Art and Propaganda: Ararat Case Study - 1
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Art and Propaganda: Ararat Case Study - 1
Dr. Sedat LACINER
ATOM EGOYAN: A DIRECTOR WHO LATER REMEMBERED THAT HE WAS AN ARMENIAN
"During my childhood I was desperate to assimilate. In Victoria, I
wanted to be like the other kids.[1] They used to call me the little
Arab boy because I was a little darker, had a strange name and came
from Egypt. It wasn't until adolescence that I realized something had
been lost in my life,"[2] -- Atom EGOYAN
A. Early Years
Atom Egoyan is a Canadian citizen, a well-known film director and
scriptwriter. He was born in 1960 in Cairo (Egypt) as the first child
of Joseph and Shushan Yeghoyan. Then the family was in the furniture
business. However, his parents were interested in arts. Joseph
Yeghoyan, in his youth, had studied painting in the Art Institute of
Chicago. Sources say that the reason behind the family naming their
first-born 'Atom' was the building of the first nuclear reactor in
Egypt.[3] The family migrated to Canada three years after Atom was
born. While there was a considerable Armenian population being
established in Montreal and its environs, the family settled in British
Colombia with their newborn daughter 'Eve'.[4] In other words Atom
Egoyan found himself a part of the Canadian society from an early age
and was detached from the Armenian culture. The family deciding to
change their last name to Egoyan shows their struggle to found a new
life and to forget the past. The family continued to do their furniture
business in Canada. Atom, in his youth ignored his Armenian background
and lived like a typical Canadian. For many years, he was so hostile to
his Armenian identity he refused to learn how to speak Armenian. Egoyan
believes that this was due to living at a place where there were no
Armenians and the people around him were unreceptive to foreigners. In
other words, Egoyan who was discriminated by the environment felt a lot
of resentment to his own identity and tried very hard to be a part of
the dominant culture. Egoyan describes those years by:
"During my childhood I was desperate to assimilate. In Victoria, I
wanted to be like the other kids.[5] They used to call me the little
Arab boy because I was a little darker, had a strange name and came
from Egypt. It wasn't until adolescence that I realized something had
been lost in my life,"[6]
'I was powerless on the issue of assimilation. I wanted to be like
other kids[7] in Victoria. Because I was darker, came from Egypt and
had a strange name, they called me the little Arab boy. I did not know
what I had missed until I reached puberty.'[8]
According to himself, he became aware of his ethnic identity when he
started his university education in Toronto. We can easily say that the
reason why assimilation is the most prevalent topic he uses in his
movies, is due to his experiences from his childhood and youth.
As a student, Egoyan worked at the Empress Hotel as a busboy for four
summers. Egoyan says that his experiences there prepared him for what
he was to do later in his life. He summarizes these experiences as
"to see events through many angles". The movie Speaking Parts
(1989) might be the movie where he used these experiences the most
because it takes place at a hotel room.
Egoyan intensified his artistic endeavors while continuing his higher
education at the Toronto University Trinity College. It is interesting
to note that Egoyan chose to study International Relations. While
studying diplomacy, Egoyan learned how to play guitar and continued his
attempts at writing a script.
B. Egoyan Realizes That He is an Armenian
As mentioned before, Egoyan for years denied his Armenian identity. His
transformation corresponds with his years in Toronto. Maybe under the
influence of the politics education he was receiving or maybe in
Toronto's particular environment, Egoyan rediscovered his Armenian
roots and joined an Armenian association at the university. As a member
of this association he concentrated on the history and language of
Armenia and under the tutelage of an Anglican priest, developed his
Armenian identity. Afterwards, he was active in every Armenian social
event and tried to develop his identity as an Armenian. Egoyan explains
those times by, "Armenian student events at that time became a part
of my life".[9] According to Egoyan his revolutionary transformation
was due to him being in a part of an Armenian group for the first time
in his life. Egoyan, who lived apart from Armenians for many years,
discovered that being an Armenian was not something to be ashamed of,
and started to enjoy having a different ethnic identity. In this
framework, it can be said that Atom Egoyan became an 'identity
convert'.
