Documentary gives voice to the lament of a suffering people
Everyday Armenians tell heartfelt and heartbreaking tales of a forgotten land
Figure d’Armen
Documentary Directed by: Marlene Edoyan
Duration: 74 minutes Parental guidance: for all Playing in Armenian with French subtitles at Excentris cinema
As travelogues go, Figure d’Armen is not exactly upbeat. But there is a weary dignity to Marlene Edoyan’s understated documentary on the people of Armenia.
A Montrealer who grew up in Lebanon, Edoyan is a member of the Armenian diaspora, displaced by years of unrest in the country. Eager to connect with her roots, she heads off on a month-long trip to the motherland, travelling through the striking yet desolate countryside and stopping in Armenian-populated territories of neighbouring Georgia and the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave.
Her goal is not to deliver an overarching exposé of Armenia’s troubled history, or the hows and whys of its current situation, but rather to hear, first-hand, the experience of everyday Armenians.
She finds a family living in a trailer, on a mountain in the middle of nowhere; a farmer, returning home with his donkey; a group of widows, sitting in front of a mound of bales of hay.
Each tells a similar story. The country has been in limbo since seceding from the Soviet Union in 1990. Independence has led to a world of problems, mostly relating to the lack of employment and infrastructure.
Young Armenians leave the country in droves to go work in Russia. Those who stay behind, or who have returned, profess an undying love for their native l and while lamenting how hard things are. Regional and ethnic conflicts add to a climate of mistrust.
A woman farmer explains how she never has a free moment to herself, always doing chores to make ends meet, collecting firewood, milking the cows, making cream, yogurt and bread. But she can’t imagine herself anywhere else. “What’s abroad?” she asks. “Nothing.”
Dressed in a suit and admitting to having had a few drinks, a farmer stands with his donkey, telling of his life in the army. He explains that “Armenia has always suffered,” enduring attacks by the Persians, Turks and Georgians, among others.
In the small region of Nagorno-Karabakh, in southwestern Azerbaijan, the Armenian community is shunned by the Azerbaijani people.
There are no solutions in Edoyan’s film, nor is there much in the way of dramatic thrust; there are only stories — heartfelt tales from a forgotten people for whom life is never easy. By lending them an ear, she gives them a voice.
Figure d’Armen screens in Armenian with French subtitles at Excentris. Director Marlene Edoyan will introduce the film Friday and Sunday at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. There will be special screenings of the film with English subtitles, April 27 and 28 at 5 p.m. at Cinéma du Parc. Visit cinemaduparc.com.