Greek romantic comedy film written and directed by Renos Haralambidis.
An offbeat, ensemble comedy with a romantic heart at the center of a carnival of lost souls on a summer night in an almost deserted Athens. Nikos, a modern bohemian that – though content with his indolent lifestyle – is silently aching to love and be loved plucks up the courage to approach Sophia: the alluring woman he has just met at a phone booth. Sophia, a self-confident fashion stylist in her mid-twenties, thirsts to fulfil her aspirations; nevertheless, she is leading an ordinary life. But, opposites attract, and Sophia welcomes this knight in a not-so-shining armour. Now, over the brief course of the remaining evening, as they wander together through the empty city on this summer night what they finally manage to do is discover each other.
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Original Title: Φτηνά τσιγάρα
IMDb rate: 7,4/10
Cast:
Renos Haralambidis
Anna-Maria Papaharalambous
Michalis Iatropoulos
Vana Pefani
Kostas Tsakonas
Movie Trivia:
1. The film was shot within twenty-three days in August 1999, against the backdrop of an empty Athens.
2. Being Renos Haralambidis’ second film, “Cheap Smokes” brings to mind a jazz improvisation. Renos Haralambidis wrote the script as he was travelling, inspired by his encounter with beat author Paul Bowles, the plastic bags that spread across the flea markets of Tangier like garlands, and Jim Jarmusch’ films. The film, an homage to the centre of Athens and unfulfilled love, marked the early 2000s thanks to its urban romanticism and nocturnal, youthful aesthetic. It is often perceived as a journey from languid post-adolescence to maturity and from the 20th to the 21st century.
3. Receiving mainly bad reviews, the film was a commercial failure. However, the film hadn’t yet had its final say. It took several years for it to gain a larger audience after that complete commercial failure, at first thanks to its release on video and then over the internet. “People would approach me in the street”, Renos Haralambidis remembers, “having obviously watched the film on videotape and they would talk to me about it. And with YouTube the whole thing was catapulted to success!”, says the director Renos Haralambidis.
4. Having earned a cult status throughout the years, the film was adapted for the stage of Greek National Opera as a musical (“romantic operetta”) in 2022. According to composer Panayotis Kalantzopoulos, the film is an example of “masculine romanticism”.
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