I aionia epistrofi tou Antoni Paraskeua

A Greek Weird Wave entry of sorts that makes up for its formally less striking execution with a more accessible story, The Eternal Return of Antonis Paraskevas follows an aging morning talkshow host who stages his own kidnapping in order to pay off his debts and orchestrate an elaborate comeback. Clearly a take on a country in crisis, as well as the way celebrity culture has replaced more traditional hero worship, this confident feature helming debut by filmmaker Elina Psykou is sharp enough to book niche theatrical outings on top of its fest bookings. While the film never quite veers into The Shining territory, there’s a touch of madness at work here as the protagonist obsessively scans the celebrity magazines and evening news for articles about his “kidnapping” — which, it turns out, he set up with his TV station’s boss so the heavily indebted Antonis can use the ransom money and work on his ratings by becoming a sensational news story himself. (Karlovy Vary International Film Festival)