VeteranLight I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

InformationRap This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

Arianna Moses Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

Billy Ollie Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

dougdoepke Leave it to French filmmakers to coddle pinkos. Never mind that the guy most interested in bringing about justice in the movie is a bland bureaucrat. If he has any political leanings, they sure don't affect his mechanical search for truth. Seems a bunch of pinko peaceniks are winning more hearts and minds than the right-wing government can allow. And since these elites stand for everything good, right, and godly—just ask them—they plot the assassination of a chief peacenik (Montand). Fortunately, they've got their street thugs to bust up pinko rallies and carry out their sneaky plot. And since they control the cops, they insist the peacenik's murder is really nothing more than an accident. Trouble is they're still honest doctors and attorneys who haven't yet been replaced. They're the ones who manage to uncover the right- wing shenanigans. So, all in all, the bad guys aren't danged peaceniks or commies. Instead they're right-wing nationalists who'll even seize all of government if they don't get their way. And so much for what's left of the democracy. And, yes, a military coup under such circumstances really did happen in Greece in 1963. So the in's and out's dramatized here are not really just the over-heated figment of some pinko filmmaker.And, oh yes, thank you Mr. Costa-Gravas for your steady-stream spotlight. It's engrossing as heck.

dannieboy20906 From 1947 to 1949 the United States supported Greece in its fight for freedom from a Communist insurgency. This reviewer characterizes that as a "Civil War." It was not civil (most civil wars are not), but it was fought against foreign Communists supporting a Communist Geek minority in an attempt to seize control of the country.I haven't seen the movie and would prefer an actual review of the movie rather than the reviewers whine. Nothing in the review reprises the plot, discusses the actors, the writing, or the music. Much more information is needed. If the reviewer wants to blog about politics, there are many boards at other internet sites available where he will be free to spout his pro-communist diatribes to his heart's content. Please provide information about the movie and opinions about the quality.

leplatypus The minus is only because for a « Greek » movie, having Algeria for location and cast hasn't the flavor of the real Greece ! But Gavras hasn't the choice either because at the time, it was still the dictatorship there and at least, Theodorakis' score helps to feel this culture.In all cases, this movie is just amazing. In our dark time in which democracy is stomped, this committed production is just a needy breath of air. For one time, political power isn't told as courageous, bold, historic but rather as corrupted, authoritarian. In short, the movie doesn't depict them as how they would like to appear but rather as how they really are. It's also a excellent lesson in constitutional law as it illustrates the meaning of the separation of powers : a real democracy is where each power is independent. Thus here, you can conclude it isn't one as the administration is vehement to tell the judiciary what it must does. At last, it's a extraordinary story about courage and conviction. A bit like « Schindler's list », this movie demonstrates that the psychopathic state relies on individual and as soon as one says « no », he can become the little grain of stand that blocks the machine. Here, Trintignant is a young judge who stays truth to his function and it's all the more funny and powerful that he's highly clever : he doesn't look up much but he knows exactly what to do to put the culprits in his web !In conclusion, this movie is just an oasis in film history and it should inspire newcomers to do the same instead of serving propaganda !

McCamyTaylor I re-watched this one recently, and (as usual) I was blown away by it. Once you start watching "Z" it is difficult to stop. There is a "what's going to happen next?!" feeling that grabs hold of you close to the film's beginning and does not let up until the very end. Which is strange, in a way, because you already know what it going to happen. "Z" is a lot like watching a Greek tragedy---"Antigone" or "Oedipus Rex". Or "Hamlet".So, how does "Z" manage to stay fresh even after multiple viewings? That was the question I asked myself as I sat down to watch it again. And because I was paying attention this time, I realized that the editing in this movie is godly! Anyone who thinks that actors (or special effects or music) make the movie, should watch "Z." This is no fictionalized documentary. This is poetry done in black and white that uses the visual language of documentary for additional visceral impact. And the film really is visceral. By its end, you feel that you have just watched your own country's political crisis, no matter where you are from.