Jason The Greek

Jason The film Zorba The Greek was a lot like another film I've seen. The protagonist, Basil, comes under the wing of the charismatic Zorba and spends the rest of the film surviving under a whirlwind of manipulation and abuse that he ultimately can do nothing about but accept. Zorba is driven by ideas and plans that nobody but himself seems to fully understand. Basil is timid and unsure of himself, from his own abilities to his own desires. He doesn't seem to know what he wants out of life. Zorba, on the other hand, seems to be only in pursuit of his own means, tagalongs be damned. In the end of the film, our protagonist, Basil, finally understands that he can't best Zorba in determination or spirit and decides to accept his place in the shade of Zorba's character.

What does this movie sound like?

The quest for identity in Zorba The Greek is similar to the quest for identity in Fight Club. While the narrator (sometimes called Jack) struggles with his own personal identity as a human being in Fight Club, Basil struggles for any identity at all in Zorba. Basil is an outsider on Crete; he doesn't understand the customs or traditions. He is not only lost within himself, but he is lost in a new culture as well. It was an interesting film to watch because we are all experiencing, to a lesser degree, a similar feeling of awareness about our cultural identity. We are visiting instead of setting up a business, as Basil was trying to do, but we experience some of the same speedbumps. Basil's past as an Englishman didn't come into play much; what we mostly observed was that he was clueless in general. His past didn't matter except that he was different. He was not a native. That was the point, and it's something we are all feeling too.

Minutes ago, I just read the introduction to a new book by a chef I highly admire, and part of his introduction was that he intended the book to help visitors slip in the 'local scene.' Cultural identity is always present, and the distinction of being a tourist and being a member is very divisive. We've been very fortunate to have been treated mostly very well here in Greece, but there is no denying that we are not treated as locals. 'Tourist' is our identity here in Greece, and while some people feel very differently about that title, we can't deny that we are defined by our foreign nature.