Directed by Nico Papatakis • 1967 • Greece
Starring Olga Karlatos, George Dialegmenos, Lambros Tsagas

Nico Papatakis’s caustic political allegory—made in the wake of the 1967 Greek coup d’état that led to the establishment of a right-wing military junta—takes the form of a deliriously unhinged romantic tragedy. Beginning with the image of an exploding goat and only proceeding to get stranger from there, THE SHEPHERDS OF CALAMITY (also known as THANOS AND DESPINA) centers on the forbidden romance between a poor shepherd (George Dialegmenos) and the daughter (Olga Karlatos) of a well-off family who find their love beset by the machinations of those around them.