Adoration

Adoration is the latest from Canadian director Atom Egoyan. It tells the story of a young man called Simon (Devon Bostick), an orphan who lives with his uncle (Scott Speedman). One day, Simon’s French teacher reads an old newspaper article to the class, for them to translate. It’s about a man who planted a bomb on his pregnant wife for her to take on a plane to the holy land.

Simon presents this story as that of his own parents, him being the unborn child at the time. This creates a lot of controversy in his community. Was his father a terrorist? His tale explodes online and, through various chatrooms, people from all over come together to discuss Simon’s story, while Simon himself gets pulled deeper into it. Meanwhile, Simon’s teacher encourages him, and tries to convince him to present his story as a project for an art festival.

At this movie’s core is the art of storytelling, and how they can impact our lives. Why we tell them, and what effect they have on people around us. Simon founds an outlet in telling this story; using drama to create his own narrative and in a way shape his past. It’s fascinating and compelling stuff.

The performances here are very strong. Bostick and Speedman are both excellent, and I was impressed by Arsinée Khanjian who plays Sabine, Simon’s teacher. They’re all troubled people with various issues and problems, and their characters got under my skin.

There are seemingly many threads to follow here, but it all comes together beautifully in the end. I preferred the first half of the movie, but it’s a strong story throughout. The movie isn’t perfect, but it’s ultimately very effective and deeply moving. I have a feeling it could spark some heated discussion too, if only people got a chance to see it.

The less you know about this movie, the better. Just check it out.