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Ararat (2002)
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Reviews Counted: 73
Fresh: 42
Rotten:31
Average Rating: 6.4/10
Consensus: Though Ararat radiates intelligence, its impact is diminished by an overly intricate plot and cerebral style.
Runtime: 1 hr 55 mins
Genre: Dramas
Theatrical Release: Nov 15, 2002 Limited
Box Office: $1,378,159
Synopsis: ARARAT, Atom Egoyan's mysterious drama about the horrors of the largely unknown Armenian genocide in Turkey, unrolls through a film within the film (also titled ARARAT). Jumping back and forth in time, Egoyan weaves together the lives of... ARARAT, Atom Egoyan's mysterious drama about the horrors of the largely unknown Armenian genocide in Turkey, unrolls through a film within the film (also titled ARARAT). Jumping back and forth in time, Egoyan weaves together the lives of several people. Ari (Arsinee Khanjian), an art historian, is an advisor on the film. Her son Raffi (David Alplay) is part of the film crew. When Raffi travels to Armenia to gather some additional footage, he is detained by a customs agent (Christopher Plummer) and remains in custody for most of the film. Meanwhile, Raffi's stepsister and girlfriend Celia (Marie-Josee Croze) is haunted by her father's suicide. These and other stories within ARARAT are ostensibly linked through the film within a film. Yet, it is each character's quest for truth which binds them thematically and drives the plot. The film is populated with thematic twins, as each character's individual struggle is mirrored in the plight of the other characters. Egoyan works from his own script relying heavily on references to Arshile Gorky's painting "The Artist and his Mother" and Clarence Ussher's historical document, AN AMERICAN PHYSICIAN IN TURKEY. [More]
Starring: David Alpay, Charles Aznavour, Eric Bogosian, Brent Carver
Starring: David Alpay, Charles Aznavour, Eric Bogosian, Brent Carver, Marie-Josee Croze, Bruce Greenwood, Arsinee Khanjian, Christopher Plummer
Director: Atom Egoyan
Director: Atom Egoyan
Screenwriter: Atom Egoyan
Producer: Robert Lantos, Atom Egoyan
Studio: Miramax Films
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Reviews for Ararat
Verges on the brilliant and is a much more interesting work than Egoyan's admirable but over-praised The Sweet Hereafter.
[Egoyan is] so careful telling the story of the genocide that much of the film feels cold and didactic, like watching a slide show in a lecture hall.
Although not an easy film to follow, I found 'Ararat' worthy of close attention.
The movie's flaws ring of underconfidence, as if Egoyan intellectualised its parts until he ended up draining them of power.
El resultado es muy superior a lo que el cine comercial suele hacer cuando intenta reconstruir un hecho histórico; pero al mismo tiempo luce bastante menos logrado que la obra anterior de Egoyan.
Exploring the fluid nature of history ... [is] a fascinating conceit, but one Egoyan has trouble executing.
There's no doubting that this is a highly ambitious and personal project for Egoyan, but it's also one that, next to his best work, feels clumsy and convoluted.
Latest News for Ararat
September 07, 2005:
Trailer Bulletin: Where the Truth Lies
From Atom Egoyan, director of "Exotica," "The Sweet Hereafter," and "Ararat," comes Kevin Bacon, Colin Firth, and Alison Lohman in the already... More...
August 22, 2005:
Egoyan's "Truth" May Lie with an NC-17
ThinkFilm, distributor of the new Atom Egoyan film "Where the Truth Lies," plans to appeal what they believe will be an NC-17 rating from the MPAA, says The Hollywood... More...
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