If we study Egoyan's artistic identity, we should not be surprised
that he turned out to be an artist, considering he grew up in a family
-that gave primary importance to art. Young Egoyan started writing
plays when he was only 13 years old and continued this hobby into his
university years, becoming more professional. The writers that
influenced him the most were Eugene Ionesco, Samuel Beckett and Harold
Pinter.[10] During his years in university, he also became interested
in music and cinema. Egoyan started to make short films when he was at
the university. His first movie, Howard In Particular (1979), was made
with help from Hart House Film Board. This movie brought him an award
from Canadian National Exhibition. This became his first of many
awards. This success brought many other opportunities and Hart House
continued to help him with other short films.
Atom Egoyan also discovered his talent for writing screenplays during
his university years. Open House, which he wrote while he was at the
university, was a movie script for a half an hour-long film. Canadian
organizations acknowledged his talent and Egoyan received every support
they could provide. In forming his identity, his struggles with the
Hollywood and Western culture and the policies of local governments
were influential. The backing provided by the Canadian Art Council for
his script support this conclusion.
After graduating from Toronto University in 1982, Atom Egoyan started
working at the Tarragon Theatre as a play writer. At that time Canadian
Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) became interested in Open House and
bought its broadcasting rights and later broadcasted it on national TV
(1982).
In 1983, in spite of his moderate successes, Atom Egoyan was trying to
overcome his identity crisis, trying to succeed in what he was doing
but was known only by a limited number o people. While working on his
first long-movie, Next of Kin, he met his current wife Arsinée
Khanjian, and she helped him find himself and later his Armenian
identity became more dominant.
Arsinée is a Lebanese Armenian and she migrated to Canada when she was
17 years old. In other words Arsinée Khanjian is an Armenian who lived
as an Armenian for much longer than Egoyan. This caused her Armenian
character to be stronger, distinct and maybe more radical. Arsinée was
working as an actor in an Armenian movie called Mousetrap. Arsinée was
a young actress, who was helped by her dentist husband, in trying to
get famous. The dentist husband insistently followed Atom Egoyan for
giving his wife a chance. While this caused him to lose his wife, she
eventually became famous. The professional relationship between Atom
Egoyan and Arsinée Khanjian soon became a passionate love affair that
lead to marriage. For Arsinée, getting married with a talented
director was important. However that director being an Armenian was
even more important. Arsinée summarizes this situation as such,
'I had met an artist with my history and culture. This had always
been, maybe unconsciously, my dream.'[11]
Atom Egoyan's relationship with his wife affected his professional
life and forced him to think more strongly about his Armenian identity.
Egoyan admits this:
'Our relationship with Arsinée merged with the stories of the
movies.'
Egoyan's nickname for his wife, 'Armenian Princess', shows that
the basis of the relationship is being Armenian.[12] Khanjian's
nationalism is at such a level that, when the role of a Latino woman in
the TV program Foolish Heart was given to her, the character was
changed in to an Armenian woman. Because the story of the program was
about a middle class lady's 'liberal' adventures, Arsinée
admitted that she was a little worried about how the Armenian society
would react towards it.[13] In other words Arsinée tries to keep her
relations with the Canadian Armenian society at the highest level and
in this way, can also influence her husband.
After finding 'his desired actress and wife', Atom Egoyan recorded
his first long movie Next of Kin in 1984. This movie is also the first
film in which his Armenian identity becomes apparent. [14] The movie is
about the relations between an Armenian family and the lead character
(Peter). This movie was also funded by official Canadian organizations.
Without the help of Canada Council and Ontario Art Council, this movie
could not have been made. The movie was screened but it's hard to say
that it received much appraisal from the viewers. The movie was judged
as being ignored by a movie critic.[15] At that time Egoyan was in dire
straits and some television projects provided his only income.
Soon after this period, Egoyan agreed with CBC to direct a political
movie about the life of an Irish boxer. As a result In This Corner
(1989) came to being. These successes brought him many other projects
from Canadian and the US television corporations. Egoyan, based in
Toronto, directed many TV shows until the mid-1980s.
