Veteran Greek director, Pantelis Voulgaris, looks at the practice during one of the great migrations, in his film, Brides.
In 1922 \' seven hundred young women set sail on the SS King Alexander, bound for the US, new husbands and new lives. Victoria Haralbidou plays Niki Douka, carrying the photo of the stranger she is to marry in New York. Also on board is an American photographer Norman Harris, Damian Lewis. He\'s put aside his camera to go home and salvage his failing marriage. Moved by the plight of these 700 women, he decides to document their journey. He\'s enamoured by Niki, and she, in turn, falls for him.
This is a fascinating story of desperate circumstances and unrequited love. Lewis and Haralbidou deliver solid performances, but there\'s not much chemistry between them. First-time screenwriter, Iaonna Karystiani, doesn\'t seem to have spent enough time developing the characters, and the story takes too long to unfold, making what should have been a memorable tale feel a bit tedious. Brides is a gentle film that sheds light on the timeless experience of the immigrant. It has all the makings of a classic, but never quite got there for me.
