Anthony Quinn, Alan Bates (1964, Fox Video,
unrated, b/w) Bates plays the British writer who can't get out
of his own head, and Quinn, in his finest performance, is the
lusty Greek peasant who teaches the bookworm to enjoy the dance
of life.
Michael Cacoyannis' film, shot in evocative
black and white on Crete, is every bit as dark and ascetic as
it is zestful and sensuous. Finally available on video again,
after a long hiatus, this is a movie truly worth owning: Watching
it anytime has the same effect as an intoxicant.
From The Critics Were Wrong:
Misguided Movie Reviews and Film Criticism Gone Awry
"'Zorba the Greek' is quite a bad film.Amid
the purifying scenery of Crete this tainted production slowly
unfolds.The manner of execution is as fixed as an aria, and neither
Quinn nor the director, Michael Cacoyannis, has invented so much
as a fresh trill."
Elizabeth Hardwick, Vogue, February 15, 1965.
The Critics Were Wrong: Misguided
Movie Reviews and Film Criticism Gone Awry, by Ardis Sillick
and Michael McCormick, A Citadel Press Book, copyright 1996 by
the authors (ISBN 0-8065-1722-0 )
 THIS JOYOUS, life-affirming film provided Anthony
Quinn with his best-known role, that of the infectiously high-spirited
Zorba. Zorba befriends a young Englishman, Basil (Alan Bates),
who has come to Greece to write a book on Buddha. Through his
relationship with the carefree Greek, Basil finds contentment
and learns to celebrate life with the same exuberance that is
a part of Zorba's daily life.
 ZORBA THE GREEK emerged from a
fine story adapted from the monumental novel of Nikos Kazantzakis,
the most talented Greek writer of modern times. The novel translates
well onto the screen, and neither content nor intent of the story
suffered at the hands of Michael Cacoyannis who authored the
screenplay and knew Kazantzakis at the end of the novelist's
life.
The story is powerfully simple.
Basil (Alan Bates), an English author in his thirties, is in
Pireaus, port city of Athens, awaiting passage to Crete. Having
recently inherited a small cottage and long-defunct lignite mine
there, he seeks the solitude of this rugged island for his writing.
The audience learns that Basil, at work on a biography of Buddha,
has been unable to convey the ascetic tranquility of this theologian
and philosopher while trying to write in the hectic, modern urban
atmosphere of England. While waiting for the ship in a crowded
transit room, Alexis Zorba (Anthony Quinn) enters the room. He
is quickly attracted to Basil, who is distinctive in his proper
English attire; Zorba introduces himself and informs Basil that
he, too, is bound for Crete. With this almost childlike introduction,
the viewer becomes a party to one of the most impetuous, loving,
and philosophically profound relationships to develop on film.
 Zorba
is in all ways the direct opposite of Basil: Basil is restrained,
quiet, and silently dignified in manner and dress; Zorba is robust,
unrestrained, and -- as reflected in his attire -- unconcerned
about appearances. Although in his fifties, Zorba is still strong
and tall, qualities which reiterate the sharp differences between
the two men. Once in Crete, their differences continue to manifest
themselves. Zorba is an ebullient yet gentlemanly pursuer of
women; Basil is shy and retiring. When a handsome village widow
calls Basil to her chamber, he goes only after Zorba implores
him to go. Meanwhile, Basil's appearance begins to suggest Zorba's
influence, as he ceases bothering to shave or change his clothes.
As the film progresses, Basil
incorporates in himself unmistakable influences of Zorba. A cathartic
incident at the end of the film reflects this evolution. Zorba
has implored Basil to repair and begin operating the lignite
mine which has remained dormant largely because of a lack of
sturdy timbers to prop up sagging walls. Zorba claims experience
in mining and proposes that Basil invest his inheritance in Zorba'
s elaborate sluice project. Basil agrees, and builds the sluice
which is supposed to float logs to them from a nearby mountain.
While a bevy of Orthodox priests christen Zorba's contraption
and local townspeople excitedly watch the celebration, Zorba
launches the initial log; then, all watch increduously as the
sluice disintegrates under the weight of its speeding load. With
the project a complete loss, Basil's monies are totally lost;
his response is to ask that Zorba teach him to dance on the beach
of Crete. It is the most hilarious scene in this film in which
humor constantly vies with seriousness.
 Basil's
simple request testifies to a major expansion of his attitude,
one inviting closer inspection since attitude and change are
the main philosophical concerns of the novel as well as the film.
The attitudes toward life embodied by Basil and Zorba were spawned
from the ancient Greeks and enshrined in their religious belief
in the gods Dionysus and Apollo. Dionysus was impetuous and passionate,
unreflective and irrational; his passions were expressed in the
strong emotional arts such as music and dance. There is little
doubt that Zorba's spirit is aligned with that of Dionysus. Basil,
on the other hand, represents Apollo. Rational and reflective,
passive and restrained, the Apollonian world view is expressed
in literature and sculpture, in the contemplative arts rather
than the active ones. Apollo checked the emotions, Dionysus offered
them free reign.
Although possessing opposite orientations
in the world, Zorba and Basil are for a brief time coupled in
harmony. Thus, when Zorba's sluice collapses, Basil opts for
the Dionysian remedy of dance. He, too, has a choice of acting
either rationally or emotionally. For the ancient Greeks, as
well as for the modern Kazantzakis, this temporary union marks
a rare peak of human experience, the material from which myths
are made.
While the story leads toward this
philosophic end, the entire film is a showcase for Quinn's brilliant
acting; this role stands as his finest achievement. He is physically
perfect as the wise, old, craggy and yet childlike Greek. He
exudes both experience and visceral wisdom. So powerful and arresting
was his performance that reviewers of his later films often refer
to his subsequent roles as Zorba the pope or Zorba the politician.
Zorba and Quinn, similar also to Dionysus and Apollo, had for
a time become one. Alan Bates, too, is convincing as Zorba's
shy, always reflective friend. Irene Papas is excellent as the
brooding, quietly passionate widow who desires Basil, and the
remaining cast, drawn from the people of Crete, lend unending
credibility to the film.
The black-and-white cinematography
of John Lassally is excellent, serving to reemphasize the almost
dark and light philosophies which Zorba and Basil represent.
The unforgettable musical score is carefully interwoven into
the film, supporting the visuals rather than competing with them.
Written by Mikos Theodorakis, the score effectively utilizes
native Greek instruments.
The success of the film stems
from many elements: the story rich with philosophic propositions
of venerable heritage, the outstanding contribution of Michael
Cacoyannis, the music, and the careful cinematography. In the
end, however, it is the acting of Anthony Quinn which makes the
abstract real, as he exudes his powerful presence in an uncommon
screen triumph.
Magill's Survey of Cinema © 06-15-1995
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