In the mid-1980s he directed his second long movie, Family Viewing. The
story is about a woman's relations with her husband and stepson, and
Arsinée Khanjian and Gabrielle Rose play in the lead. The movie was
first screened in 1987, and was the first movie of Atom Egoyan to
attract considerable attention from the cinema world. Egoyan started to
appear in many international and national film festivals. At that time
he emphasized his support for the development of the Canadian culture
and as a result was duly awarded. It is not surprising to see Armenian
actors is Atom Egoyan's movies that are full of Canadian nuances. In
an interview, Egoyan stated that he felt this movie to be closest to
him.[16]
Family Viewing was followed by Speaking Parts (1987).[17] The story of
the movie is about a Hotel maidservant's love and surrounding
stories. It was shown in 1989 Cannes Film festival.[18] The Adjuster
made in 1991 is one of the rare big budget movies of Egoyan. The budget
was 1.5 million dollars and was the second movie of Egoyan to be shown
in Cannes.
Adjuster was a movie with many sexual overtones.[19] Even some critics
said that the movie was an important illustration of Egoyan's
"sexual obsessions". The lead of the movie was again Arsinée
Khanjian.[20] Cannes appearances attracted the Orion Classic to sign a
US distribution deal with Egoyan. As a result, Adjuster was the first
Egoyan movie to have received wide audience viewing in the USA and
Egoyan became a well-known director. Moreover Adjuster received the
Jury Award at the Moscow Film Festival. This one million-ruble award
laid the foundations for his next movie in Armenia. Because a special
clause of the award was to make a movie in the old Soviet Union lands.
Egoyan became known as the 'Canadian director' as a result of this
movie. The movie also received the 'Best Canadian Film' and 250
thousand dollars from the Toronto Film Festival.
C. Calendar: Egoyan's Armenian Identity Meets Cinema
Until 1992, Egoyan created some small Armenian characters in his movies
but his dream was to make a movie wholly about Armenians. We can say
that he made the movie of Calendar with this in mind. As mentioned
earlier, Egoyan had to make a movie in the old Soviet Union lands in
order to collect his 1 million-ruble prize. This condition gave birth
to the movie of Calendar. As time went by the prize decreased and
Armenia was separated from the Soviet Union. As the movie project was
about to falter, Atom Egoyan contacted the German Television Channel
ZDF during the Rotterdam Film Festival and with its financial backing
reinitiated the project.
The crew went to Armenia, but because of financial and time limitations
the most important scenes of this 75-mimute movie had to be recorded in
10 days. Most parts of the movie were recorded by a home-camera and
script had to be shortened. It is even claimed that the movie was
recorded without a set script. Soldiers were in attendance for the
duration of the recordings. In conclusion, Egoyan's dream turned out
to be not what he desired, due to a small budget (80,000 dollars) and
unsuitable environment. However this was his first 'historical'
movie and could be considered as his first step towards Ararat. The
director not achieving what he really wanted in Calendar tried again in
Ararat. The director also acted with his wife in this movie. Ashot
Adamian, was the other lead. Even though the movie could not be
distributed widely, it received good reviews. Issues these reviews most
discussed were the close connection set between Armenia and Canada,
family relations of the director, sexual relations and problems faced
by an ethnic minority (Armenians) that the movie cultivated. Another
point that has to be considered is that Calendar was one of the most
promoted movies of the director. Especially in Canada, the USA, the UK
and France local Armenian organizations worked very hard to promote the
film.
Calendar, as mentioned earlier, is the second movie by Egoyan, which
deals with Armenian identity. Egoyan, in this movie, studies being an
Armenian on three levels. a) Nationalism, b) Diaspora, c)
Assimilation.[21] The driver-photographer's wife and
photographer-wife relationships represent these levels in the movie.
The movie is based on three characters and three time periods. Changing
timelines is one of Egoyan's most prominent specialties. In Ararat he
uses two different timelines. Calendar begins in the bedroom of a
Canadian Photographer (Atom Egoyan). There is a 12-page calendar on the
wall with photographs of historical Armenian Churches and all through
the movie the photographer has affairs with many women speaking in
different languages. From time to time he looks at these Churches and
remembers his wife (Arsinée Khanjian) he left back in Armenia. When he
went to Armenia to take the photos of the Churches for the Calendar, a
nationalist Armenian (Ashot Adamian) worked as a guide and driver for
his wife. The dialog between the wife and the driver is always in
Armenian and the director did not use any subtitles. Further on in the
movie, we see that the photographer and his wife have separated and we
learn about his thoughts on the relationship between the driver and his
ex-wife. The real reason of the tension between the photographer and
his wife is that he takes the photos of the churches and considers this
just another job while his wife respects what these churches stand for.
