Storyline
For middle-aged Kostis, life has passed him by. As the newly appointed doctor of a tiny island, Kostis spends a dreary winter alone. By the time summer arrives, though, the island has turned into a thriving, wild vacation spot with nude beaches and crazy parties. When Kostis meets the beautiful and flirty Anna, he falls hard for her and goes out of his way to conquer and impress her. Before long, Kostis is spending nearly all of his time getting drunk, partying hard, and even making out with Anna. What starts as a rediscovery with his lost-long youth, though, slowly turns into an obsession as Kostis is willing to do whatever it takes to keep his Anna. Suntan celebrates the beauty and strength of the youthful body, while simultaneously embracing its inevitable decay.
I saw this movie at its premiere, at Rotterdam International Film
Festival 2016. The plot is a really simple story of a disappointed
40-something year old man, Kostis (Makis Papadimitriou, "Chevalier"),
who, while working as a doctor in Antiparos island, falls passionately
in love with a young Anna (Elli Trigkou). The movie is set in the
beautiful, yet crazy scenery of Antiparos, and it portrays its
atmosphere and hedonistic frenzy in a vivid and realistic way. The
drunkenness of summer and the liberal power of youth, as captured by
the lens of Argyris Papadimitropoulos ("Wasted Youth"), are constantly
being collated with the awkward phase of the middle aged body and the
protagonist's useless struggle of overlooking it. The photography and
visuals of the movie are stunning. Each frame is carefully set in a way
that the characters inner selves are revealed through nature. The
documentary-like feel of some of them serves as a catalyst in enclosing
the atmosphere of the place through the unfolding of the plot. The
body, and the ways we perceive it are also part of the plot, so be
prepared for a lot of nudism and strong language. Makis Papadimitriou
seems to be the best choice of portraying the disappointed,
dissatisfied man who falls victim of his own passions. His performance
is excellent, realistic and never over the top. Elli Trigkou is also
convincing as Anna, and the rest of the cast seems to be carefully
chosen. All in all, this movie is the vivid and painful hymn of the
coming of middle age. A must see.
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