). What I wasn't ready for was the frank exploration of attraction, sex and perceived self-worth that this film offers. Imagine if someone was able to capture the essence of the mating ritual, stripped of nearly all its cultural clutter. That is what this film does, and in hauntingly beautiful tableaux vivants.

What happens in the film? Well, the film opens in the distant past, as group of shepherds arrive at a new location to water their animals. On arrival, a young boy finds a local girl fishing and begins a tentative courtship. At the same time, an older shepherd does the same with a bird-catcher. But who is falling into whose nets? As we watch both couples, a series of themes are presented. Why are we aggressive in love? What do we understand of the engines of attraction? Can we ever come to know one another, or are we always strangers wandering? This film, shot in the early 1960s, gives its viewers questions that are far more modern than expected, and yet as old as the subject itself. This is a love story, provided that you understand that love is an absolutely unfathomable mystery.

I have 3 different DVD versions.

One is from CMVC which is dubbed in English. The dubbing is very good and non-intrusive. The picture quality lacks punch however and 6 minutes have been cut from the original.

From Amazon you can get the Cinema Epoch version. This contains the full uncut movie and uses English subtitles. There is more contrast to the picture. Yet the subtitles really litter up the beautiful images presented in this movie.

From EBAY I was able to get a copy from Greece. This version is uncut, with no dubbing or subtitles. It is in the original Greek. Since there is little dialog to begin with, this is really no big deal especially if you have watched it a lot. This version has the best picture quality. But the sound is not that good. There are parts where the actors voices seem to lose volume all of a sudden.

I would love to get a version which is uncut, with great audio and video.

I bought "Young Aphrodites" on videotape from Movies Unlimited several years ago. Atmy first viewing I was enchanted. Eventually I watched it so many times over the following years that I wore it out. The two youngsters (the boy sheepherder and the village girl who interests him) are the main story. Also, there is a story of an adult couple. The passionate pursuit of the bird tamer (young woman) by the shepherd (young man) and the sexual consummation of that pursuit colors the story of the boy and girl. A dead pelican? seems to be the unusual center of the boy's attempts to interest the girl. Not entirely sure why he is pursuing the girl (but having an idea from having stumbled on the sexual encounter of the older couple, he invests her with an innocence only to find that he has a rival in the form of another boy. This boy sees the girl as a sexual conquest. The rivalry, the innocent pursuit and its shattering resolution end the main story and the sheepherders return home.

There will be two reactions from the average movie viewer. You will either think this is garbage or you will think this is the highest expression of movie-making. I fall in the middle.

On the one hand, the concept and creation of this film is flawless. It is a Greek film by Nicos Koundourou, one of the greatest directors to come from Greece. It is the story of the discovery and pursuit of love in a nomadic community in 200 B. C. There is minimal dialogue in the movie. With the minimal dialogue you will find yourself emotionally invested on the individual lives of the main characters. Dialogue, indeed, is not needed. The story is told through the movement of the actors. This is a very visual film. All one needs to do is look at the action and body language of the actors and you will know what is going on. In some ways this movie can be described as a limited silent movie. Moreover, Koundourou employed many non-actors in Young Aphrodite; many were actual shepards in real life. However, this did nothing to take away from the finished product. This alone gives an air of authenticity to the movie. Many parts of this movie are striking and compelling. A very unique movie experience.

On the other hand, the movie suffers in very accurately and laboriously depicting what everyday life is like for shepards suffering through a drought. As a result, a good part of the movie will show the tedium and boredom of a shepard's life intersperse between incidents of real action. Most will probably look at this tedium and dismiss the movie itself as boring. This is a mistake. This film is one of the best examples of an art-house film. Shot entirely on location, this can be viewed time after time and still be enjoyed.

Like the other reviewers above, I too was captivated by this movie upon it's initial (and seemingly short-lived) theatrical release. It must have been about 1968 or 1969 when I saw it at one of those 'arty' type cinemas in Sydney, and I am almost certain that that copy was overdubbed in English, which made it a lot more watchable, even if it did upset the lip-synch! I was enthralled from the very first frames, and all I can do is agree with an earlier reviewer who noted that he/she did not want it to end, and another reviewer who stated that it was like a beautiful dream that one wishes that one could have every night.

Sure, there are a few glitches in the continuity, and many more in the reasoning behind the screenplay (?) but the whole beauty of this little gem of a film is in the IMAGERY, supported mostly by the minimal dialogue, and gorgeous musical score. You can actually believe that you are looking through a time-window into an ancient coming together of opposing faiths and forces.

I have a subtitled copy on VHS, which was cross-recorded many years ago from my original copy on Beta (before the Beta died), but it was originally recorded from our SBS channel (still in its formative years in the early 1980's) and the quality leaves something to be desired. (Ghosting of the images, which leaves some scenes difficult to watch, and several picture rolls, due to the advancing age of the tape.) Even so though, it is still a powerful piece of work, and I would dearly love to have a crisp, clear copy on DVD.

As none seems forthcoming, I shall have to rely on the annual playing of my copy on VHS, and simply remember how achingly beautiful it was on the big screen, all those years ago..........