158 Iphigenia

[Finch]

After mistakenly slaying a sacred deer, Agamemnon is ordered to atone for his sin by the gods. In order for them to guarantee safe passage for his armies to Troy, he must make the ultimate sacrifice: the death of his beloved daughter, Iphigenia. Torn between family and country, he attempts to keep the details of the impossible ultimatum from his wife, Clytemnestra (Irene Papas, We Still Kill the Old Way), choosing to deceive her while he wrestles with the implications of his decision, while those around him wait tensely for his answer. A masterpiece of epic Greek storytelling, Iphigenia is the third film from Michael Cacoyannis (Zorba the Greek, Elektra) to be adapted from a Euripidean tragedy, and one of the director’s most acclaimed and successful films, nominated for both the Palme d’Or and the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY FEATURES

High-definition digital transfer, on Blu-ray for the first time in the UK
Uncompressed mono PCM audio
New interview with Greek film expert Dimitris Papanikolaou on Michael Cacoyannis (2025)
Archival press conference interview with Michael Cacoyannis (1977)
Archival interview with director Michael Cacoyannis and actress Irene Papas (1977)
Newly improved English subtitle translation
Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Time Tomorrow
Limited edition booklet featuring new writing by Vrasidas Karalis
Limited edition of 3000 copies, presented in full-height Scanavo packaging with removable OBI strip leaving packaging free of certificates and markings

Released in the UK/US: 23rd/24th February

[TMDaines]

I know absolutely nothing about this, but look forward to buying and discovering it.

[domino harvey]

It was released on Blu by Olive, if you can believe it. Guess I should finally watch my copy! Though I didn’t care for Cacoyannis‘ Trojan Women adaptation, so hopefully this is an improvement on that

[knives]

I like it. It’s subservient to a lot of similar adaptations such as Pasolini, but as a fun experience it works.

[zedz]

A disappointing release considering it was already available on BluRay. Following on from knives, it's much, much stuffier than Pasolini's mythic films (and much less intellectually bracing than Straub / Huillet's).

[kekid]

During the playback of this Radiance disc (Iphigenia), there is a short hesitation every so often (kind of like a hiccup). I found it very distracting. It does not happen during the extra features, and I have not experienced it on any other Radiance disc. (I am not a technical person, but it feels like a discrepancy in the frame rate of the source material and the produced disc - just my guess; it could be something else.) I will appreciate if someone can test it and share an opinion.

[Matt]

I bought a new, sealed copy on Amazon US and was surprised to find, on the last page of the booklet, the notice: "Not for sale. For promotional use only."

Did I really get a promo copy from a retail outlet? Or did this notice somehow not get removed from the booklet for retail copies?

[criterionsnob]

I just had a look at my copy, which is direct from Radiance, and it says the same thing. So I guess that's a printing error.

[Matt]

During the playback of this Radiance disc (Iphigenia), there is a short hesitation every so often (kind of like a hiccup).

I just watched it all the way through and didn't notice anything like this. There might have been a couple of missing frames here and there, but nothing consistent or distracting.

I feel like I should mention that the film has not undergone any sort of complete digital restoration for this release. It is obviously an older or perhaps "lightly" restored transfer. There is noticeable dust and some vertical lines in one shot, and there are visible reel change markers (which, to me, are kind of nice to see again, but youngsters raised on pristine Blu-ray transfers from OCNs may not be pleased). But otherwise the film looks good. I especially love the long, wordless stretches in the first half of the film where the soldiers assembled in Aulis are just lazing around in golden hour light, waiting for the wind to start blowing so they can sail to Troy. I have no idea about their historical accuracy, but the costumes are quietly impressive in that they look authentic, hand-made in every respect.

There are times when the drama gets heated and the film feels more theatrical than cinematic (like one of those American Film Theatre productions from the '70s), but the young Tatiana Papamoschou is shockingly restrained and touching in the title role, showing the true nobility of her character compared to the fearful "great" heroes like Agamemnon and Ulysses.

I just had a look at my copy, which is direct from Radiance, and it says the same thing. So I guess that's a printing error.

Thanks for confirming that. I've never seen that happen before.

[Radiance]

I bought a new, sealed copy on Amazon US and was surprised to find, on the last page of the booklet, the notice: "Not for sale. For promotional use only."

Did I really get a promo copy from a retail outlet? Or did this notice somehow not get removed from the booklet for retail copies?

MGM make us write that in which is why it only appears in titles licensed from them. Same for other disclaimers.