RKS 2025 Film: “A Hardworking Robber”: Shining Greek Satire

Satire runs heavily through Greek cinema and it shines in a short film from 2013 “A Hardworking Robber” directed and written by Michael Felanis.

Makis, owner of an Athenian jewelry and gift store is slothful, lazy and entirely ignorant about customer service and selling his wares. He spends his time drinking coffee, smoking, playing with his worry beads and backgammon, ignoring customers and throwing paper waste balls on the floor. Dust balls proliferate throughout.

Then the stick up but the robber, Apostilis, is dismayed as only 5 Euros and some coins are in the till! The credit default of Greece?

Apostilis ties up Makis in the basement and magic happens spiced with a bit of slapstick courtesy of some slovenly and fumbling policemen one of whom is Makis’ brother. The old boy’s connection in Greek society?

Earlier, Makis had asked a customer to run to a corner kiosk and get some change and when he received some guff from the customer for ordering him to fetch change he blames Greece’s economic difficulties on “people like him”.

“A Hardworking Robber” is a delightful lampoon straight to heart of Greece’s “people like him” old order attitudes and behaviors and the consumerism helping build a mountain of insurmountable debt.

RKS 2025 Film Rating 86/100.