All language subtitles for iphigenia.1977.1080p.bluray.x264-usury.eng

A Greek Film Centre
Production

A Film by
Michael Cacoyannis

Irene Pappas
Clytemnestra

Costa Kazakos
Agamemnon

Costa Carras
Menelaos

Tatiana Papamosckou
Iphigenia

THE ABDUCTION OF HELEN BY PARIS
STARTED THE TROJAN WAR

THE OFFENSE AGAINST MENELAOS
BECAME AN OFFENSE AGAINST GREECE

AND THE KINGS OF GREECE, LED BY
AGAMEMNON, BROTHER OF MENELAOS…

GATHERED IN AULIS WITH THEIR
ARMIES AND ONE THOUSAND SHIPS

AND WAITED FOR THE WINDS TO BLOW

I want to go through.

Get him up.

King!

Follow me!

Agamemnon, where are you going?

Get them all.

The deer! Not the deer!

IPHIGENIA

Decision! Decision!

We want a decision! We want a decision!

Why don't the leaders say anything?

Why don't the leaders say anything?

Odysseus!

The people demand sedition!

The little master of Ithaca!

Don't underestimate him, Menelaos.

He has many faces
and he is a demagogue.

They want promises!

- Move to a different port!
- A solution!

The right…

The right solutions
are born by patience and trust.

Do I have yours?

You have it!

Odysseus, go forward!
The army supports you!

They have been blaming us openly.

They call us puppets of the Atreides
for our indecisiveness.

We left our homes to fight,
not to rot under the sun.

When Greece rose for war
and was roaring, seeing us off to Aulis,

we were all saying,
"We have the gods with us."

And then we became silent.
We were counting the fiery days.

And we were waiting for the leader
of our leader to make a decision.

But he preferred to respond by
his silence until we reached a dead end.

If needed, we will be
the first to break the barrier of silence.

Yes!

When there is no choice,

there is no decision other than this,

to dissolve the army.

Is that what you want?

I am asking you!

I speak not as Menelaos' brother,

nor as the husband
of Helen's sister, Clytemnestra.

I speak like a Greek
who puts Greece above all.

And I say…

I say… I prefer to die here in Aulis,

with my eyes staring at Troy,

rather than retreat,

listening to the laughter
of the barbarians flaring up,

along with my shame.

As for the gods, they say that
they test those whom they love.

Our endurance should convince them.

The gods have spoken.

Well! Speak!

If there is a full moon,

and a sacrifice is given
to the gods, as they deserve,

fair winds will blow.

Their will be done. Go!

Tell the news to the army.

Open the holds. Give them to drink.

Tonight we have a feast.

Wait!

In order to do the gods' will,
you have to know what it is.

You told us.

The oracle is more explicit.

You read it.

- "To Artemis…"
- Loud!

"…to the virgin goddess,"

"guardian of the sacred forest of Aulis"

"that was desecrated
by the Greeks with blood,"

"the king of Argos…"

You! Read!

"The king of Argos, Agamemnon, must…"

"Must sacrifice"

"his first-born daughter, Iphigenia."

"If he accepts, the ships will sail,"

"the Greeks will defeat Troy.
Or else, they will never leave."

No!

Agamemnon! Agamemnon!

Nobody should find out about this.
Do you hear?

Tell them their will shall be done.
I will dissolve the army!

Agamemnon! Agamemnon!

Agamemnon! Agamemnon!

Let them go through.

We're going to Troy! We're going to Troy!

Gods of the winds, make the winds
blow so we can go to Troy

Make the winds blow
so we can go to Troy

To surround the walls…

Iphigenia!

Iphigenia!

From Father?

Marriage? Me?

Read.

"Marriage with the son of Peleus,"

"king of Thessaly and Thetis."

The bravest of the Greeks, Achilles.

Tomorrow we leave. In the morning.

- But Father writes…
- Let him write.

He is just a man. What does he know?

Go on this journey by yourself!

And me not be able
to dress you as a bride!

What kind of a mother would I be?

- Bring my husband back!
- And my child!

And my son!

Stop drumming!

- What happened?
- He wants us to stop drumming.

Iphigenia.

- I can't sleep.
- It's normal.

Tomorrow morning we will be in Aulis.

