The Bathers
Director Eva Stefani
Countries Greece
Duration 45 min
Synopsis
"Love, dancing and partying, that's all I want and all I need." The woman telling us about her desires is of a considerable age, but the twinkling in her eyes betrays a young spirit. She's one of the many elderly guests at the Greek spas who refresh themselves with massages, mud and warm springs. At least as important as the healing effect of the spas is the social aspect of collectively taking the waters: chatting, gossiping, reading tealeaves and giving other guests the eye. Whoever thinks that old people always act old will be put in his or her place by director Eva Stefani's humorous observations. The mud bathers experience a pleasure in covering their naked bodies with ooze that is at once childlike and erotic, and a woman openly regrets her lack of sexual activity. Least subtle of all is what's going on at the village square, where in good Greek tradition a democratic forum has been set up for discussion and reflection. In practice, no one listens to each other but everyone just shouts back and forth, it even comes to blows once in a while, and ideological opponents aren't adverse to reaching a historical low point all over again.
"Love, dancing and partying, that's all I want and all I need." The woman telling us about her desires is of a considerable age, but the twinkling in her eyes betrays a young spirit. She's one of the many elderly guests at the Greek spas who refresh themselves with massages, mud and warm springs. At least as important as the healing effect of the spas is the social aspect of collectively taking the waters: chatting, gossiping, reading tealeaves and giving other guests the eye. Whoever thinks that old people always act old will be put in his or her place by director Eva Stefani's humorous observations. The mud bathers experience a pleasure in covering their naked bodies with ooze that is at once childlike and erotic, and a woman openly regrets her lack of sexual activity. Least subtle of all is what's going on at the village square, where in good Greek tradition a democratic forum has been set up for discussion and reflection. In practice, no one listens to each other but everyone just shouts back and forth, it even comes to blows once in a while, and ideological opponents aren't adverse to reaching a historical low point all over again.