Little England (film)

Little England (Greek: Μικρά Αγγλία, romanized: Mikra Anglia) is a 2013 Greek period romantic drama film directed by Pantelis Voulgaris. Based on the novel of the same name by Ioanna Karystiani (Voulgaris' wife) who also wrote the screenplay,[1] it features an ensemble cast starring Pinelopi Tsilika, Sofia Kokkali, Aneza Papadopoulou and Andreas Konstantinou. The plot revolves around two sisters, Orsa and Moscha from the island of Andros, dubbed Little England because of its affluence, who are both in love with Spyros; it starts in the interwar period and ends in the 1950s.

Little England
Theatrical release poster
Μικρά Αγγλία
Directed byPantelis Voulgaris
Screenplay byIoanna Karystiani
Based onMikra Anglia
by Ioanna Karystiani
Produced byGiannis Iakovidis
Starring
CinematographySimos Sarketzis
Edited byTakis Giannopoulos
Music byKaterina Polemi
Production
companies
  • Mikra Anglia
  • Black Orange
  • OTE TV
Distributed byFeelgood Entertainment
Release date
  • 5 December 2013 (2013-12-05) (Greece)
Running time
160 minutes
CountryGreece
LanguageGreek
Box office$3,078,029

The film achieved commercial success in Greece, as it was the second-highest-grossing film of 2013 and the first among Greek films. Little England also met critical success domestically and abroad. It was nominated for thirteen Hellenic Film Academy Awards and won six, including the award for Best Film. Internationally, it dominated at the 2014 Shanghai International Film Festival, winning three Golden Goblet Awards for Best Feature Film, Best Director and Best Actress, and it is also nominated for a Satellite Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Little England was submitted by Greece for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 87th Academy Awards, but it was not nominated.

Plot

The action takes place on the island of Andros, where Orsa, 20 years old, and her younger sister, Moscha, live. Orsa is deeply in love with Spyros Maltabes, a lieutenant, but she has never revealed her secret to anybody. On the other hand, Moscha dreams of leaving Andros and escaping women's fate of marrying sailors, who are usually away from their families. Their mother, Mina, married to a captain, considers love a trouble and, overriding their emotions, wants her daughters to make wealthy marriages. As a result, Orsa marries captain Nikos Vatokouzis, and Moscha to Spyros Maltabes, a captain now with whom her sister is in love. The two women live in the family's duplex home and the forbidden love will harm their lives.

Cast
  • Pinelopi Tsilika as Orsa Saltaferou
  • Sofia Kokkali as Moscha Saltaferou
  • Aneza Papadopoulou as Mina Saltaferou
  • Andreas Konstantinou as Spyros Maltabes
  • Maximos Moumouris as Nikos Vatokouzis
  • Vasilis Vasilakis as Savvas Saltaferos
  • Christos Kalavrouzos as uncle Aimilios

Release

The film was released in Greece on 5 December 2013. It was also screened twice as a closing film at the 36th Cairo International Film Festival on 17 and 18 November 2014.[2]

Reception

Box office

Little England was a major hit in Greece, where it grossed $3,078,029, making it the second-highest-grossing film of 2013 in the country behind only The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. The film grossed $537,314 in its opening weekend and topped the box office, while it stayed in the top four in the following six weekends.

Critical response

Boyd van Hoeij of The Hollywood Reporter describes the film as "A woman's picture in the best sense of the word" and a "handsomely mounted and impeccably acted film."[3]

Accolades

Little England dominated at the 2014 Hellenic Film Academy Awards, where it received thirteen nominations and finally won six awards, including that for Best Film.[4] The film met great success at the 2014 Shanghai International Film Festival, where it was also announced as the Best Feature Film and won two more Golden Goblet Awards.[5] The film was selected as the Greek entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 87th Academy Awards.[6]

Award Date of ceremony Category Recipients and nominees Result
Hellenic Film Academy Awards[7][8] 14 April 2014 Best Film Little England Won
Best Screenplay Ioanna Karystiani Nominated
Best Actress Pinelopi Tsilika Nominated
Sofia Kokkali Nominated
Best Supporting Actor Christos Kalavrouzos Nominated
Best Cinematography Simos Sarketzis Won
Best Editing Takis Giannopoulos Nominated
Best Music Katerina Polemi Nominated
Best Scenography Antonis Daglidis Won
Best Costume Design Gioula Zoiopoulou Won
Best Sound Stefanos Efthymiou, Kostas Varybobiotis and Takis Giannopoulos Won
Best Make-up Evi Zafiropoulou Won
Best Special Effects and Cinematic Innovation Antonis Kotzias and Antonis Nikolaou Nominated
Satellite Awards[9] 15 February 2015 Best Foreign Language Film Little England Nominated
Shanghai International Film Festival[10] 22 June 2014 Best Feature Film Little England Won
Best Director Pantelis Voulgaris Won
Best Actress Pinelopi Tsilika Won

See also

References
  1. Boukala, Ekaterini. Ελληνικός κινηματογράφος και λογοτεχνικές μεταφορές: μελέτη περιπτώσεων (in Greek). University of Western Macedonia. p. 68.
  2. "36th Cairo International Film Festival Programme" (PDF). Cairo International Film Festival. Retrieved 29 November 2014.
  3. van Hoeij, Boyd (3 July 2014). "'Little England' ('Mikra Anglia'): Shanghai Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 25 November 2014.
  4. Bouras, Dimitris (16 April 2014). «Μικρά Αγγλία» μεγάλη νικήτρια ["Little England" the great winner]. Kathimerini (in Greek). Retrieved 29 November 2014.
  5. Cremin, Stephen (22 June 2014). "Little England wins big in Shanghai". Film Business Asia. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 29 November 2014.
  6. Grivas, Alexis (9 September 2014). "Greece enters Oscar race with Little England". Screendaily. Emap International Limited. Retrieved 25 November 2014.
  7. Βραβεία 2014 [Awards 2014]. Hellenic Film Academy (in Greek). Retrieved 29 November 2014.
  8. Antiochos, Giagos. Η «Μικρά Αγγλία» πρωταγωνίστρια στις υποψηφιότητες των βραβείων της Ελληνικής Ακαδημίας Κινηματογράφου ["Little England" dominates in nominations for the Hellenic Film Academy Awards]. Athinorama (in Greek). Retrieved 29 November 2014.
  9. "Current nominees". International Press Academy. Retrieved 12 December 2014.
  10. "17th SIFF in Numbers". Shanghai International Film Festival. Archived from the original on 1 July 2014. Retrieved 25 November 2014.
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