Irene Papas Response To Antigone (1961)

Response to Antigone (1961)

The 1961 film, Antigone, starring Irene Papas is about a woman who is trying to rise up against the King of Thebes, Creon, who ordered the body of her beloved brother, Polynices, to be left unburied and unmourned. Her rise against the state and patriarchy causes Creon to not only sentence her to death, but to die alone confined inside a cave. The film provides a great visual to its written drama as well as following the plot and even the script very closely. The film does a great job in the beginning, introducing a short summary of Oedipus and his two sons Polynices, and Eteocles. Just like the written drama, the film explains who Oedipus is how the two brothers came to their tragic end. This is very helpful towards an audience that does not know about the previous dramas leading up to Antigone. Without this information, the film may be a little harder to understand because audiences would not know why Polynices died and why there is a new King of Thebes. The beginning scenes in Antigone is very
As a reader, the image being portrayed is of a strong women standing alone as a pillar supporting her protest against Creon and patriarchy. This makes the reader feel enriched with courage and strong will towards Antigone. In the film however, the audience can see Atingone’s emotions as she is addressing the crowd and it is not the same as the drama. Not only does Antigone show strong will but she also expresses grief, rage, and hate. An audience can not help but feel remorse for Antigone. Her desperate cry for justice against the crime committed against the Gods is powerful. Her griefs that she is alone in her fight because villagers are afraid of the wrath of Creon. Her rage towards Creon for his refusal to change his stubbornness and curses him for his wrong