All the Pretty Little Horses – Mikra omorfa aloga (2020)

Directed by: Michalis Konstantatos | 107 minutes | drama, thriller | Actors: Yota Argyropoulou, Dimitris Lalos, Alexandros Karamouzis, Katerina Didaskalou, Dimitris Kapetanakos, Kostas Antalopoulos, Vicky Papadopoulou, Antonis Myriagos, Efthalia Papacosta, Thanasis Nakos, Kostas Laskos, Stelios Karaiskos, Gloria Kat Inalifos,

Consciously or unconsciously, doomed circumstances pull on man like a black hole. There is so much stronger than us – a fact that has given birth to religions, astrology, art and humor, man seldom learns. Man can only learn to live with the (un)forgiveness of life and count his blessings.

In ‘All the Pretty Horses’ a family starts a new life, which the man (Lalos) initially seems to take without hesitation; the woman (Argyropoulou) has doubts. Does it always have to be this way? Often. Petros, Aliki and their five-year-old son move in with a wealthy woman, a house where Petros works as a handyman. Can that go well? Often not.

Human relationships have blessings as well as perils, shows us this skillfully made film by Michalos Konstantatos. The Greek man in his thirties debuted in 2013 with a comparable product in an equally minimalist setting, although ‘Luton’ is mainly about a complicated relationship between two men.

‘All the Pretty Horses’ is a mix of psychodrama and stylized calm, and it succeeds as such. The plot? Well the plot. This film is certainly not as confrontational as a Haneke; the actors are nothing more than decent. The tension builds, at some point you have had enough of the barking dogs and threatening silences in the background of daily activities.

Film is not only about effect, and it is a long wait until our (anti-) hero Lalos also gets tired of the tension. Waiting is okay unless a successful settlement is provided. Konstantatos has high expectations in that regard. He does this more with atmosphere than with emotion. Believe that he tries to make us bond with his characters, but it is not enough for a full-length film.