VHS : Eleni

Rating: - Great story about the reality of communism on Greece
This is a fantastic true story about a boy, his mother and his family who are caught up in a communist revolution. If anyone is in doubt about what a choke hold communism can put on a country, see this movie. After you see the movie you might even come to the conclusion that US Senator Joe McCarthy(American patriot, anti spy - anti communist Senator who was railroaded by congressional liberals and the press to the point that his name was made into an adjective in American dictionaries. They made an outcast of him and forced him to live the rest of his short life in disgrace. In 1995, upon the declassification of the CIA's "Verona project", this great man was proven right about everything he claimed including the people that he accused of being communist spies.) wasn't such a bad guy. This movie shows what the reality of communism is without the sugar and icing on top.

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Rating: - Left wing Hollywood machine
All freedom loving people need to remember how Communists and their twisted ideology destroyed the lives of so many millions of people around the world including this wonderful lady in a village in Greece.

Since this film truthfully depicts the horrors commited on innocent people in the name of Communist ideology, Hollywood will take its own sweet time in releasing it in DVD format.

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Rating: - Astonishingly authentic recreation of a period
Having lived in Greece during the period portrayed in the film, I was dumbfounded by the extremely accurate recreation of the period. In addition to their other accomplishments, the creators of this film (producers, set designers, scripwriters, director, actors and others) deserve great praise for authentically reproducing in every single detail the total environment of the Communist insurgency that lasted, with breaks, from December 1944 until the Greek army managed to finally crush the elusive rebels in August 1949. If there was an Oscar for authentic period reproduction, Eleni would win it hands down.

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Rating: - Powerful, Beautiful, Haunting
This true account of a mother's struggle in post-war Greece has haunted me for over twenty years. Since becoming a parent myself, I have often thought of Eleni's sacrifice. It is a great mystery to me why this fantastic film has virtually disappeared from circulation. It's one of the most perfectly realized films you'll come across. The acting, direction, and photography are superb. It's worth owning just for Bruce Smeaton's brilliantly unique musical score. I've tried, without success, to find Greek music in a similar vein.
Much of the opposition to the film in 1985 came from critics who insinuated an anti-Marxist political bias. But they missed the point. The film depicts the story of a mother removed from political machinations that are grinding around her. Eleni wasn't a reactionary, she was a loving mother. Besides, should "Shindler's List" be discredited for having an anti-Nazi political bias? Of course not. Great film.

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Rating: - Great Movie "Eleni"
I loved this movie, I have been looking for it for a long time, when will this be coming out on DVD.