You have to be rested.

Can I sing you a song?

To lull you to sleep,
like I did when you were little?

Come inside.

What is it?

Nothing.

It seemed like the wind was blowing.

Aphrodite

Let me feel the joy

Of love

And not

And not its madness

And not even

Not even wild passion…

Hear? Wild passion.

Like her sister, Helen.

She gave up husband, home and kids.

For the bed of Paris, the barbarian.

But think, to start a war for a woman.

How long before dawn?

Sirius has passed half the way,
walking towards dawn.

What silence!

Neither the rustling of leaves
nor the voice of a bird.

Only you are troubled, my king. Why?

The army is sleeping, the guards
keep watch all night. Stillness.

Go to sleep now.

I envy you, old man.

You and all the others
who live in oblivion.

I don't want to hear these
kinds of words from powerful men.

Is there anything sweeter
in life than glory?

It might be sweet, but it's full of traps.

The higher you go,
the easier you are ruined by envy.

King, something bothers you.

My old back can take it. Lean on it.

Say it to lighten your burden.

Let's go in.

In order for the winds to blow,
I must sacrifice my child.

My daughter, Iphigenia.

As soon as I heard the oracle,
I wanted to dissolve the army.

I knew I could not do it.

And not only did I not care,
but I was full of joy

until my brother got hold of me.

He besieged me with a lot
of arguments, supplications.

He threatened me, he wore me down.

I wrote to my wife
to send the child, the bait.

Marriage with Achilles. I praised him.

I said that he refused to leave for Troy
if he did not mix his blood with ours

to leave behind a woman
from our bloodline.

So with such cowardly, deceitful words,
I set a trap for my wife.

I said it cannot be. So many days.

It cannot be. So many days…

The winds will blow.

And now…

I wrote to her again tonight.

The truth.

And Achilles?

He does not know anything.

Here is the letter.
Take it and leave immediately.

Put wings under your feet.

You know the way.
Be careful you don't fall asleep.

- Don't worry.
- Be all eyes!

My daughter's coach
should not overtake you.

Don't worry.

Get hold of the reins and drive her
back to her mother in Argos.

All my hopes

are in your hands.

Get up!

Traitor! Get in, traitor!

What's the meaning of this shouting?

Ask me. Not this worm. Me.

- Good.
- My words count.

Now the kings go against the slaves.
Why do you insult him?

Look me in the eyes, Agamemnon.
Look at me!

If you want me to answer.

You forget that our father,
the brave Atreus,

had me before he had you.

I am not terrified by your eyes.

Do you see this?

I see it.
Who gave you the right to break my seal?

And who gave you the right
to plot behind my back?

Is it my family or not?
I do whatever I want with it.

You don't even know what you want.
You go crazy!

- Today this, tomorrow that…
- Guilt! It is the mother of impudence.

And the disorganized mind
is the mother of treason.

You are rude!

Go away.

Do not hide behind your rage
so that you can avoid the truth.

I will stay here and you will hear it.
All of it.

And then, if you can, deny it.

I don't think I need to remind you
how methodically and fiercely you fought

to be elected by the Greeks
as the chief commander against Troy.

You were approachable then, humble.

Your door was wide open to anyone.

You were distributing briberies
and smiles even to your enemies.

You won. The countless hands
that you shook along the way,

they put you up where
you had the ambition to be.

First among the first.

And you changed immediately.

Yes, Agamemnon.

The pure, loveable people
stopped being loveable to you.

You shut your doors, you had guards.

"The Commander Chief is busy!
We cannot disturb him."

Power is a weapon
to help not ourselves, but the others,

those that have given it to us.

Otherwise, it is in unworthy hands.

Let me finish!

One day we came to Aulis,
and with the first setback,

the mighty commander of the Greeks
did not know what to do.

Your confidence went flat
along with the winds.

You weren't giving me a chance.
Weak-minded, ready for anything.

As long as you
wouldn't lose the opportunity

to be commander of a thousand ships
and get the glory

in Troy.

Then Calchas comes
with his merciless oracle

and opens the way for you.

In the beginning,
you faltered and shouted.

Then, ambitious as you are,

you came to terms with your conscience

and you wrote to your wife
with your hand, not mine,

to send Iphigenia to Aulis.

