I watched Pasolini's Medea for the first time in years. It was easier to understand having seen Jason and the Argonauts as a child, but reading about it (the play, the movie and the myth in general) on Wikipedia clarified some things I didn't understand. For example, Medea dismembers her brother and leaves his body parts strewn about so her father, who was pursuing her, would have to stop and take time to pick them up.
Maybe if the rest of the movie had been clearer to me, like why she hacked her brother to death, I would have been less understanding about her actions at the end. Still, I don't remember Jason being such a jerk in the other movie.
Opera star Maria Callas in the title role (doesn't sing.)
In the beginning, the cintar tells 5-year-old Jason a story. It's difficult to understand, he says, because it's full of deeds, not thoughts.
Admirers of the movie might think I'm an idiot, but (maybe) approach it like an opera. I heard this guy on the radio say that the way you go to the opera is that you read all about it, learn the storyline before you go so you can relax and enjoy the music, because you're never going to follow the plot by listening to the lyrics.
Available on Fandor.
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