Best friends Demosthenes (Yorgos Tsiantoulas) and Nikitas (Andreas Labropoulos) spend the day together at a nude beach in Athens. During their conversation they recall the events of a recent summer and ponder if they could turn them into a screenplay. As they go through the events, it brings up old wounds in their friendship and they are forced to face some hard truths. Can they work through them and create a screenplay together?
‘The Summer With Carmen’ is a meta-filled dramedy from director and co-writer Zacharias Mavroeidis, that explores one man’s insecurities and the platonic friendship he has with his best gay friend. The film opens with immediate nudity as the camera lingers on Yorgos Tsiantoulas’ perfectly sculpted body, and it would be easy to dismiss the film as an indulgence of eye candy. It would be wrong to do so though as there is depth beneath those perfect muscles and gratuitous nudity.
Demos and Nikitas have a friendship that has suffered so blows but the two try to work together on a screenplay that Nikitas can turn into a film. The focus lands on Demos and his breakup with Panos (Nikolaos Mihas), something that Demos thought he wanted at the time but perhaps in hindsight he acted hastily. The breakup saddles him with cute dog Carmen, who becomes an unexpectedly pivotal part of his life.
As Demos ponders where things went wrong with Panos, Nikitas bites his tongue (at least initially, given he had a front row seat to the whole mess). The narrative switches between the two friends chatting on the beach, often with Demos completely nude and in shot on camera, and the events of the past (which may, or may not be wholly based in reality). Demos meanders along from man to man after Panos, making a connection with Thymios (Vasilis Tsigristari) but not realising how overbearingly needy he’s become.
The regular switches in the narrative allow the film to become quite meta. It’s not always clear if the scenes we’re seeing are those thought up by Demos and Nikitas, or if they are actual moments from Demos’ life (or maybe it’s a bit of both?). There’s zero romantic intent between Demos and Nikitas, which is refreshing to see, and the film manages to combine dramatic moments with a bit of levity. One of the hooks is the adorable dog Carmen, and the way the dog plays into the storyline is very effective.
Yorgos Tsiantoulas carries the film on his bulky shoulders. He’s both adorable and frustrating as Demos. Cast as much for his looks as his acting talent I’m sure, Tsiantoulas fully fleshes Demos out as a character you could probably recognise among your own friends. He’s doe-eyed and naïve when he needs to be, but he’s also incredibly masculine and powerful. Andreas Labropoulos as Nikitas doesn’t get as much script to work with but his sparky conversations with Demos are strong points of the film.
‘The Summer With Carmen’ is something a little bit different in the gay cinema genre. I was worried it was just an excuse to see hot guys naked, but there’s much more substance here than that. Yes the actors are good-looking, but the story underneath it all proves to be quite surprising. It may not be a perfect film but it has enough elements going for it for me to heartily recommend it, if you’re tired of the same old issues-based gay films that get made.
Cast: Yorgos Tsiantoulas, Andreas Labropoulos, Nikolaos Mihas, Roubini Vasilakopoulou, Vasilis Tsigristari Director: Zacharias Mavroeidis Writers: Zacharias Mavroeidis & Fondas Chalatsis Certificate: Unrated Duration: 106 mins Released by: Cinephobia Releasing (US), Peccadillo Pictures (UK) Release date: 15th October 2024 (US), 28th February 2025 (UK)
 and Nikitas (Andreas Labropoulos) spend the day together at a nude beach in Athens.){kind=link}