You concocted the marriage to Achilles.

And now, making another turn,
you wrote slyly and secretly from us

reneging on promises
that are still ringing in our ears.

But this is how politics is.

Few are those that reach the top
and don't stumble.

The big responsibilities need brains
and strong shoulders.

I cry for Greece.

When all her youth rise
to fight for her honor, you

bring her to her knees.

When are we going to learn

that a commander's value
is what really counts,

and not his ancestry?

Since our childhood,

the thing that distinguished us
from each other was ethos.

Don't expect from me
words coupled with vulgar grimaces,

sarcastic smiles, and flattery.

Look at those eyes, bloodthirsty.

Why? Did I do you wrong?

Or, for your fine wife,

whom you weren't able to keep,
do you want me to pay

with blood?

My ambition bothers you.

You,

who are ready to bury logic and emotions

for the body of a whore.

It is better to be ambitious than corrupt.

I confess.
The oracle clouded my judgment.

Now I see clearly.

Only you have stayed blind.

You think that the elders of Greece
go to war for you and your honor.

They just wanted an excuse,
and you gave it to them on a platter.

Their dreams of invasion are
getting wilder because of Troy's gold.

Well, take them. Go to your war.

Get rich!

As for me, I will not
defile heaven and earth

with an unnatural act,

pulling out my very own guts.

Gods, do you hear him?

Now he is debasing your oracles.

An unholy oracle is not a god's oracle.

- Then whose is it?
- You know very well. Calchas'.

A pure fabrication of his jealous mind.
A conspiracy with my enemies.

- I don't believe my ears.
- When you wake up, you'll believe it.

Well, I don't count, but Greece…

You'll abandon her
in her most critical moment.

You have made Greece sick.

You should cure her.

I see that I waste my words in vain.

Now others will hear them.
And they will judge.

My horse!

Agamemnon!

Where is King Agamemnon?

Where is the chief commander
of the Greeks?

Where is King Agamemnon?

Where is the chief commander
of the Greeks?

My king, I come from Argos

escorting your daughter
Iphigenia to Aulis.

She is not traveling alone.

Her mother is with her, Clytemnestra,

and the little Orestes.

The Queen has told me
to come here before them

so that you can start the feast.

And you, Menelaos, give order
to welcome the bride with songs.

This day begins with smiles,

because the happiness of your daughter
will be blessed by a whole army.

I thank you.

Everything will be done as fate desires.

Fate governs now. Not me.

What can I say? Where do I start?

I know it is a shame to see a king cry.

- Stop.
- The others can, not us.

The crowd prohibits us.

How can I face my wife?

Why did she come?
She did not listen to me.

But she is a mother.
She came to glorify her daughter.

Listen to me.

A child, an innocent
and unsuspecting child.

How can I keep my heart from breaking

when I hear her voice
begging me, her father, not to…

Helen!

All my curses are upon you!

You and Paris.

Give me your hand.

Take it.

You won.

No, I don't want you to kill for me

and rebuild my life
upon your own laments.

Besides,

your child is also my blood.

When the knife falls,

how can I stand in front
out there, a spectator?

Me, who is responsible.

It is not your child's fault

for my own marriage, for my own insult.

Listen to me.

You will dissolve the army.

Now I ask you this as a favor.
For both of us.

The hatred between the brothers
is an open wound.

Poison!

Your words have healed it.

But now there are
no more bridges behind us.

There is no turning back.

Who can force you to kill your child?

The army.

The thousand-headed monster
that I govern.

We will let her escape secretly to Argos.

You forget Calchas.
Do you think he will be silent?

We will silence him

forever.

And the other one
who knows everything?

- Odysseus?
- Him.

Odysseus does not dare to go against us.

He dares, and he can, and he will do it.

He has been fighting
for such a chance all this time.

He won't lose it.

Or do you think he will take pity on us?

He will proclaim loudly to the army

that I betrayed both Greece and them.

And if he rattles
the beast, heads will roll.

Ours first, and then…

This is the awful truth.

I see it in the eyes without hope,

without support,

with despair my only ally.

And I ask the gods,

if gods exist,

"Why?"

My hat. Don't forget my hat.

