TOP 10 OPEN AIR MEMORIES

Meryl Streep wins the 20th (!) Oscar nomination for the role of the discordant soprano singer, Florence Foster Jenkins, in a feelgood biographical comedy by the film director of “High Fidelity”, “The Queen” and “Dangerous Liaisons”. Starring with her, Hugh Grant. — The cosmic New Yorker Florence Foster Jenkins thinks she's the nightingale of the opera, when in fact she cannot sing at all. Her husband and agent, St. Claire Bayfield, a fallen English aristocrat and actor, sustains this illusion. When Florence decides to give a concert to the legendary Carnegie Hall in 1944, St. Claire realizes that he has to face the greatest challenge of his life. — Nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role (Meryl Streep) | Oscars | 2017 Nominated for Best Achievement in Costume Design | Oscars | 2017

A hilarious mainstream Italian comedy with sharp commentary and situations that would be plausible anywhere in the Greek provinces, traversing the fine line between legal and illegal. — Municipal elections are upon a small Sicilian village, Pietramare. The current mayor is a corrupt man, ready to continue serving in a similar fashion. This time, however, a new candidate seeks office, an idealist and exemplary citizen. Against all odds, he wins the elections and a new era of legitimacy and order begins. Are the villagers ready to welcome the change?

One of the most notable entries in the thriving Spanish thriller wave, and a true descendant of the American school of its kind, this movie combines two impressive performances alongside images of an increasingly helpless society. — Madrid, 2011. Hottest August in the history of the Spanish capital. A million and a half Christians are waiting for the Pope and security forces are closely supervising the city. The celebratory atmosphere is violently interrupted by a series of awful crimes: elderly women are found murdered, with signs of sexual assault. Two unlikeable detectives are forced to work the case, for which they receive the following instruction: solve the crimes as soon as possible and with the utmost secrecy. — Jury Prize for Best Screenplay | San Sebastián Film Festival | 2016 Best Lead Actor (Roberto Álamo) | Goya Awards | 2017

Art and con become the same in this existential buddy movie taking place in the exciting world of art galleries and the ways with which they trade with the public. From the director of “The Distinguished Citizen”. — Arturo is an unscrupulous art dealer and Renzo is a socially-awkward painter and Arturo’s longtime friend. Willing to risk it all, they develop an extreme and ludicrous plan to save themselves.

Τhe centenarian tree and its value and symbolism in a time where everything can be bought, make for an optimistic film, written by Paul Laverty, Ken Loach's long-time screenwriter. It's full of feelings and misunderstandings, the stereotypical cornerstones of the Mediterranean temperament. — A 20-year-old girl lives in a Spanish village. She has a special fondness for her grandfather, even though he stopped speaking years ago. When he refuses to eat, she believes the only way to help him is to bring back the olive tree his family ripped from the soil and sold 12 years ago. Without a plan or money, she convinces relatives and friends to follow her in her quest for the olive tree that belonged to her family for more than 2 millennia.

Originally drawing from the cinema of Yannis Economides, Fokion Bogris soon develops his story by following his own unique path, and provides us with one of the finest samples of fresh Greek cinema, with noir references and remarkable realism in the depiction of his world. — Vaggelis, a remnant of the rave generation, gets by selling weed. He would like a steady job with no risks. Petros, a thug from the southern suburbs. He wants respect and a family. Katerina, unwittingly, brings them under the same roof. — Best Supporting Actor Award (Stathis Stamoulakatos) | Hellenic Film Academy | 2021

Ten Hellenic Film Academy Awards, Greece's official entry for the Oscars, numerous festival distinctions and two outstanding performances by Vangelis Mourikis and Argyris Pantazaras, in Tzortzis Grigorakis’ directorial debut that combines western, ecology and ancient tragedy in the Greek province. — Withdrawn in a mountain forest, a man fights against an expanding industrial unit in the area. His alienated son’s arrival after his ex wife’s death and his claim for the part of the estate that she left him, will soon result in a clash between the two men. — CICAE Award | Berlin Film Festival Panorama | 2020 Best Actor (Vangelis Mourikis) | Sarajevo Film Festival | 2020 Silver Alexander for Best Film | Thessaloniki Film Festival | 2020 Audience Award | Tessaloniki Film Festival | 2020 10 Iris Awards | Hellenic Film Academy Awards | 2021

The director of "Serial Bad Weddings" welcomes those who want to see a hilarious French comedy with a social conscience, which criticizes and, at the same time, plays around with stereotypes about social classes and philanthropy. — A well-known intellectual leftist advocates the need to offer asylum to those who need it. When the host of a TV show corners him about the existing Roma Gypsy problem, he takes on a challenge: to open his house and play host to a Roma family.

Nothing would be the same in European cinema after the first screening of what turned out to be one of the most influential films in history. The week of Marcello, Paparazzo, the stars, the ephemeral glow and fake idols, a journey to life’s true meaning. — Wandering through a privileged enclave of Rome, Marcello, a gossip journalist, encounters elegant aristocrats, hungry artists, vulgar nouveau riche, charlatans and "magicians" of the elite nightlife. He discovers that beneath the surface of their deceptive grace lurks emptiness, despair and loneliness, all of which lead to an implacable thinker friend finding a tragic end. — Palme D'Or | Cannes Film Festival | 1960 Best Costume Design | Oscars | 1962