The last word we can say about the movie is that the director found
this movie to be too 'personal'. The separation scene between the
photographer and his wife is even thought to represent the separation
of Egoyan and his wife.[22] While the couple discounts these claims,
Egoyan states that Calendar put himself and his relationship on the
forefront and included some sections of his life. In other words,
Calendar contains some clues to Egoyan's thought process and his
life.
Exotica
The next important work of Egoyan after Calendar, was a
British-Canadian production, Exotica (1994). This was the Egoyan's
largest movie until then (5 million dollars). Egoyan studies an
isolated life, mixed emotions and their consequences to ones sexual
life in this movie. The movie takes place at a striptease bar called
Exotica and deals with a young lady Christina (Mia Kirshner), her close
relations and her customers.[23] Exotica became the most successful
Egoyan movie up till then. It entered the official contest of the 1994
Cannes Film Festival and received the International Film Critics Award.
It found a large audience in Canada and received 8 Gerie Awards. Its
distribution in the USA was done by the Miramax, which is also doing
Ararat.[24] Additionally, positive response from the US media created
large opportunities for Egoyan. Some say that Exotica was the movie
that opened the doors of the US movie industry to Egoyan.[25]
Egoyan's success in the US increased his popularity in Canada.
According to the distribution firm, it is hard for a Canadian director
or movie to attract attention in Canada.[26] Canadians usually wait
until a Canadian artist becomes well-known overseas before they embrace
him or her. In this context, Egoyan success overseas, especially
France, made Egoyan and his films much more popular in Canada.
D. SWEET HEREAFTER: Egoyan, an Oscar Nominee
Sweet Hereafter[27] is the last movie by Egoyan that is important for
our study. We can say that this movie made him the success that he is.
This movie was the successful movie that the Canadian movie industry
was dreaming about and made Egoyan one of the most important movie
personalities in Canada.[28] Sweet Hereafter was made by Egoyan
adapting Russell Banks' novel to the silver screen.[29] While novel
takes place in New York, Egoyan changed it to Sam Dent (British
Colombia). This change emphasized the Canadian character of the movie.
British actor Ian Holm plays the lead.[30] The movie premièred in
Cannes Film Festival and received the Special Jury Award, International
critics Award and the Ecumenical Jury Award.[31] The movie also opened
the 1997 Toronto film Festival and became the international pride of
the small Canadian cinema.[32] The movie won eight Genie Awards from 16
nominations in 1997 and first time in the history of the Canadian
cinema a Canadian movie was nominated for two Oscars in 1998 ('Best
Script' and 'Best Director'). It was considered
'unbelievable' for a Canadian movie and Canadian director to be
nominated for Oscars. Apart from the awards, international critics'
reviews were also very positive.[33] Especially, appraisal from Le
Monde, The New York Times and USA Today made Egoyan's connection with
the American and French public that much stronger.
In spite of all this success, Sweet Hereafter, just like other Egoyan
movies, was not a box office success. This should be tied to Egoyan's
style and stories, which are hard to understand by 'intellectual'
and popular audience.[34]
While the movie has nothing to do with the Armenian problem, Armenian
groups still could find some connection between the movie and their
accusations. For example Hrag Vartanian's review about the movie;
'Some see the affects of the genocide in Sweet Hereafter. It is based
on Russel Banks' novel of the same name, and is about the trauma of a
town in British Colombia that has a deadly bus accident. Critics say
that this is a unconscious representation of the unhealed scars of the
Armenian nation and the Turkish denial'[35]
His following movie Felicia's Journey is also a typical Egoyan movie.
