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Ararat

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Ararat (2002)

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Reviews Counted:74

Fresh:42

Rotten:32

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

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... 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own script relying heavily on references to Arshile Gorky's painting "The Artist and his Mother" and Clarence Ussher's historical document, AN AMERICAN PHYSICIAN IN TURKEY.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

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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N/R

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Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
06/24/06
Geoff Andrew
Geoff Andrew
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

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Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
09/27/03
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The movie's flaws ring of underconfidence, as if Egoyan intellectualised its parts until he ended up draining them of power.

Full Review Source: UK Critic | comment Comment
07/06/03
Ian Waldron-Mantgani
Ian Waldron-Mantgani
UK Critic
N/R

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Full Review Source: Sight and Sound | comment Comment
05/04/03
Sight and Sound
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N/R

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Full Review Source: FilmFour.com | comment Comment
04/21/03
FilmFour.com
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N/R

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Full Review Source: Guardian [UK] | comment Comment
04/20/03
Guardian [UK]
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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.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
03/19/03
Tom Dawson
Tom Dawson
BBC
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N/R

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Full Review Source: Shadows on the Wall | comment Comment
10/24/02
Rich Cline
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall
N/R

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Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
10/18/08
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile

Verges on the brilliant and is a much more interesting work than Egoyan's admirable but over-praised The Sweet Hereafter.

Full Review Source: Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) | comment Comment
04/19/06
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

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Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/06/05
Film Threat
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N/R

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Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
09/26/05
Ann Hornaday
Ann Hornaday
Washington Post
N/R

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Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
07/21/05
Houston Chronicle
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N/R

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Full Review Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution | comment Comment
02/21/04
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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N/R

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Full Review Source: FilmStew.com | comment Comment
02/01/04
FilmStew.com
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

[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.

Full Review Source: Las Vegas Weekly | comment Comment
09/07/03
Josh Bell
Josh Bell
Las Vegas Weekly

One of Egoyan's great pics that in time will grow in stature.

Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | comment Comment
07/22/03
Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

Although not an easy film to follow, I found 'Ararat' worthy of close attention.

Full Review Source: ReelTalk Movie Reviews | comment Comment
07/13/03
Betty Jo Tucker
Betty Jo Tucker
ReelTalk Movie Reviews
N/R

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.

Full Review Source: Uruguay Total | comment Comment
06/25/03
Enrique Buchichio
Enrique Buchichio
Uruguay Total

It's not easy to shake or dismiss.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
04/04/03
Jeff Vice
Jeff Vice
Deseret News, Salt Lake City
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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all

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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