Ararat is such an ambitious and well intentioned film that just to conceive it an achievement. The problem is, I am not sure that it actually possible for any filmmaker of any talent to successfully pull this movie off. It tries to simultaneously be a film about the 1915 Armenian genocide, a post-modern meditation on the meaning of truth, an Altman- like ensemble piece, a family drama AND a contemporary look at the ghosts of the Armenian genocide as seen from the point of view of the descendents of its survivors. It may shook you to learn that the movie runs only an hour and fifty-five minuets.
To be honest, I did not totally understand the movie's complex plot (or plots) so the summary will be somewhat simplified, but I'll do my best. A famous Armenian movie director named Edward Saroyan (Charles Aznavour) is making a historical epic about the genocide (his mother was a survivor). Specifically, he focuses the childhood of a real life artist, Arshile Gorky (Simon Abkarian). He hires a local history professor, Ani (Arsinee Khanjian) as a historical consultant and she gets her son, Raffi (David Alpay) a job on the film as a P.A. Raffi, whose father was killed while trying to assassinate a Turkish diplomat, becomes obsessed with the story and makes his own visit to Turkey, but on the way back he is stopped by a customs official (Christopher Plummer), who believes he may be smuggling drugs. Coincidentally, the son of the customs official (Brent Carver) is in a homosexual relationship with actor Ali (Elias Koteas), a half Turkish actor who is cast in Saroyan's film as a Turkish villain. Ali begins to question whether or not Saroyan's film fairly portrays history. On top of all this, Raffi is in a relationship with his stepsister (Christine McFadden), who believes his mother is responsible for murdering his father.
I've given this rather lengthy summary not to take of space so I don't have to write an actual review, but to demonstrate that this movie is truly convoluted. The writer..director, Atom Egoyan (himself of Armenian ancestry) is really trying hard here, and after watching so many mediocre, predictable movies I had to admire him for that. But I must also be honest and say that his reach exceeds his grasp. There is simply too much material for such a short running time, and little of it is fully developed (how can it be, when every subplot or idea has to compete with so many others?). I also haven't mentioned that the movie is told out of chronological sequence, or that fact the Egoyan frequently intercuts scenes from Saroyan's fictional film with the characters discussing the history of what happened. Because so much expository material has to given, the character speak with an awkward directness, somewhat reminiscent of Woody Allen's Match Point.
Another problem is that Saroyan's film looks to be better than Egoyan's. I wanted to see a movie about the Armenian genocide. More people need know about it, and I would actually like a David Lean- like filmmaker to make a big epic, as long its intelligent.
The other content of the film ranges from compelling (Plummer as the customs agent) to the underdeveloped. The whole subplot regarding the Raffi's father is hard to understand, or frankly, to care about because the situation is so ludicrous. How many people choose to get involved with someone when they believe their mother murdered their father? Wouldn't that be a bit of a turnoff?
And finally, isn't genocide important enough to carry a film on its own? Why do we need this other material? I get the Egoyan is being sensitive to the way history is portrayed in the movies, and I respect that, but shouldn't the majority of a film about a historical event that took place in 1915 be set in that year?
Ararat (2002)