While it did not bring large box office revenues, it was still
considered as quality work by the viewers. With this movie Atom Egoyan
became the first Canadian director to have competed three times (at
different times) in the Cannes Film Festival.[36] The movie is a
thriller that tells the story of a young Irish girl's adventures in
Birmingham (UK). This film also gave the director the opportunity for
him to strengthen his connections in both the UK and Ireland.[37]
E. Main Characteristics of Egoyan's Films
If we list the main characteristics of Egoyan's films in the context
of Ararat:
- Egoyan stresses his two identities. Being a Canadian and
being an Armenian. His emphasis on being a Canadian returns as
financial assistance from a nation that is hungry for artistic success
and makes him a 'hero'. Having found his Armenian roots later in
life makes him much eager to remind people of his Armenian background.
However he present this issue as not conflicting with being a true
Canadian. The Toronto Star newspaper even describes him as a Canadian
nationalist.[38]
- The issues and style he chooses to use in his films are
sometimes found incomprehensible and too deep and this decreases the
box office revenue he generates. However, Egoyan's choices are found
to be very valuable for Cinema and bring considerable respect from his
peers. To be perceived to form an alternative to Hollywood also brings
him respect.
- He is known for bringing a new dimension to movies, compared
to American films. He is a perfectionist and seems to demand the
viewers' attention. Actor Ian Holm summarizes this as, 'You might
not see him. Maybe you even have to watch the movie three times in two
weeks. But he is always there. This is his style, the use of Light,
sound and shadows, his surroundings and time. This is his
everything...'[39]
- Director has a special link with France. Especially Cannes
Film Festival is where his real success started. That's why it is not
surprising for him to make his new movie's (Ararat) première over
there.[40] There are two more reasons why the director has close
relations with France. The first is the special relationship between
Canada and France and secondly, the important Armenian minority in
France.
- Most of his movies, even those that mainly deal with his
Armenian identity, received funding from Canadian Art Council, Telefilm
Canada and local governments. In other words, he cannot be accused of
being sponsored solely by Armenians. Egoyan states that the most
important reason behind him making his movies in Canada as official
funding and claims that government support frees him from market
pressure.[41]
- In Egoyan's movies structure is more important than dialog.
- It can be said that he likes using his camera from an unusual
angle. However, with increasing fame, his choice in stories and
presentation has become more conservative.
- Stories mostly deal with assimilation, identity crisis and
personal problems. Director ties this to his personal experiences:
'Characters I form in my movies are usually those who want to find a
place to settle.'[42]
- While Egoyan's movies have small budgets, their influence
has been much greater than most big-budget movies.
F. Egoyan's Opinions About the Armenian Problem
After examining Atom Egoyan's art and movies, another important issue
in the context of Ararat is his opinions about Armenian problem. First
of all, as mentioned earlier, Egoyan's stance during his university
years and his stance before are completely different. We can say that
this transformation radicalized him. When one experiences a
transformation as great as he did, in order to justify ones identity, a
person moves to the edge and his or her emotions and thoughts become
more radical. We can also see similar changes in Egoyan. His wife, who
is known to have radical opinions, has not helped him in his
transformation. She even encouraged him to be more radical. Arsinée
Khanjian was so radical that she could legitimate terrorism for her
political aims: As known three armed Armenians stormed the Turkish
Embassy in Ottawa, and they killed a Canadian security guard and the
ambassador was badly wounded. The attackers took his wife and daughter
as hostage. When asked her about this terrorist attack Arsinée
Khanjian said "it really put the Armenian genocide on the
table".[43] It can be understood from these words that she is
obsessed with the 1915 events and she could not see the evil behind a
terrorist attack.
Media learned about Atom Egoyan's radical opinions about Armenian
problem in 1999.[44] Around those times, Canadian officials discounted
the 'genocide' claims of the Armenian lobby and a member of the
Parliament from Liberal Party Julian Reed took a openly hostile stand
against Armenian accusations. Egoyan in response reacted surprisingly
and entered an aggressive discussion.[45] On February 15, 1999,
Parliamentary secretary of Foreign Minister Lloyd Axworthy, deputy Reed
made a speech in response to the special proposal made by the House of
Commons under the direction of Armenian lobby. In the speech he stated
that, arguments and counter arguments made by both Armenians and Turks
made it impossible to discern between the right and wrong and had
placed the Canadian Parliament in an uncomfortable position. Reed, in
his speech stated that, 'These days there is a tendency to use the
word genocide outside of its meaning, sometimes even figuratively...