You two in front of us, hold the horses.

My Orestes is sleeping. Take him.

Careful, my good child. Careful.

I need hands to support me.

My baby is tired.

Mother, Mother. If I run first
to hug Father, will you be mad at me?

Why should I be mad?

You think I don't know
that among all my children,

you're the one that loves him the most?

The dowry now.
Everything down. Careful.

Father!

Father?

I missed you. You don't know how much.

And I missed you.

I would make a thousand journeys
just to see you. And you?

Me? Me what?

- You are not happy to see me?
- I'm happy.

You say it, but your eyes betray you.

Why are they sad?

A leader has many concerns, my child.

You will forget them all.
Immediately. All of them.

As long as I am here, I want you all mine.

I am all yours.

As much as I can, all yours.

Then why are you frowning? Smile!

You cry? You cry, Father.

Why? What is going on?

I think that soon we will be separated,
that I will lose you.

Why do you confuse the later
and the now? You spoil it.

The wiser you speak,
the less I can bear it.

If it is like this,
I will start speaking nonsense.

Is that what you want?

That's what I want.

Stay with us, Dad. Don't go to Troy.

I wish I could, my love.

If my curses could come true,
I would curse the weapons

that kill people.

The weapons don't only kill them.

Try to win the war quickly
and come back.

This depends on the gods,

if their will is done.

What will? Do you know?

Then you should do it right away.
What is it?

A sacrifice.

Here in Aulis today.

Can I come with you? I will help you.

I will have you by my side to the end.

Will we dance around the altar?

Father!

Go now.

Iphigenia!

Come here.

Put your hand in mine.

Squeeze.

And now kiss me.

My beloved hair.

Leave!

Queen, forgive me. I am shaken.

Although this marriage
gives me joy, I am a father.

And I am a mother.

You don't need to explain something
that I feel as strongly as you.

But time is a great doctor.
It will help us to adapt.

Where will we talk?

I have many things to ask you.

Let's start with the one
you chose to be the groom.

He is from a famous lineage.
He is a descendant of Aesop.

Iphigenia! Iphigenia!

And who was his teacher?

Chiron, the centaur.

He brought him up away
from the people and their ploys.

And he stayed pure.

A parent who knows how to choose
a good teacher is twice-wise.

Well?

This is the man
your daughter is getting married to.

So modest that he actually wants
to keep his marriage a secret.

So be it. And when will it take place?

- As soon as the moon is full.
- May Artemis bless them.

Did you do all the necessary things?
A sacrifice to the goddess?

Not yet.
I will take care of it as soon as possible.

And the marriage feast? Where will it be?

By the seashore,
next to the ships of Argos.

What a strange choice,

to establish life in the shadow of war.

I don't like it.

Whatever happens, you are my wife
and you will comply

with this and with everything else
I will ask from you.

Not to worry.

I drink the bitter
glass of obedience drop by drop.

Tell me.

Our daughter.

I will take her to the ceremony.

I am her father.

And where will her mother be?

In Argos, with her children.

Leave? Now?

You are insane.

The mother takes care
of the daughter's marriage.

It is her duty. And a custom, too.

The case is closed. No more discussion.

And I don't accept Agamemnon's wife
wandering around the barracks!

I gave birth to her!

I will marry her!

You have two more younger daughters.

How do you leave them alone?

Guards protect them outside the walls,

and inside, worthy hands
take good care of them.

Are you going to listen to me?

Yes or no?

No, by Hera, I will not listen to you.

The whole world is your dominion,
so rule it!

But in my household, I'm the ruler.

Do we agree?

I'm going now.

I have a lot to do.

What has become of me?

Even my own decision

has become a disgrace.

Stacking lie upon lie.

Deception upon deception.

Quickly! It has to happen quickly,

before the truth catches up with us.

I'm going to see Calchas.

Since evil must happen,
let it happen immediately.

The secret still holds.

Everybody believes that you're
preparing a sacrifice for the wedding.

It beat me even in that!

It said everything will happen in its time.

Let the sun go down.

Not now!

- Where are you going?
- Somewhere, somewhere to wait.

Somewhere far away
so that they don't see me,

and I don't see them.

Where is the camp of the Myrmidons?

