Amerikatsi

Beautifully acted, sensitive and touching, this movie uses humor and pain to tell a a unique story of an Armenian Genocide survivor. Michael Goorjian is tremendously talented as star, writer, director. His tearful eyes are the heart of this movie. His acting is tremendous, worthy of an Oscar nomination. I hope he becomes a household name in Hollywood. He deserves it! Everyone should be able to appreciate this wonderful story, but as an Armenian, I am so proud of this beautiful film! Loved all the many references showing Mt. Ararat as the symbol of the strength and beauty of the Armenian people.

A must see for those who like art and cherish movies about power of human relationship and connections.p Slow start but quickly I wanted to see more ! A beautiful and touching story showing the strength of human connection through art, even when two human beings are placed in opposing roles , (prisoner and prison guard) they still connect above the atrocities. Amazing cast with Michael Gourjian, Hovik Keuchkerian, Nelli Uvarova and Narine Grigoryan. Dramatic, comic and sometime historic. During the same movie you will laugh , feel sad and happy. Love independent movie theaters because they give a chance to the real artists ! Great movie to watch to scape the quotidien routine.

"Americatsi" is a triumph of human spirit over the ugliness and brutality of the dark side.

In a world that the "regime" under the pretense of "good for all" crushes every attempt for happiness by Charlie (our naive hero), and tries to to punish his spirit in every possible way, he keeps on fighting even when he has nothing to fight with other than his smile.

Of course the regime can not enforce its evil without help from its agents: ... some agents are complete evil (like the buractrat woman in the pison) ... some are partly evil (like the warden who does a good balancing act, who tries to pepper his wrongs with some good deeds) ... some know they are pawns in the game and try their best to avoid helping evil (like the prison guard who brings food for Charlie) ... some are innocent souls stuck in that hell (like Tigran the guard at the tower); he is a kind soul that suffers the most...much more than Charlie. Tigran's suffering gets exasperated when he gets a macabre reward.

At the end, Stalin the invisible antagonist who is personification of evil, is dead; though the game goes on, perhaps forever.

Our naieve hero, Charlie, knows that but he does not care; he knows that nothing can steal his spirit away and he will always have that magical weapon with him.

"Americatsi" is a simple story about a simple man... but it tells a graet story about the spirit of mankind...

I found this movie to be very touching, factually accurate, and so well acted. The movie recounts the historically correct campaign by Stalin (who controlled Armenia in the late 40's) when he was enticing Armenians from other countries to leave their countries and move to Armenia. He appealed to their desire to start a better life in their new "homeland".. Needless to say, life in Armenia was very difficult and not what was advertised. Without giving away the plot, the movie is structured through the eyes of an Armenian from America. Great verbal and non verbal acting from the main characters, splashes of humor, flashes of humanity, some plot twists, and very timely. Go see this movie. You will not regret it.

I just finished watching Amerikatsi & felt compelled to immediately write a review. This is the best film I've seen all year. Michael Goorjian's performance was Oscar-worthy. Truly spectacular! The storyline was so touching - we all got emotional. Armenians have collectively been in mourning since the 2020 Karabagh war but this film gives us a healthy distraction from the trauma & reminds us that even though we've gone through endless hardships, we always persevere & never lose hope. This is a movie for everyone, not just Armenians. It's a movie that all your family & friends can enjoy, regardless of skin color or religious background. Amerikatsi will leave a mark on your heart.