What happened in 1915? Both sides take a different view and each tackle
different events.'[46] He said that around 700,000 Armenians had died
as a result of these vents. However, he continued, most had died from
illness, hunger, harsh weather conditions and to have had to survive in
open air. According to Reed, it is unacceptable for the Canadian
government to pick a side or to take a stand where Turks would be
accused of being guilty. He added that, the proposal would not solve
the problem. Because, Reed said, the proposal forces us to chose a side
to be hostile to the other.[47] Egoyan's reply to Reed was very
harsh. Famous director, in a statement to the media, openly accused the
Canadian Government and Deputy Reed as:
"To form a cloud of misinformation around the problem, to bend the
truths and to make it harder to find the real answers is to ignore the
seriousness of the issue at hand... It appalls me to see that an issue
that has had a great influence over my and other families to be
discussed in such an old-fashioned way... I always tried not to get
involved with politics. However, these actions have shocked me...
Armenians believe that there is significant evidence to convince the
most cynical observer that this genocide really took place... Reed's
statement seems to approve the Turkish governments point of view... An
issue as important as this cannot become a tool for propaganda."[48]
Another occasion that Egoyan conveyed his thoughts on Armenian
accusations is 1999 Cannes film festival. The director, who attracted
attention with his movie Felicia's Journey, stated that Turkey had to
accept the Armenian Genocide and added that his struggle would continue
until this happened. Egoyan, who was interviewed by a Italian
journalist, continued,
'I have lived my life always feeling the wounds of the genocide.
However, the world still does not acknowledge the Armenian genocide.
This is the reason why my struggle continues.'[49]
Egoyan continued to express his views anytime Ararat was discussed and
stated that he had made this movie in order to make the Turkish
government to accept the fact and his only desire was Turkish
acknowledgement.[50] In another interview about Ararat, he said that he
felt this project to be a great responsibility for him and added that
all Armenians had been waiting for decades for a big movie about the
Armenian 'genocide' and it was his desire to answer that call:
"I think, as an Armenian filmmaker (he was born in Egypt and raised
in Canada but is of Armenian heritage), you're always wondering about
this film, because it has never really been made, as such. It is a
unique piece of history. The crime has never been admitted by the
Turkish government that perpetrate it so, that makes for a very
interesting dramatic situation, dealing with issues of denial."[51]
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[1] Stressed by the author (s.l.). This study is originally published
in 2002.
[2] Hrag Vartanian, 'The Armenian Stars of the Canadian Cultural
Universe', Feature Articles on Canada, www.agbu.org.
[3] Siobhan Rossiter, 'Atom Egoyan', Northern Stars,
www.northernstars.ca/directorsal/egoyanbio.html; 'All about Atom',
http:/members.cruzio.com/
[4] Atom's sister Eve Egoyan is also an artist. Eve, who is a
well-known pianist, has contributed to Atom Egoyan's movies, Family
Viewing, Speeking Parts, The Adjuster and Calander, with her piano. The
Things in Between is her the latest work.
[5] Stressed by the author (s.l.).
[6] Hrag Vartanian, 'The Armenian Stars of the Canadian Cultural
Universe', Feature Articles on Canada, www.agbu.org.
[7] Stressed by the author (s.l.).
[8] Hrag Vartanian, 'The Armenian Stars of the Canadian Cultural
Universe', Feature Articles on Canada, www.agbu.org.
[9] Hrag Vartanian, 'The Armenian Stars of the canadian Cultural
Universe', Feature Articles on Canada, www.agbu.org.
[10] Brian D. Johnson, 'Exotic Atom', Maclean's, Vol. 107, No:
40, 3 October 1994.
[11] Brian D. Johnson, 'Arsinée Unveiled', Maclean's, Vol. 112,
No.37, 13 September 1999, p.597.
[12] Arsinée, just like Egoyan, studied political science at
university. This later affected her political behavior. Khanjian
currently is 42 years old and the couple has a seven year-old son.
