Chevalier – Film Review by Frank L.

Directed by Athina Rachel Tsangari
Writers: Efthymis Filippou, Athina Rachel Tsangari
Stars: Vangelis Mourikis, Nikos Orphanos, Yorgos Pirpassopoulos

This all male drama was co-written by Tsangari and Efthymis Filippou. It is set on a luxury yacht somewhere in the Mediterranean. The six protagonists are from a variety of backgrounds. Why they are together on the yacht remains a mystery throughout. It is discernible, notwithstanding their different social backgrounds, that they belong to a privileged group. This is emphasised not only by the fit out of the yacht but by the presence of male servants to wait on table or the like.

Into this floating bubble in the Aegean sea their competitive instincts come to the fore, as they test themselves against each other in a variety of activities in order to discover who is the best man. There is more to these competitive jousts than boys being boys. Surprisingly some of them engage enthusiastically in activities which in a more heterogeneous society would be considered women’s work, such as cleaning the windows on the yacht. An extraordinary physical energy is displayed. It is important to remind oneself that the director of the film is a woman and Tsangari in her depiction of the men goes for unusual displays of individuality.

Two of the performances stand out. That of the nameless doctor (Yorgos Kendros), the most elite and educated of the group who maintains an aloof, eminence grise detachment and at the other end of the scale Dimitris (Makis Papadimitriou) who is a bit of a dumb cluck but who manages to maintain his dignity despite a fair deal of humiliating condescension from the others, including his brother.

It is extremely difficult to discern precisely what Tsangari is trying to achieve in this oblique depiction of masculinity but notwithstanding the elusiveness of the proceedings, she at all times keeps the viewer engaged in the strange proceedings she and Filippou have created.