The Ogre Of Athens Limited Edition Blu-ray brings Nikos Koundouros’s biting satirical crime drama to high definition for the first time. A landmark of modern Greek cinema, this 1956 black comedy blends mistaken-identity farce with sharp social commentary, charting one man’s uneasy collision with power, reputation, and the illusion of respect.
 
Shy bank clerk Thomas (Dinos Iliopoulos) can barely keep up with the pace of contemporary Athens. But on New Year’s Eve, a chain of misunderstandings leads the public to mistake him for “The Ogre,” a feared criminal mastermind said to control the city’s underworld. Suddenly admired by men and desired by women, Thomas finds himself intoxicated by the authority he never had. Yet the fantasy quickly spirals beyond his control as the lie deepens and danger closes in.
 
Once a commercial disappointment, The Ogre Of Athens is now rightly celebrated as a key work of the Greek New Wave, rich in physical comedy, melancholy undertones, and incisive cultural critique.
 
directed by: Nikos Koundouros
starring: Dinos Iliopoulos, Margarita Papageorgiou, Giannis Argyris, Thanasis Vengos, Marika Lekaki
1956 / 103 min / Greek / Mono