It is a dramatic story that tells of a world of sadness aroused by a man who feels happy only when he is unhappy. It may be wrong for him as he seems to be a man addicted to grief, he has such a need for compassion, he is willing to do anything to stir it up from others at all times in his life. This story tells about the life of a man in a world that is not tough enough for him, which is a real and sad thing in his miserable life.
As stylized as Makridis' second feature is, it's grounded in recognizable behavior, and its sly, dry playfulness reverberates with fascinating questions about emotions and how we portray them.
The Greek Weird Wave's tendency to be uncompromising towards the audience is to be expected, and the cruelty that eventually emerges in Pity is unfortunately pretty predictable thanks to the brutality present in both The Lobster and Dogtooth.
Sharp-witted and entertaining throughout, with a cute final scene that will come as a relief to many viewers, Pity is a polished piece of filmmaking and well worth looking out for.
The situations are hilarious and horrifying all at once, the winning combination that makes every moment feel like a metaphorical punch in the gut... exactly the way our protagonist would like it.
A delightfully nasty piece of work, refusing to let either the lawyer or the audience off the hook as Makridis keenly observes how expressing sympathy has become ritualized to the point it no longer has meaning.
A disturbing and oftentimes very funny satire-drama, Pity is about that complex, primal human craving called empathy and the distance we're willing to go to summon it.
