Richard Bangs’ Adventures with Purpose: Greece

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This time Richard Bangs embarks on a great odyssey in Greece, land of the gods.    From the amber of ancient times to the present, the Western world has basked in the glorious inspiration of the Greek myths. These strangely magnificent stories are deeply embedded in our culture and even our collective unconscious.

In Greece: Quest for the Gods, Richard hopes to discover what relevance and meaning the great gods of Olympus might have for us today.

Details

LENGTH: 1 x 60 Minutes
FORMAT: Series
CAMERA: HDCAM
INTERNATIONAL TRACK: Yes
TEXTLESS: Yes
CLOSED CAPTIONS: No
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
PRODUCTION YEAR: 2009- 2010
RELEASE YEAR: 2010
SUPPLIER: Small World Productions
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA
RIGHTS TERRITORY: Worldwide exclusive of USA

In the tangled skein of history, Ancient Greece it was really just a fleeting moment. Yet it was one of humankind’s most extraordinary periods of cultural and intellectual transformation. From this prolific era sprang the very essence of Western civilization…our poetry and architecture, our sciences, and our democratic form of government.

Greek writer Nicolas Gage wrote, “In the fifth century BC, an unprecedented idea rose from a small Greek city on the dusty plains of Attica and exploded over the Western Hemisphere like the birth of a new sun. Tears of light have warmed and illuminated us ever since… The vision—the classical Greek idea—was that society functions best if all citizens are equal and free to shape their lives and share in running their state.”

Essential to this revolution of human thought were the gods of Greek mythology. There was a time when the Greek gods were the mightiest and most revered deities in the civilized world. They touched every aspect of life, and influenced every action. Yet, somehow they vanished from our cosmology, leaving behind only temples, ruins and myths… Or did they?

Human beings have always created stories to help explain the world around them.  But what was it about the Greek myths that made them so special? Could they have relevance in modern life? If so, how?

On this trip of time, history and emotion, the distances Richard travels inside are as great as those outside.   He begins in Athens, and then heads to, Olympia, birthplace of the Olympic Games. He travels to the island of Ithaca, the site of mystical oracles at Delphi, and finishes at the home of the gods, Mt. Olympus.

Richard is joined on the adventure by special guest Agapi Stassinopolous, author of two books on the ancient gods of Greece.  Arianna Huffington, founder of the Huffington Post, native of Greece and the author of a respected book on the subject helps introduce the topic.

Reviews

“Richard Bangs, a leading figure in modern adventure travel, adds to his large output of books and films with this document of a journey to sites in Greece. Captured in luminous HD photography—sparkling on Blu-ray—Bangs’ itinerary is tied to Greek mythology, with the locales chosen in reference to various Hellenic deities, and he is joined along the way by Agapi Stassinopoulos, a writer who sees the spirit of the gods still very much alive in the Greek people. Bangs begins at the Parthenon in Athens, dedicated to Athena, before proceeding to the temple of Poseidon at Sounion; the island of Ithaca, supposedly the home of the Homeric hero Odysseus; the site of the original Olympic games; the shrine of Apollo at Delphi; and finally Mount Olympus, where Zeus was said to rule. The underlying argument presented here is that the Greek gods were exemplars reflecting various facets of humankind, while also serving as forerunners of humanism. While this idea does indeed have some merit from a historical perspective, it’s presented in a somewhat simple fashion by Bangs and Stassinopoulos. Still, the locations are lovely, the cinematography superb, and the country of perennial interest to travelers. Recommended.” Three Stars -Video Librarian

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