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Ararat 2002 |
Review by Jonathan Cornwell |
Directed by Atom Egoyan
R, 116 min. (violence, sexuality/nudity, language) |
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Starring: David Alpay, Charles Aznavour, Eric Bogosian, Brent Carver, Marie-Josee Croze, Bruce Greenwood, Arsinee Khanjian, Elias Koteas, Christopher Plummer
Producers: Atom Egoyan, Robert Lantos
Screenplay: Atom Egoyan
Cinematography: Paul Sarossy
Distributor: Miramax Films
Released: 11.15.02 (Limited) |
Rating:
  (out of ) |
"Who remembers the extermination of the Armenians?" - Adolf Hitler
The controversial quote, which is still disputed today, was Hitler's response to Nazi generals who asked how he would
get away with the "final solution" of the Jews in Europe. It's this sentiment that prompted Atom Egoyan's very personal
Ararat, a film that cinematically outreaches its grasp but stimulates discussion about the Armenian genocide in 1915 Turkey.
Despite numerous scholars and eyewitnesses who claim it happened, the Turkish government denies that the genocide
ever took place. Egoyan, who is Armenian-Canadian, wanted to tell the mostly unknown event to the world through film, and he crafts a film-within-a-film
structure to impart the message. It's a calculated gamble, one that falters quite a bit, but nonetheless accomplishes the
task of drawing attention to another dubious chapter in the twentieth century.
Egoyan is a director of immense talent, using his communicative skills to give us films like The Sweet Hereafter and
Felicia's Journey. Here, he attempts a very difficult task - to summarize an epic historical event alongside a current day
story of characters who must come to terms with their relationship to the atrocity. Unfortunately, his final product is a mixed
bag, emphasizing his usual poetic ebb and flow of his characters while struggling to juxtapose the past and present in a
clearly understood manner. His past films have been masterpieces of intimate filmmaking, presenting points of view and
reality from different perspectives, creating intricately linked relationships that culminate in poignant conclusions. Ararat
develops some of this same style but is hindered by its conflicted nature of communicating history and cathartic relationships.
Either storyline would have been a film in itself, and Egoyan's decision to combine them was questionable at best.
A film director in modern day Canada, Edward Saroyan (Charles Aznavour), is making a film about the Armenian genocide,
and he has enlisted a historian, Ani (Arsinee Khanjian), to assist his producer, Rouben (Eric Bogosian) in the picture's
accuracy of the events. Ani's son, Raffi (David Alpay), is coming to terms with his acceptance of the tragedy and goes to
Armenia to find his roots. Raffi's step-sister, Celia (Marie-Josee Croze), blames Ani for the death of her father while
carrying on a sexual affair with Raffi. Meanwhile, a customs inspector, David (Christopher Plummer), has begun an
investigation into Raffi's carrying of supposed reels of film, which he has brought back from his trip abroad. Finally,
two actors on Saroyan's film, Ali (Elias Koteas) and Martin (Bruce Greenwood), begin to recognize the gravity of the
roles they play in the film.
Ararat argues that the accuracy of historical events are perceived through different points of view, or through different
lenses of history. Those working on the film (Saroyan, Ani, Rouben, Martin) see the genocide as fact and a horrific
event that transpired more or less the way they depict it in the film, while Ali (who is half Turkish) openly questions
and argues for the Turkish position - that the massacre was actually very small or that the Turkish government was afraid
of an invading Russian army and acted to shore up their eastern border. Egoyan clearly argues that genocide did occur,
and shapes his characters around the belief that it did indeed happen. To this end, the film is educational and intriguing.
However, as an involving motion picture, the film begins to test one's patience as it flits back and forth between flashbacks,
the present characters, and the film-within-the-film.
Yet Ararat is worth seeing for the tragedy that ocurred to the Armenian people, even though what transpires around this
central premise is a little lackluster. For a filmmaker as talented as Egoyan, I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt
in a film that was obviously made from his heart, as a sort of eulogy for the courage of his people.
© 2003 Jonathan Cornwell
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 |
 | Masterpiece - Film perfection |
| Excellent - A Must See |
| Good - Highly Recommended |
| Fair - Worth seeing |
| Average - Viewable, but not recommended |
| Below average - View at own risk |
| Poor - Avoid at all costs |
| Very poor - An embarassment to the film industry |
| Zero | Awful - One of the worst films ever made |
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