Synopsis
Amidst a heated political climate, the opposition leader is killed in what appears to be a traffic accident. When a magistrate finds evidence of a government cover-up, witnesses start to get targeted. A thinly-fictionalized account of the events surrounding the assassination of Greek politician Grigoris Lambrakis in 1963, Z captures the outrage about the military junta that ruled Greece at the time.
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Cast
- Yves MontandThe Deputy, a doctor
- Irene PapasHélène, wife of the Deputy
- Jean-Louis TrintignantExamining Magistrate
- Jacques PerrinPhotojournalist
- Charles DennerManuel, friend of the Deputy, lawyer
- François PérierPublic Prosecutor
- Bernard FressonMatt, friend of the Deputy, lawyer
- Pierre DuxGendarmerie General Missou
- Georges GéretNick
- Magali NoëlNick's Sister
Recommendations
- 100
Chicago Sun-Times
It is a film of our time. It is about how even moral victories are corrupted. It will make you weep and will make you angry. It will tear your guts out. - 100
TV Guide Magazine
A chilling, manipulative rollercoaster ride. - 90
New York Magazine (Vulture)
The story of the "accidental" death of a peacenik politician (Yves Montand) and the investigator (Jean-Louis Trintignant) who unravels a right-wing conspiracy remains as fresh as a head wound. - 90
Slate
Z makes political intelligence seem chicer than skinny neckties. - 88
Boston Globe
Hollywood political thrillers have absorbed this movie's you-are-there filmmaking grammar. Rarely have they re-created its fire. - 88
ReelViews
Z is disquieting not only because the events actually happened, but because we sense they could happen again, closer to home. - 83
Portland Oregonian
Avoiding the hyperbole and condescension that sometimes make it easy for ideological foes to dismiss the likes of Oliver Stone or Michael Moore, Costa-Gavras relies on the sterling performances of his actors (including Irene Papas as Montand's widow), and was rewarded with a pair of Oscar nominations. - 80
Time Out
The recreation of the murder and the subsequent investigation uses the techniques of an American thriller to gripping effect, though conspiracies are so commonplace nowadays that it's hard to imagine the impact it made at the time.