Where can I find Achilles,
the commander of the Myrmidons?

He is gone since dawn.

He took his horsemen for training
in the mountains.

- Will he be late?
- They should be back any time.

As soon as he comes back,

tell him to hurry and come
to Agamemnon's tent.

- Great news awaits him.
- Don't tell me that we'll sail!

From what I heard, I think
it will be something relevant.

Then don't worry. I'll catch him
just before he gets off his horse.

We saw them down at the beach
when they were racing.

We saw Ajax.
Every step of his was an earthquake!

Palamedes, son of the sea,
as fast as a dolphin!

- Brionis, the beast of Crete!
- Nestor of Pylos.

And Diomedes.

He was throwing a discus
and his body was shaking like a chord!

And the big shock was the fleet.

A thousand ships,
like a forest rooted to the sea!

And among them golden mermaids
on the bows of the ships!

My father's fleet.

A thousand ships for a woman!

My mother's sister.

Where is the king?

I am the son of Peleus.

I heard that you came, my king.
And I came out to greet you.

Modest

and handsome, like they told me.

- And you, who are you?
- Good question.

How would you recognize me?
You are seeing me for the first time.

Whoever you are,

you don't look like a woman
who wanders around in the barracks.

I don't know how I look,
but I know who I am.

Clytemnestra,

Agamemnon's wife.

In a few words, you told me
the most important things,

but forgive me, I don't know
how to speak with women.

Achilles, don't go!

Such moments cannot
be expressed with words.

Come.

Come, let me hug you.

Whose will is that, the king's or yours?

I would say it is our will since you'll be
our child in a little while.

Me? Your child?

It might be a secret,
but I am the bride's mother.

- You are insane!
- Oh! You young people!

How parents-in-law scare you!

Queen!

Listen to me.

I never asked your daughter to marry me,

nor has your husband
talked to me about this.

- What did you say?
- The truth.

It can't be.

But

even if it's a lie,

your words are killing me.

This lie is neither a burden
to me or to you.

It's hidden somewhere among us.
Not to worry though!

- Achilles!
- It won't stay hidden for long.

Leave!

The way I feel now,
lam ashamed that you look at me.

I've been deceived!
Dishonored! Humiliated!

Not only you!
I'm going to find your husband.

King, wait, don't go!

Who spoke?

For the love of god, they shouldn't see us!

What do you want?

Unspeakable things. How can I tell them?

And if I won't speak,
how can the evil be undone?

- He's hiding something.
- I'm here, close to you.

- Who is he?
- A faithful man, an old slave of mine.

- Yours forever.
- Yeah, yeah, mine since I was little.

Faithful to you above all.

If you know something,
say it, whatever it is.

Time goes on. Where could he be?

He will come.

And the girl? Who will bring her?

The mother?

Him!

Fast-moving ships
decorated with mermaids

Sail with the wind
so that we conquer Troy

Sail with the wind
so that we conquer Troy…

Where is Father?

He promised to take me to the sacrifice.

- Let's go find him.
- Let's go.

My child's life?

For Helen?

Now you know everything.

Do whatever you can.

Don't expect her father to do anything.

My child, my child,

a sacrificial lamb!

Fate…

I can't bear it!

I'm falling to pieces!

Son of Peleus,

did you hear that?

Did you hear that?

I heard. The greater your lament is,
the greater is my rage.

You were the bait.

They are killing my child in your name!

Your husband! He did everything!

And he will settle this with me!

No! Look at me.

I'm at your feet, kneeling without shame.

What is shame now
compared to my great loss?

Don't let them kill the one
that was going to be your bride,

although she's not. I know it.

Say no to death in your name.

"Achilles' bride," this
is what they'll say,

"slaughtered on the altar
with her father's blessing!"

Pity us! Don't leave me alone.

A woman surrounded by a crazy herd
of a bloodthirsty army.

I have no asylum
other than your own knees.

I have no other altar.

Reach out and support us.

Since childhood I've been taught
to walk a straight path

in words and in action.

I will listen to the Atreides
as long as they govern well.

But only then. Not otherwise.

In Greece, I'll be the most miserable one,

not son of Peleus,
but son of a hateful scum of Hades

if I become their unwilling accessory.

Your daughter. They called her my fiancée.

