With a glow in their eyes

With a glow in their eyes (Greek Με τη λάμψη στα μάτια) was a Greek film released in 1966.

Plot

The film takes place in rural Greece during the German occupation in World War II. A German soldier dismounts his motorcycle to refresh himself at a river. He is shot in the back and killed. A German contingent arrives at a nearby village. They randomly select 30 villagers to be executed in the morning as reprisals. Three of the village's elders visit the German commandant to tell him that three of the 30 young men chosen for execution are brothers - the only sons of an elderly villager. They ask that one be spared. The German commandant asks them "which one?" The three men decide that such a task should fall on the father of the brothers. The father is now faced with a big dilemma: which of his three sons should be spared? The eldest has a wife with a small child and another on the way, the youngest has never experienced life while the middle son was always neglected and would go to his grave thinking his father never loved him. The stress and strain on the father is too much and, at the end, he dies of a heart attack. The Germans execute all 30 of their hostages, including the three brothers.

Cast

• Zoras Tsapelis as the German commandant
• Giorgos Foundas as the eldest brother
• Anestis Vlachos as the middle brother
• Yiannis Fertis as the younger brother

Award

Giorgos Foundas won the prize for leading male actor, at the Film Festival of Thessaloniki, for his role as the eldest brother - a feat that he would duplicate the following year.