After mistakenly slaying a sacred deer, Agamemnon is ordered to atone for his sin by the gods. In order for them to guarantee safe passage for his armies to Troy, he must make the ultimate sacrifice: the death of his beloved daughter, Iphigenia. Torn between family and country, he attempts to keep the details of the impossible ultimatum from his wife, Clytemnestra (Irene Papas, Z), choosing to deceive her while he wrestles with the implications of his decision, while those around him wait tensely for his answer. A masterpiece of epic Greek storytelling, Iphigenia is the third film from Michael Cacoyannis (Zorba the Greek, Elektra) to be adapted from a Euripidean tragedy, and one of the director’s most acclaimed and successful films, nominated for both the Palme D’or and the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.
