ΕΑΝ ΠΡΟΤΙΜΑΤΕ ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΑ ΠΑΤΗΣΤΕ ΤΗ ΣΗΜΑΙΑ ΣΤΟ ΚΑΤΩ ΜΕΡΟΣ ΤΗΣ ΟΘΟΝΗΣ
OUR MAIN PHOTO: The main/central scene of the movie… Full of symbolism…
WE ARE DELIGHTED TO SHARE THE FULL MOVIE! A MUST-WATCH CINEMATIC MASTERPIECE — A PRECIOUS GIFT OF GREEK CULTURE, HISTORY, MEMORY, TRAGEDY AND THE ENDURING BEAUTY OF OUR HERITAGE!
By Nick Stamatakis
What a wonderful and unforgettable evening last night at the Stony Brook Greek Studies Center, under the dedicated leadership of Stella Tsirka! We had the special pleasure of welcoming acclaimed Greek director Tassos Boulmetis for a screening of his extraordinary film «Πολίτικη Κουζίνα» (A Touch of Spice). Although this cinematic masterpiece was released in 2003, I had never seen it before, and I was absolutely enchanted. What a revelation! This film is pure poetry on the screen—a magnificent tapestry of memories, history, love, longing, and the bittersweet experience of displacement, woven together through the aromas and flavors of Constantinople.
PHOTO: Tassos Boulmetis last Friday night at Stony Brook, at the “Q & A” after the screening of “Touch of Spice”…
More than a film about food, Πολίτικη Κουζίνα is a profoundly moving meditation on identity, family, lost homelands, and the invisible threads that bind us to our past. Through exquisite cinematography, hauntingly beautiful music, gentle humor, and extraordinary sensitivity, Boulmetis transforms the simple act of cooking into a metaphor for life itself. Every spice carries a memory, every meal tells a story, and every scene touches the soul. A triumph of Greek cinema—tender, nostalgic, deeply human, and unforgettable. I am delighted to share this extraordinary film with you.
Having grown up in a neighborhood of refugees from Smyrna, I still have their wonderful cuisine in my senses… Every time my mom took me to visit her friend Dina, my usual treat was a few sweet spoons of “pergamonto”… Every time I go back home, this is the first thing I ask for…
A special theme marked the discussion: “Why is the movie so beloved am,ong the Greeks abroad?” My answer to that was that “We are Greeks abroad as we are considered foreigners in Greece”, just as the main characters of the movie…
Enjoy this rare cinematic treasure!