She's my fiancée to them, as they said it.
Nothing more.

If I wanted marriage,

a thousand girls are waiting,
each better than the next.

But not to be Agamemnon's puppet.

If he needed my name,
he should have asked me.

If he would convince me that
he wanted it for Greece, why refuse?

I want the best for the army above all.

But he ignored me!

The great Atreides ignored me.

Me and my honor.

Don't worry.

Whoever dares to lay hands
on your daughter,

he'll be the first to paint my sword
with blood.

How can I thank you,

and not seem like I'm ungrateful
if I stay silent?

We've said all there is to say.
It's time to act.

Whatever you tell me to do, I'll do it.

First of all, you'll talk to your husband

and do everything
to bring him back to his senses.

If we can avoid violence,
it would be prudent.

It will be better for everyone
to keep the men from gossiping.

And if I fail?

Don't worry.
I'll be watching closely with my army.

- Are you here?
- As you can see.

Fortunately, I find you right on time.

Fortunately? For whom?

Send them to bring me Iphigenia.

Everything is ready
for the wedding sacrifice.

The water for the drink offerings
and the barley,

and the calves with the tender throats
will sprinkle the altar with blood.

What a pity.

If your beautiful words were acts,
it would be so beautiful.

I'll ask you only this,
and if you're a man, you'll answer.

Why are you challenging me?

Ask whatever you want.

Will you

kill your daughter?

What did you say?

Whose sick mind poisoned yours?

Don't yell.

Answer me.

How can I answer such
an inhuman question in a humane way?

I asked once, and I'm asking again.

Will you answer?

Your silence is enough.

There is no need for more words.

Why should I debase
my pain with more lies?

But I will speak
without spin and innuendo.

Knives are speaking at this point.

You married me. How?
With a crime. You wanted me.

I never did.

You killed my husband,
Tantalus, and you kidnapped me,

and when my brothers
rushed to get revenge,

what did you do?

You crawled at my father's feet.

You relied on a weak old man,
asking for mercy,

and mercy you got,

and even something more,

me for your wife.

The years have worn off my hatred.

I converted my submission to power.

And I supported your house
with my devotion.

Next to me your power shot up.
Your fame, your wealth, like a mountain.

I gave you everything, children,
this boy, and before him three daughters.

And all of them
are my own flesh and blood.

And now you want to kill one of them?

And they will ask you why.
They will ask you why. Why? Why?

Why did you kill her?
What will you say? Say it.

That with the blood of your child
you're paying ransom for a whore!

How nice!
To give that which you love the most

for something that you despise!

And if you go to Troy,

what courage and desire will I have
to support your house?

In every step of mine,
I'll hear her footsteps.

And in the shadows
her eyes will burn like candles.

Alone! Dressed in black.
I'll count the dark hours with dark curses.

Day and night I will cry,
"My husband is a killer!"

"A father and murderer."

Someday the war will be over,

and if you survive, I'll be waiting
for you together with my children,

our hatred like a viper.

A viper with four heads.

That much, only that much will be needed.

An excuse, nothing much.

Don't do it! Don't throw me to the evil!

When the blood flows on the altar,
where will you be looking?

Will you have your eyes closed
and be praying?

What kind of prayers do infanticides pray?

Or would you want me to pray for you?

If there is a god, why should I mock him?

You should think it over carefully.

All of it.

Even if glory has blinded you

and you care for nothing but power,

you have to prove it now.

Aren't you the leader?

Tell them,
"Greeks, we are all involved in this war."

"Let's draw lots and let fate decide
whose daughter will die."

That would be just.

Otherwise, let your brother Menelaos

sacrifice the daughter
that Helen bore him!

She started all this evil!

Why should I pay for her disgrace?

Why should I destroy my life

so that I can fix hers?

I'm done.

She is your daughter as much as mine.

Have pity on her.

The time is drawing near.
He is waiting outside.

Run and get Iphigenia.

Milady, I don't where she is.
She's disappeared.

Where is she?

I don't know.

The army is waiting.

The oracle speaks the gods' will.
It will become known.

I wish that she'll be found
as soon as possible.

I say that for your sake.

Don't!

I can't! I can't do anything!

Split into groups.

Where are the others? Where is my guard?

