THE ONLY JOURNEY OF HIS LIFE

Georgios, obsessed with an adolescent girl, is promised her hand in marriage. But instead of being brought to the ceremony he's conveyed to an insane asylum, where he spends the rest of his days. And thus ended the life of one of Greece's greatest authors, Georgios Vizyenos (1849-1896). And thus begins THE ONLY JOURNEY OF HIS LIFE, a literary biography unlike any you have seen. In his bleak cell Vizyenos continues to write his marvelous tales, if only in his head, and you are his listener. Join the ill-starred author as a young boy, an apprentice tailor in Constantinople, full of wonder and tremulousness at a world of princesses, eunuchs, slaves and masters, that seems sometimes like a fairy tale, sometimes like a nightmare. The title refers to another Vizyenos classic woven into the narrative, about Georgios' beloved grandfather and muse, who suffered a bizarre disguise during childhood to protect him from invading Turks, and was effectively restricted from enjoying life, as much restrained as by the cruel straight-jacket that now binds his grandson, the storyteller. A landmark of cooperation between Greek filmmakers and Turkish producers, actors and technicians, THE ONLY JOURNEY OF HIS LIFE takes you on a voyage into bittersweet dreams. (In Greek with English subtitles)