Stella

Stella sings in a taverna in Athens. She lives by her own rules: she attaches herself to nobody, refuses to marry, and leaves when she wants to. The footballer Miltos falls in love with her and wants to marry. She refuses and then agrees. On the wedding day everyone is waiting in the church. Stella does not come. Miltos takes it as an insult. Mihalis Kakogiannis directs. Melina Mercouri plays Stella. The source is Iakovos Kambanellis's play. It is Mercouri's first film. She came from the theatre and became internationally known with this part; in later years she left acting and became minister of culture in Greece. The character was unusual in Greek cinema. Stella does not repent, does not defend herself and does none of what society expects of her; nor is the narrative built to punish her. The music is by Manos Hatzidakis and the songs became classics in Greece. It screened at the Cannes film festival and belongs to the period in which Greek cinema began to be seen internationally. The ending is built as inevitable and the film makes that plain from the start; the tension comes not from what will happen but from when. Who it is for: viewers who like classic Greek cinema and drama with a strong woman at the centre. Who it is not for: the melodrama is heavy, the prints may be worn, and the ending is harsh.