Electra (1962)

It is hard to imagine a better screen adaptation of a Greek tragedy than this version of Electra, based on the Euripides version of the story. Irene Papas is stunning as the young woman whose thirst for revenge blinds her to its repercussions. Papas portrays Electra with single-minded ferocity; her second thoughts once the awful deed is done to her mother are believable because she is, after all, a highly principled person, and only after she has carried out her mission can she see how wrong she was. Writer/director Michael Cacoyannis neatly opens up the play without detracting from its powerful language and emotions. The black-and-white cinematography by Walter Lassally makes a big contribution to the film's stark, yet somehow tender, look at a doomed family tragedy played out against a stark landscape. Nominated for an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, Electra unaccountably lost to Sundays and Cybele, an intimate and modest drama, but with nowhere near the power of this film. ~ Tom Wiener, All Movie Guide