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Canada, France · 2002
Rated R · 1h 55m
Director Atom Egoyan
Starring Simon Abkarian, Charles Aznavour, Christopher Plummer, Arsinée Khanjian
Genre Drama
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A variety of characters, some close relatives, others distant strangers, are each affected by the making of a film about the Armenian Genocide of 1915. Interrogated by a customs officer, a young man recounts how his life was changed during the making of this film.
Christian Science Monitor by David Sterritt
Egoyan is one of Canada's most ambitious and original filmmakers, but the power of this intricate drama falls short of its aspirations, despite his personal investment in the subject, since he is of Armenian ancestry himself.
Dallas Observer by Gregory Weinkauf
The resulting project matters much and should be seen, but how much it'll be FELT depends on your specific level of patience for a director who presumes audience comprehension to be at about a fourth-grade level (at least he's a shoo-in for Hollywood).
Chicago Reader by Jonathan Rosenbaum
Expresses with uncommon power the highly relevant issue of public indifference to genocide, which is especially well dramatized by a scene with Elias Koteas as an actor playing a Turk.
Though typically engaging, Ararat occasionally suffers from what's previously been a virtue in Egoyan's filmmaking. His distancing techniques, rather than sharpening his ability to deal with a subject that lends itself to high emotion -- sometimes just seem distancing.
Los Angeles Times by Kevin Thomas
Egoyan's oblique, layered attack ultimately pays off, evoking a strong emotional connection between past and present, the historical and the personal, in a flowing, cinematic manner in collaboration with his frequent cameraman, Paul Sarossy. The film makes use of an intoxicating array of Armenian music.
Entertainment Weekly by Lisa Schwarzbaum
As ever, Egoyan assembles a devoted repertory cast, including Christopher Plummer.
Chicago Tribune by Michael Wilmington
This toweringly ambitious picture confronts a brilliant director, Atom Egoyan, with a major historical event and a profound theme.
San Francisco Chronicle by Mick LaSalle
This is a heartfelt piece, and while passion alone can't carry a movie, it sure helps. Ararat is uneven because Egoyan couldn't tell it smoothly.
Has its moments -- and almost as many subplots.
Portland Oregonian by Shawn Levy
An impressive work in many regards -- the acting, the photography, the pace -- but it would've been even more so had Egoyan gone with his gut and been less indulgent of his brain.
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