Thessaloniki international film festival early reviews

Evil (2005) Dir. by Yorgos Noussias

A Greek zombie apocalypse. From the pictures and trailers it just looks like a good time with no other plot than people trying to survive in different ways. Will they cross paths? Maybe. Its not the greatest movie that is going to change your life. But it is: low budget, disgustingly bloody and really really corny with funny characters that has those classic hollywood personalities and archetypes. If you are going to see a bloody kind of horror movie this should be it.

The Naked Island (1960) Dir. by Kaneto Shindō

If you are going to watch a black and white movie from this festival this should be it. It is 96 minutes with no spoken dialogue. Might seem boring and challenging but trust me when I tell you that it is really engaging and you will get lost in this beautiful drama about a family living and struggling through daily survival on their little island while also going through loss of family and grief. But I shouldn't say more, it’s one of those movies where the less you know the better applies.

Sirāt (2025) Dir. by Óliver Laxe

This thriller-esque film where we witness a dad and his looking for his long lost daughter in the desert and get acquainted with an extreme rave scene. They asked around and move around to another rave. In the trailer the military also gets involved so some extreme events definitely take place. There is a dog in the movie that animal lovers like me worry about the entire time. This film has twists and turns alright so be ready to be shook around. If you want a unique theme this has it.

U-Turn (1991) Dir. by Nikos Grammatikos

No its not the one with Sean Penn and Jennifer Lopez. This is a very unwatched movie where I had trouble finding a trailer, so much trouble I never found it. But the description was very intriguing to me, its about a lonely car thief that meets and falls in love with a mysterious woman, plot twist the woman has ill intentions for this guy. If you want a surprise of a movie this might be the watch for you, from the very few reviews it has it seems good enough. Might be one of those extremely hidden gems.

The King (2002) Dir. by Nikos Grammatikos

About a man who just got released from jail goes to live in a small village where his father came from. He moves into a house that is far from the village to be more alone, and not cause trouble. As things go with him doing petty jobs and villagers starting to not like his presence there. His past starts to catch up to him in the form of his old girlfriend from Athens. This is a great movie and you get to explore this sub-culture not many see or know about. This movie is also based on a true story. Which makes it even more interesting with that in mind.