An overprotective father, a manipulative pimp - they represent the obstacles in the film's romance. Because this film has much more to do with oniric and graceful romance than modern gangster flicks. It is a film full of vulnerabilities of sweetness. This is shown by the soft lighting which sometimes even slips to the old fashioned soft focus of pre-code era Hollywood. A particular attention to the pacing and rhythm of the film, much slower than one would expect, and a fluid camerawork also make the experience magnetic in a quasi-spiritual way. It is concealed by the nostalgic soundtrack, with old songs punctuated by the crackling of vinyl records and the gently tapping of the fingers on the keyboard of a piano. Even on a sexual perspective, love making and adoration is portrayed by the attention given to feet. Here, this visual touch is not at all fetishistic, but rather a sign of vulnerability and helplessness.
But more than that, perhaps, is a sort of Shakespearean vibe that can be felt throughout. In fact, if we were to pinpoint the two leading characters and liken them to characters in Shakespeare plays, one might just be Romeo and the other one Mercutio. This juxtaposition and comparison is not at all out of place, and in fact it is strengthened by references to culture and art of old in sculptures and statues that at the same time show off the beauty and cultural wealth of Greece and give the storyline and more timeless and three dimensional depth.
Nevertheless, love that lives in a world of violence is born to die. And despite the well meant romanticism and the dream like appeal of the film, self destruction remains the constant drug. One of the hitmen is a loose cannon and has less control on his life also due to his vices and alcohol abuse. The other one is much more collected, yet his love for his boss' daughter is a magnificent obsession he clearly cannot do without. The Sentimentalists is in fact a modern noir, and as such it ties in the nostalgia identified with the genre without disregarding the influence of the times it is set in - including the crippling economic crisis that hit Greece so hard.
