TIGRAN KHZMALIAN’S "SARDARAPAT" DOCUMENTARY TAKEN OFF LIST OF FILMS SHOWN IN MOSCOW CINEMA

Noyan Tapan

Se p 23, 2008

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 23, NOYAN TAPAN. The documentary "Sardarapat" of
film director Tigran Khzmalian has been taken off the list of films
shown in the Moscow Cinema. The film was made by an order of the RA
ministry of culture.

It was ready in early May but has not been demonstrated so far. By a
preliminary agreement, the documentary was to be shown in the Moscow
Cinema on September 27, but four days before its screeining the film
director was informed that his documentary had been taken off the
list of that cinema’s films.

T. Khzmalian said during a talk with NT correspondent that he does not
understand what is going on in Armenia. "I don’t even have the right
to show my work to the public. I can’t imagine in what times we live."

A 68-minute version of the film was shown at the Narekatsi Center on
September 16, but the "May" version is a 38-minute one and has another
accentuation. As T. Khzmalian had said at the Narekatsi Center, during
the film’s shooting he as the scriptwriter discovered some interesting
facts and video materials unknown to many. "I was sent sensational
facts and video materials from various countries, and all of them
occurred and were filmed in 1916-1920. I became acquainted with the
documents which were not published due to the political situation
in this region. I made an attempt to sum up what happened 90 years
ago – now, at the beginning of the 21st century. All that happened
at that time was because of feebleness of dull political figures,
parties and improvident leaders," T. Khzmalian underlined.