Best Movies about Greece To Watch Before Your Trip

How many movies about Greece can you watch in a lifetime? How would you like to watch some of the best films set in Greece before you embark on your Greek adventure?

This is a collection of best movies about Greece, movies set in Greece, movies featuring Greek culture, movies about Ancient Greek history, or movies about Greek mythology.

This article doesn’t contain any spoilers. If you want to know more about any of these movies set in Greece or films about Greece, just search for them on the IMDB website to find information.

Movies about Greece Vacations & Living

I once wanted to move to Greece. As a matter of fact, I did it, even if only for a winter. If you consider calling Greece home at some point in time, check out some of the movies about Greece living and vacations.

Always keep in mind that two weeks or even one month of vacation in Greece can’t compare to actually living there, be it on the mainland or on one of the Greek islands.

1. The Durrells (2016–2019, TV Series)

• IMDB rating: 8.2/10
• Genre: Comedy, Drama, Biography
• Plot: After the death of her husband, Louisa Durrell moves with her four children to the Greek island of Corfu and tries to adapt to living the islander’s life.

2. Two Tickets to Greece (2022)

• Original title: Les Cyclades
• IMDB rating: 6.2/10
• Genre: Comedy
• Plot: Two childhood friends meet again as adults and they decide to go to Greece on a dream vacation

3. The Trip to Greece (2020)

• IMDB rating: 6.5/10
• Genre: Comedy, Drama
• Plot: Two guys travel from Troy to Ithaca, just as Odysseus had done in the time of Ancient Greece
• Places in Greece depicted in the movie: Hydra, Athens, Delphi, Ithaca, Stagira (currently in Macedonia), and Troy (currently in Turkey)
• Lots of aerial shots make this movie about Greece a pleasure to watch

4. I Love Greece (2022)

• IMDB rating: 4.7/10
• Genre: Comedy, Romance
• Plot: A summer vacation in Athens doesn’t go as planned
• Places in Greece depicted in the movie: Athens

5. The Anderssons in Greece (2012)

• Original title: Sune i Grekland
• IMDB rating: 4.3/10
• Genre: Comedy, Family
• Plot: Sune finds his dream girlfriend during a trip to Greece with his family

6. Journey from Greece (2017)

• Original title: Djam
• IMDB rating: 7.0/10
• Genre: Adventure, Drama, Music
• Plot: A Greek girl meets a French woman in Constantinople and they leave together to Mytilene in Greece
• Filming locations: Mytilene, Lesbos

7. Rest in Greece (2019)

• IMDB rating: 5.1/10
• Genre: Drama
• Plot: David and Nina rent a secluded beach house in Greece, on the island of Tinos, then they form a trio with Margarita, the house owner’s daughter.
• Filming locations: Tinos island

8. Forbidden Love on the Shores of Greece (2022)

• IMDB rating: 9.2/10
• Genre: Drama, Short
• Plot: An old woman goes bird watching and she finds something truly unexpected

9. An Italian in Greece (1958)

• IMDB rating: 5.4/10
• Genre: Comedy, Romance, Black & White movie
• Plot: The charming and frivolous son of a rich Greek businessman fall in love with a beautiful Italian expert in Ancient Greek history.
• Filming locations: Athens, Greece

10. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (2005)

• IMDB rating: 6.5/10
• Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
• Plot: Four girls and best friends share a pair of jeans that fits all of them, passing them from one another to keep in touch as they go through various adventures
• Filming locations: Santorini island (certain parts of the movie were shot in Oia, Santorini)

11. Zorba the Greek (1964)

• IMDB rating: 7.6/10
• Genre: Comedy, Drama
• Plot: An English writer travels to Greece and has a life changing encounter with Alexis Zorba, a gregarious Greek majestically impersonated by Anthony Quinn.
• Filming locations: Crete (Chania)

