Xenia (2014)

Stefanos (Konstantinos Georgopoulos) asks Dany (Kostas Nikouli) out in writer/director Panos H. Koutras’ 2014 film XENIA. Today’s post was written by author/critic Gary Kramer (@garyemkramer on Instagram) - Be sure to follow his Instagram account for fantastic reviews, as well as information on new queer film releases!

XENIA

2014. Greece/France/Belgium.

Director: Panos H. Koutras

Screenplay: Panagiotis Evangelidis & Panos H. Koutras

 Starring: Kostas Nikouli, Nikos Gelia, Patty Pravo, Yannis Stankoglou, Marissa Triandafyllidou, Aggelos Papadimitriou, Romanna Lobats, Loulios Tziatas & Konstantinos Georgopoulos

When gay teen Dany’s (Kostas Nikouli) mother dies, he leaves Crete for Athens to reconnect with his older brother, Odysseas (Nikos Gelia). The Albanian siblings hatch a plan to go to Thessaloniki. They hope to find their long lost Greek father—and shake him down for money and citizenship—and enter Odysseas in the Greek Star singing contest (think “American Idol.”) XENIA has moments of magical realism, from a talking rabbit to a wonderful visual of Dany lying in a field of grass that transforms into a large hairy torso. And there is also a harsh reality as well; when the brothers encounter xenophobia, Dany engages in some gunplay that forces them to go on the lam.

While the road movie plot is as old as Ulysses, and writer/director Panos H. Koutras strains credibility as the narrative plots climax, the leads are compelling, and a scene of the brothers dancing in their underwear is irresistible.

XENIA is streaming through Tubi, Kanopy and Strand Releasing (USA), for rent/purchase through AppleTV & Amazon, it’s also available on DVD/Blu-ray.