[13] Rick McGinnis, 'Khanjian Emerges from the Shadow, Actor's
recent Work Establishes Her Own Identity', National Post, 9 September
1999.
[14] Jonathan Rosenbaum, 'Tribal Trouble', Chicago Reader, 19
August 1994.
[15] Brian D. Johnson, 'Exotic Atom', Maclean's, Vol. 107, No.
40, 3 October 1994.
[16] Johnson, 'Exotic...'
[17] About this movie see: A Taubin, 'Up and Atom', Film Comment,
Vol. 25, No: 6, November-December 1989.
[18] The actors were, Aidan Tierney, David Hemblen, Gabrielle Rose and
Michael McManus.
[19] About this movie see: B. D. Johnson, 'Journeys Into Darkness',
Maclean's, 16 September 1991, B. D. Johnson, 'Bleak Beauty',
Maclean's, 30 September 1991, D. Ansen, 'A Holiday From The
Hype', Newsweek, 29 June 1992.
[20] Other actors were Elias Koteas and Maury Chaykin. When asked about
the sexual nature of the movie and the conservative Armenian society,
Arsinée said that, 'I was never uncomfortable with Atom's way of
presenting sexuality. Maybe it was satisfying my secret fantasies
too'. Johnson, 'Exotic ...'. It is quite surprising to hear these
words from a person who constantly talks about respecting the
conservative nature of the Armenian society.
[21] 'Diaspora' means to enjoy diaspora and to accept what it
stands for. 'Assimilation' means to accept being assimilated.
[22] 'Viewing Atom Egoyan', Maclean's, Vol. 106 (49), 6 December
1993.
[23] Other characters and actors in this movie are, Zoe (Arsinée
Khanjian), Eric, prehent owner of the establishment (Elias Koteas) and
Thomas (Don McKellar).
[24] The script of the movie was published as a book in 1995.
[25] Janet Maslin, 'Atom Egoyan May Have His Breakthrough In
Exotica', New York Times, 5 March 1995, section 2, p.13. For detailed
information about Exotica look.: J. Hoberman, 'Ghost Story',
Village Voice, Vol. 40 (10), 7 March 1995, Shlomo Schwartzberg,
'Exotica', Performing Arts & Entertainment in Canada, Vol. 29 (1),
Fall 1994 / Winter 1995, Brian D. Johnson, 'Exotic Atom',
Maclean's, Vol. 107, No. 40, 3 October 1994.
[26] Brian D. Johnson, 'In Search of a Uniting Embrace',
Maclean's, Vol. 107, No. 40, 3 October 1994.
[27] This movie was shown as 'A Different World' on Turkish
television.
[28] About the interpretation of the movies success as Canadian success
look; Brian D. Johnson,' A Celluloid Circus', Maclean's, Vol.10
(20), 19 May 1997, Brian D. Johnson, 'Champagne Dreams',
Maclean's, Vol. 110, No. 21, 26 May 1997.
[29] The novel was purchased by the director's wife and was given to
him as a present.
[30] Initially Donald Sutherland was considered for the role but it did
not happen.
[31] Barbara Wickens, 'Triple-win Canadian at Cannes', Maclean's,
Vol. 110, No. 22, 22 June 1997.
[32] Canadian Film industry compared to Hollywood is very small and is
hungry for international success. That's why Egoyan's success is
very important for Canadian Cinema: Charles Gordon, 'Why Cultural
Canada Has Yet to Come of Age', Maclean's, Vol. 111, No. 19, 11 May
1998, p.11, For Egoyan's place in the Canadian Film industry: Brian
D. Johnson, 'Hollywood Stars and Canadian Style', Maclean's, Vol.
112, No. 38, 20 September 1999, p.56, For a comparison between
Hollywood and the Canadian Film Industry: Geoffrey Macnub, 'Light at
the End of the Tunnel', Independent, 13 July 2001.
[33] Johnson, 'Champagne ...'.