In the temple.

This is why he brought her from Argos.

- Iphigenia, his daughter.
- The sacrifice must take place today.

- Today!
- And the winds will start blowing!

The gods order for the honor of Greece

and for her youth who are
willing to die in battle

that Agamemnon, as leader of the leaders,

must be the first to sacrifice his child.

And Greece will triumph!

Sacrifice! Sacrifice!

This way!

Come!

There!

Go!

Run!

This way!

This way!

There!

Father!

I wish I could, like Orpheus,

sing and make even the rocks love me.

I wish I could sing to you,

but I can't.

So, tell me, what should I do
for you to have pity on me?

To cry? I am crying.

To beg you as much as you want?
To kneel and kiss your feet?

It's me, Iphigenia.

The first of your children
to call you Father.

It's me, who you held in your arms,
kissing and saying,

"My child, may the gods empower me
to see the day when you'll marry a king."

And I pulled your beard and said,

"When you get old you'll come to me,"

"and for every caress that you gave me,
I will give you a thousand."

No! Father! No!

If you don't have pity on me,
have pity on my mother.

If you kill me,
it's like killing both of us.

Why don't you look at me?

What am I asking you for? Nothing.

Just one glance, one kiss,

so if my words go to waste,

I will remember your kiss at that moment.

Why should I be blamed for Helen?

Why should I be blamed
for Paris falling in love with her?

Orestes, my beloved one,
I know you're still young.

You can't help me, but try.
Come. Kneel with me.

Beg him.

Father, look.
He's begging you with his silence.

Look at us! Look at your children.

Here, at your feet. Both of us.

A little boy. So little!

And a girl who longs to live.

To live. To walk under the sun.

Why would I want to die?

I would be insane.

It's better to be unhappy and alive

than dead and glorified.

- King, have pity on her.
- Let her live.

I know better than anyone else
how much love there is in a father's heart.

And how much pain.

I would give my life, if I could,

for my children.

But I can't. This can't be undone.

It must be done.

My daughter…

My sweet daughter, listen.

A thousand men are waiting all around us

with lethal weapons in their hands.

The oracle told them that they'll never
see Troy unless I offer the first victim.

Nothing holds them back!

The frenzy of war simmering
inside them for months is now boiling.

If I stop this, they will say
that I support the barbarians.

They will not only exterminate us,

but your sisters, too,
and the whole city of Argos!

I'm not Menelaos' slave,
and he cannot rule over me.

I have only one master, Greece,
which I serve and she commands.

Let's go. The army knows everything.
We should hurry.

You see, Greece is more powerful
than both of us.

Even when she asks us
for something so horrible,

it is for her own good.

This is what all Greeks believe…

That this is the only way to victory.

Did he leave? Did my father leave?

He's playing with my life. Mother!

Come. Let's cry together,
unite our pain in a lament.

Sun

You that give

Light to life

Hide so that death
will not find us…

Sacrifice should take place
so that we can conquer Troy!

Quickly! It's started blowing.

Sacrifice! Sacrifice!

Listen to me!

Listen to me!

Everything is a lie!

It is Odysseus' fabrication!
I say it to you, your king.

Agamemnon gave his daughter to me!

Not to him! To Artemis!
Sacrifice for the victory.

Let Calchas be my witness! And god!

Sacrifice!

She's the fiancée of your king.
Will you let them kill her?

Yes!

We came here for war
and not for weddings!

He was dazed by love!

- He deserts us for a woman!
- Yes!

Sacrifice! Sacrifice!

- Their cries are flaring up!
- They're coming towards here.

I don't want it! I'm scared.

Mother, I'm in pain.
My eyes hurt, my heart hurts.

It's from the fear, Mother,
and from the hatred.

I hate her!
Helen, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!

So many soldiers, and there is not
even one man to help?

My mother, my dear mother,
where is my father?

Where did the wind go?
Why doesn't it come to Aulis?

Imagine that in the open sea
people are drowning,

begging the gods for the wind to stop.

What an injustice!

Achilles!

- Let me hide. I'm ashamed.
- It's not time to be ashamed.

We'll fight any way we can.

Let me through!

- Poor queen!
- I thought that you wouldn't come.

