6.3/10
11,262
178 user 72 critic

Ararat (2002)

Tous publics | | Drama, War | 4 September 2002 (France)
Trailer
1:34 | Trailer
Interrogated by a customs officer, a young man recounts how his life was changed during the making of a film about the Armenian genocide.

Director:

Atom Egoyan

Writer:

Atom Egoyan
12 wins & 13 nominations. See more awards »

Videos

Photos

Edit

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Simon Abkarian ... Arshile Gorky
Charles Aznavour ... Edward Saroyan
Christopher Plummer ... David
Arsinée Khanjian ... Ani
Setta Keshishian Setta Keshishian ... Dinner Guest / Wailing Mother
David Alpay ... Raffi
Shant Srabian Shant Srabian ... Dinner Guest #3 / Doctor #1
Marie-Josée Croze ... Celia
Elias Koteas ... Ali / Jevdet Bay
Brent Carver Brent Carver ... Philip
Max Morrow ... Tony
Christie MacFadyen Christie MacFadyen ... Janet
Dawn Roach Dawn Roach ... Customs Officer
Garen Boyajian Garen Boyajian ... Young Gorky
Lousnak Abdalian Lousnak Abdalian ... Gorky's Mother
Edit

Storyline

People tell stories. In Toronto, an art historian lectures on Arshile Gorky (1904 -1948), an Armenian painter who lived through the Armenian Genocide in the Ottoman Empire. A director invites the historian to help him include Gorky's story in a film about the genocide and Turkish assault on the town of Van. The historian's family is under stress: her son is in love with his step-sister, who blames the historian for the death of her father. The daughter wants to revisit her father's death and change that story. An aging customs agent tells his son about his long interview with the historian's son, who has returned from Turkey with canisters of film. All the stories connect. Written by <jhailey@hotmail.com>

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Taglines:

In a world full of denial, how do you determine who's telling the truth? See more »

Genres:

Drama | War

Certificate:

Tous publics | See all certifications »
Edit

Did You Know?

Trivia

The Italian release of this film was intended to be on April 24th 2003. However, its showing was unexpectedly banned by Italian authorities a day before the planned release, with the authorities explaining that the film's distributor had failed to submit in time the application to obtain the required censorship certificate. See more »

Quotes

Ali, actor playing Jevdet Bey: [as Jevdet Bey] We've invested you Greeks and Armenians with power and freedom.
[pounds desk]
Ali, actor playing Jevdet Bey: You should be *thankful*!
See more »

Crazy Credits

Closing disclaimers: 1) The historical events in this film have been substantiated by holocaust scholars, national archives, and eyewitness accounts, including that of Clarence Ussher. 2) To this day, Turkey continues to deny the Armenian Genocide of 1915. See more »

Connections

Referenced in Escape from the Newsroom (2002) See more »

Soundtracks

P.L.U.C.K.
(Politically Lying, Unholy, Cowardly Killers)
Performed by System of a Down
Written by Daron Malakian (as Malakian) / Serj Tankian (as Tankian) / Shavo Odadjian (as Odajian) / John Dolmayan (as Dolmayan)
DDevil Music (ASCAP)/ System of Down (ASCAP)/ Sony/ ATV Tunes LLC,
All rights on behalf of DDevil Music, System of A Down & Sony/ ATV Tunes LLC
Administered by SONY/ ATV Music Publishing, 8 Music Square West, Nashville, TN 37202
All rights reserved. Used by Permission
See more »

User Reviews

 
Interesting
7 May 2004 | by caspian1978See all my reviews

A terrific rough style cast in a story about denial and the truth of living in denial. At first, I thought the movie was about the Armenian Genocide, but its not. It's about a families struggle in the present day world trying to live knowing that the genocide is their past. Many interesting characters are introduced throughout the story. The plot thickens as characters appear in the movie and the movie within the movie. The issue about denial is stronger than the truth. The issue about Turkey is made many times and is the last thing we see at the end of the movie, still, this is not a movie about the Genocide and Turkey's true intentions, its about the aftermath and the denial that becomes the truth.


7 of 15 people found this review helpful.  Was this review helpful to you? | Report this
Review this title | See all 178 user reviews »

Frequently Asked Questions

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
Edit

Details

Official Sites:

egofilmarts.com [Canada] | Miramax | See more »

Country:

Canada | France

Language:

English | Armenian | French | German | Turkish

Release Date:

4 September 2002 (France) See more »

Also Known As:

Ararat See more »

Filming Locations:

Canada See more »

Edit

Box Office

Budget:

$15,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$211,130, 17 November 2002

Gross USA:

$1,555,959

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$2,743,336
See more on IMDbPro »

Company Credits

Show more on IMDbPro »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1
See full technical specs »

Contribute to This Page

We've Got Your Streaming Picks Covered

Looking for some great streaming picks? Check out some of the IMDb editors' favorites movies and shows to round out your Watchlist.

Visit our What to Watch page



Recently Viewed