Zorba the Greek

Basil is a Greek-British professional writer who is suffering from writer's block. Having inherited a lignite mine in the island of Crete from his father, he decides to travel to the island and to restore the mine's operations. While waiting for a ferry at the port of Piraeus, Basil meets the middle-aged peasant and itinerant musician Alexis Zorbas. Learning that Alexis has past experience as a miner, Basil hires him as his foreman on a whim. There is a contrast in behavior between the prim and proper Basil (who is sexually repressed) and the eccentric Alexis, who works hard and parties even harder. Zorbas begins a sexual relationship with the expatriate Frenchwoman Madame Hortense, a former cabaret singer and current hotel owner. He encourages Basil to start his own relationship with a young, beautiful widow, who has so far rejected the sexual advances of the local tough guys. The mine requires beams to reinforce the gallery, and Alexis comes up with a plan to secure timber from a local mountain monastery. Hortense dies from influenza despite Alexis' efforts to take care of her in her hour of need. The widow is murdered by the father of a jilted suitor. Though Basil and Alexis are depressed, they carry out their plan to bring timbers down the mountain and towards the mine. A faulty zip-line results in the timbers effectively demolishing the mine and causing most of the local population to flee in panic. Left alone and financially ruined, Basil and Alexis discuss about their paths in life. Alexis had mentioned several times before that he copes with the frequent hardships of life by dancing in defiance of these troubles. Before they part ways, Basil asks Zorba to teach him how to dance.