I just made it. Don't you hear them?

- They come running like a violent river.
- What are they shouting?

- That your daughter…
- What?

- I don't want to hear it. But I must.
- She will die at the altar.

So nobody was there to say no?

I did. And almost paid with my life.

- How about your own people?
- Even my own people, as everyone else.

We're doomed.

We're doomed, my child.

I know that, too.

Don't be afraid. I will fight for you.

May the gods reward your courage.

They'll reward me, if they have eyes.

- Should I have any hope?
- Yes, as long as I'm alive.

Sacrifice! Sacrifice!

- Odysseus is leading them.
- He wouldn't dare.

He's capable of dragging her
by her hair to the altar.

Sacrifice! Sacrifice!

- What should I do?
- Don't let her go. Hold her tight.

They'll have to cut
both my hands off to take her.

Sacrifice! Sacrifice!

Be ready! As soon as I tell you.

Go back! Don't let them see you.

Bring me my bridal veil.

And the bridal wreath.

Mother, listen to me.

It's not in our benefit when we want
the impossible. Don't even try.

I know it's difficult for you. But for me,
it's even more difficult to live.

Listen to me, and you'll understand.

It's so simple.

Today I will die.

I cannot avoid it.

But how will I die? Only I will decide.

And I have decided.
I'll die peacefully, proudly, beautifully.

This will be for me some kind of victory.

Mother, you must, you must understand.

The Greeks, in one voice,
request my death.

How will I defy them?

I'm just one, and they're thousands,
eager to die fighting.

Why me? Am I worth more than them?

Or even more than one of them?

What would you say
if you were their mother?

And one more thing.

Today, we made a friend.

Will I let him die fighting a whole army?

I'd be ungrateful and I don't want that.

I want him to live.

It would be such a pity
to waste such courage

for one unimportant life like mine.

Because of all this, since Greece
wants my life, I give it to her.

Death will be my wedding,
children, and glory.

Mother, that's how it is.

You should be grateful that we are Greeks

and not barbarians or slaves.

If the gods loved me,
you would have been mine today.

I envy Greece that is taking you away.

I envy you for the glory she gives you.

There is nothing that
I wouldn't do to save you.

Speak, before it's too late.
There's no coming back from death.

I'm not afraid of death.

I know it.

I'm just thinking how much blood
will be shed for Helen,

and I say that's enough.

Don't kill for me.

And above all, don't get killed.

Since death could not bend you,
what can I say?

I want you to know one thing.

You can change your mind
at the last minute.

I'll be close.

Don't forget this,

I don't want you to die.

Mother, don't.

If you want to help me,
you'll do what I ask from you.

Yes, my beloved. I will try.

Tell me what to do.

Do not dress in black
and do not cut your hair.

Not even that?

- Not to mourn my child?
- No.

Because I won't have a tomb
other than the altar.

I want you to be proud and to show it.

You speak so wisely. What can I say?

And your sisters? What should I tell them?

Nothing.

They have their lives.
And let them be well.

You should also kiss them for me.

You should bring up Orestes for me
to become an important man.

Give him a hug.

For one last time.

My little boy, you did
everything you could to help.

Is there anything else you want from me?

There is.

Don't hate my father.
He is not to be blamed.

He is! And he'll pay for this.

He does this without wanting it.
A sacrifice for Greece.

Not sacrifice. Murder.

Murder!

Sly, cowardly murder.

Has the time come?

Yes, Mother.

I'll come with you.

No, Mother. I beg you.

I'll hold your veil. Nothing else.

No, I'll go alone.
It's better for both of us.

Don't leave me!

Mother, I want to be strong.

Help me.

Let's go, my dear friends.

Enough with the tears.

Start singing to wake up the winds.

They'll set sail.

Don't leave.

Don't go.

Farewell, my beloved light.

To the ships!

Iphigenia!

Iphigenia!

Scenario - Direction
Michael Cacoyannis

From the Tragedy by
Euripides

Music
Mikis Theodorakis

Set Design - Costumes
Dionysis Fotopoulos

Photography
Giorgos Arvanitis

Production Manager
Giannoula Wakefield

Christos Tsagas
Odysseus

Panos Michalopoulos
Achilles

Angelos Giannoulis
Servant