Director Michael Cacoyannis, having previously helmed a film version of such classic Greek tragedies as The Trojan Women, once more reaches back to the 5th-century B.C. for his source material in Iphigenia. Based on the play by Euripides, the film concerns the efforts by Agamemnon (Costa Kaslakos) to curry favor with the gods and win an upcoming battle. He decides to prove his worthiness by sacrificing his daughter Iphigenia (Tatiana Papamoskou). Clytemnestra (Irene Papas) pleads with Agamemnon to change his mind. Michael Cacoyannis is bound and determined to transform this ancient material into a vibrant piece of "living" film; for the most part, he succeeds.