ANARAK VORDU VERADARDZE

He stands completely lost on a deserted platform in the midst of a green idyll: the prodigal son wants to return home to his family. Many years ago he cheated his father out of his fortune and set off into the sunset. He was searching for himself, in vain as it turned out, and he ate up every last penny of his father's savings in the process.

Standing there on a platform in the middle of nowhere the young man feels terribly guilty. He strikes up a conversation with an old signalman and tells him his story. "A cruel world!" explains the signalman and chases the young man out of his hut, cursing him for his irresponsibility in the process.

The Parable of the Prodigal Son was of course firstly told in the Bible: the homecomer is greeted by his father with open arms whilst his brother can only resent him. In this film from the Armenian director duo the father also forgives his returning son, the two brothers and friends of the family however construct a wall of accusations, which the homecomer does nothing to counter.

The production of the film resembles that of a play: extended scenes, the camera focuses upon the characters' facial expressions, music is used very seldomly. The slowness of the film underlines the lack of communication within the family, which seems irresolvable despite the best efforts of the aged father.