Dirk V
Reviewer

     The newest film by Atom Egoyan is a story within a story. "Ararat" is a film about a group of people making a film about the controversial Armenian genocide in Turkey during WWI.
 
     The story revolves around a young man, Raffi, played by newcomer David Alpay, and his attempt to come to terms with his relationships with his mother and girlfriend, and his attempt to better understand his Armenian heritage. He attempts to reconcile these problems by traveling to Turkey and visiting the places where the Armenian genocide took place. On his way back into the country, he is stopped at customs while he is carrying film canisters back into the country. While he is being interrogated on suspicion of drug trafficking, he tells the customs official the story of the history of his people, Armenian artist Arshile Gorky, and the production of the film.
 
     Interwoven with the problems of Raffi are the struggles of the other characters in the story. Each character faces some emotional problem, either from their past or present, they are attempting to deal with.
 
      Egoyan does a great job weaving the story threads of the film together to produce a moving story about the Armenian people. He is able to turn a depressing and controversial topic into an entertaining, informational, and emotional film.
 
     The acting in the film is also great. Alpay gives a great performance as Raffi, and Christopher Plummer (A Beautiful Mind) and Elias Koteas (Collateral Damage, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) are great in supporting roles.