Ararat is a contemporary stroy of two estrangled families and their search for reconciliation and truth. It is also an historical reenactment(a film within a film) being made by a famous Armenian director, Edward Saroyan, whose production is based on Clarence Ussher's actual book An American Physician In Turky which depicts the Seige of Van, and the tragic events of 1915,

Seamlessly shifting through time, Atom Egoyan explores the quest for personal, sexula and cultural identity through the initmate moments shared by lovers, families, enemies and strangers.

Ararat interwines the paths of two families. At the centre is an 18 year old boy on the cusp of adulthood, Raffi (David Alpay) and a man on the ve of his retirement, David (Christopher Plummer). Raffi returns to Canada with cans of 35mm film, digital tapes and a mystery. he is sent to customs for inspection. David, the retirng customs official is determined to discover what Raffi is concealing. According to raffi, the canisters cobtain additional material for a film being shot in Toronto. David suspects otherwise and his questioning leads to an intense pyschological examination.

David is coming to terms with his gay son Philip (Brent carver) and Philip's lover, Ali (Elias Koteas), while trying to build a solid relationship with his grandson, Tony. Whne Ali, an actor, is cast in a Saroyan film, the paths of the two families become inextricably linked, culminating in David's intense interrogation if Raffi's mysterious cargo. What begins as a search for clues becomes a quest for the truth across a vast and ancient terrain of lies, deception, denila, facts and fears.

Ararat explores how history, both personal and political, can inspire a legacy of uncertaintand insecurity. It is a true story about the nature of living proof.