Thodoros Angelopoulos

Medium: Film Video

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Artist: Thodoros Angelopoulos

Confronting Bodies: Greek government and Orthodox Christians

Dates of Action: 1972-1991

Location: Greece

Description of Artwork: Angelopoulos is known for his films critical of Greek's governments. One film, 36 Days (1972), features an innocent man who is arrested and killed by members of the Metaxas dictatorship, that ruled Greece during the 1930s. Another of his films, The Travelling Players (1975), is about a group of actors that travel Europe during World War II. The actors represent historical conflicts of the time like fascism and communism. The Hunters (1977) focuses on the Greek civil war and right-wing fears of communism and their consequences.

The Incident: Throughout his career as a filmmaker, Angelopoulos has dealt with censorship. His films are often accused of anti-nationalism. In addition, he has been accused of distorting historical facts to dramatize his works. The Travelling Players and The Hunter were both refused export rights. During the filming of one of his recent films, The Suspended Stride of the Stork (1991), in towns where Angelopoulos shot his movie Orthodox churches would ring church bells throughout the day and arrange demonstrations to interrupt the filming.

Results of Incident: Angelopoulos referred to the tactics of the Orthodox churches in his latest film, Ulysses' Gaze. Censorship of his work continued as Greece experienced a nationalist movement after the break up of former Yugoslavia.

Source: Censorship, A World Encyclopedia, ed. D. Jones