12. Mamma Mia! (2008)

• IMDB rating: 6.5/10
• Genre: Comedy, Musical, Romance
• Plot: A bride-to-be searches for her real father; a fun and lively musical featuring popular songs of ABBA, the famous 1970s group
• Filming locations: Skopelos, a colorful and romantic Greek island

13. Boy on a Dolphin (1957)

• IMDB rating: 6.2/10
• Genre: Adventure, Drama, Romance
• Plot: A poor sponge diver, Phaedra, finds a treasure on the bottom of the sea. She doesn’t approve of her boyfriend wanting to see this treasure to an art collector rather than returning it to the Greek government
• This is one of the movies set in Greece, on the beautiful island of Hydra.

14. 300 (2006)

300 is the story of King Leonidas of Sparta and the battle at Thermopylae that took place in 480 B.C.

Watch this movie before visiting the location of Thermopylae today in Greece.

• IMDB rating: 7.6/10
• Genre: Action, Drama, History

15. The Ogre of Athens (1956)

I added this movie to my list because it is one of the best in the history of Greek cinematography.

• IMDB rating: 7.9/10
• Genre: Drama, Crime
• Plot: A peaceful man in mistaken for a terrifying criminal.
• The movie is set in Athens, during the mid-50s.

16. The Big Blue (1988)

The Big Blue is one of my all time favorites! It is about free divers, competition, rivalry and ambition.

Even though it isn’t a movie about Greece per se, as most scenes are set in Taormina, Sicily, The Big Blue features some scenes shot on the Greek island of Alonissos

• IMDB rating: 7.5/10
• Genre: Adventure, Drama, Sport

Documentaries about Greece

1. Greece: Secrets of the Past (2006)

• IMDB rating: 7.1/10
• Genre: Documentary
• Good aerial views over archaeological sites, some historical facts explained, but too basic for history buffs
• Filming locations: Santorini island

2. Treasures of Ancient Greece (2015)

• IMDB rating: 7.7/10
• Genre: Documentary
• Mini series that takes a closer look into Greek art and its influence on later civilizations

3. This is Greece (2016)

• IMDB rating: 8.4/10
• Genre: Documentary
• Series that teaches you lots about Greece; best for couch travelers and for those who plan their first trip to Greece

4. Greece with Simon Reeve (2016)

• IMDB rating: 7.7/10
• Genre: Documentary
• Mini-series that takes Simon Reeve from the beautiful Greek islands to the mountains in the north of Greece
• Filming locations: Athens

5. Aerial Greece (2021)

• IMDB rating: 8.0/10
• Genre: Documentary
• Mini-series consisting from four episodes that explore the culture of Greece and the beauty of this ancient land
• Filming locations: Crete, the Eastern islands, the great Archipelago

6. Ancient Greece: The Greatest Show on Earth (2013)

• IMDB rating: 8.3/10
• Genre: Documentary, History
• TV mini-series that showcases Dr. Michael Scott exploring the power, influence and history of Ancient Greece, with an emphasis on Athens
• Filming locations: Athens

7. Greece Year Zero (2020)

• IMDB rating: 6.2/10
• Genre: Documentary, History, Biography
• A cinematic essay, a movie about Greece over the past century, featuring never seen before footage about Greece

8. Greece: The Road Taken (2019)

• IMDB rating: not available yet
• Genre: Documentary
• The story of George Crane and Barry Tagrin, two American intellectuals who have called the Greek islands home
• Filming location: Paros, Greece

9. Greece! From the Mountains to the Shoreline (2016)

• IMDB rating: not available yet
• Genre: Documentary
• The film showcases scenic bays, amazing mountains, monasteries and villages, as well as various bits of authentic Greek culture.
• Filming location: Greece

10. The First Olympics: Athens 1896

• IMDB rating: 7.6/10
• Genre: Drama, History, Sport
• The history of the modern Olympics
• This isn’t a documentary, but it is pretty accurate from history standpoint

This is my list of the best movies about Greece to watch until my next trip to this beautiful country.

You are welcome to save it for later.