[34] For additional information on Sweet Hereafter: Susanna Haas,
'Atom Egoyan's Sweet Success', The Peak, Vol. 97, No. 7, 13
October 1997, John McKay, 'Sweet Genies', Calgary Herald, 15
December 1997, p.B9, Geoff Pevere, 'Atom Egoyan's The Sweet
Hereafter: Death, Canadian Style', take One, fall 1997, p.6-11,
Gillian Roberts, 'Spectacle Matters: Titanic, The Sweet Hereafter,
and the Academy and Genie Awards', Canadian Review of American
Studies, 2000, Vol. 30, No.3, p.22.
[35] Hrag Vartanian, 'The Armenian Stars of the Canadian Cultural
Universe', Feature Article on Canada, www.agbu.org.
[36] Tanya Davies, 'It's Cancon Time at Cannes', Maclean's,
Vol. 112, No. 20, 17 May 1999, p.8.
[37] In the movie Felicia is played by Elaine Cassidy and the murderer
is played by Bob Hoskins. For a detailed review of the movie: Patricia
Hluchy, 'Starvation of the Soul', Maclean's, Vol. 112, No. 44, 15
November 1999, p. 148. For a psychological analysis of Felicia's
Journey: Carrie Zlotnick-Woldenberg, 'Felicia's Journey: An
Object-Relational Study of Psychopathy', American Journal of
Psychotherapy, Vol. 55, No. 1, 2001, p.40. The movie was shown in the
Istanbul and Izmir Film Festivals.
[38] 'Atom Spliting', The Toronto Star, 22 December 2000.
[39] Http:/members.cruzio.com/
[40] In the last section Egoyan's disappointment with the reception
of his movie in Cannes will be discussed. The movie was not accepted
into the official competition. The director claimed that this decision
was politically motivated. While this study was still being written,
there had been no reevaluation by the Festival's executive body. This
shows how successful Turkish lobbying can be.
[41] Brian D. Johnson, 'In Search of a Uniting Embrace',
Maclean's, Vol. 107, No. 27, 1 July 1994.
[42] Johnson, 'In search of a...'.
[43] "Dealing With The Ghosts Of Genocide", Toronto Star, 5
September 2002.
[44] Bob Thompson, 'Egoyan to Produce Film on Genocide', Toronto
Sun, 1 November 2000.
[45] Bob Thompson, 'Egoyan to Film Armenian Tragedy', Toronto Sun,
31 October 2000.
[46] While Reed's statements are found to be conciliatory, we have to
say that Turkish researchers find the figure of 700,000 incorrect.
Considering that there is a large gap between the sides, we can see the
figure as an attempt by Reed to find a halfway point.
[47] Jonathan Gatehouse, 'Egoyan 'Appalled' by comments on
Genocide', The National Post (Canada), 25 February 1999.
[48] Gatehouse, 'Egoyan...'.
[49] 'Egoyan Discusses Genocide at Cannes Film Festival', Asbarez,
20 May 1999. Though Egoyan claims that his film, Ararat, is not a
propaganda film, his words quoted above clearly prove that he is not
open to question his belief about the 1915 events, he just tries to
persuade the other people by filming that period, not to examine the
reasons of the events and the tragedy that the Turkish and Armenian
people had shared.
[50] 'Atom Egoyan: Türkiye Soykirimi Tanisin', (Atom Egoyan:
Turkey Must Recognise The Genocide), Beyaz Perde, 7 November 1999.
[51] Bruce Kirkland, 'Egoyan Mounts Testament; New Film Ararat A
Personal Take On Genocide'; The Toronto Sun, 8 June 2001.
Copyright © 2005 Journal of Turkish Weekly
http://www.turkishweekly.net/articles.php?id=89
Panta Rhei
Mark Rivers Spends £3000 on 27,000 Kitkats!
A Turkish immigrant living in Essex has spent £3,000 on 27,000 KitKats to
try to win a car.
Mark Rivers, 18, bought the chocolate in a bid to win a £12,000 Peugeot 206
in an internet contest.
Each wrapper has a different value. They are added together and used to bid
for the car, reports The Sun.
Rivers, a notorious, depraved spammer of Usenet, says he can now bid
highest.
He added: "I'm eating all this chocolate right now and suffer from severe
congestion. People on Usenet keep saying I'm an anal retard. They are
probably right."