After a brief foray into more mainstream filmmaking with Where the Truth Lies, Egoyan returns to his art-house roots and more familiar subject matter with this story of fractured families and fractured identities.

When his high-school French class is asked to translate a news article about a terrorist who planted a bomb in his pregnant girlfriend’s luggage, Simon (Devon Bostick) starts digging into his own family’s murky past. His resulting claims about the deaths of his father, Sami (Noam Jenkins), and mother, Rachel (Rachel Blanchard), stir up a storm that splashes into communities both local and virtual. Egoyan explores themes of technology, terrorism and fear, bringing all these different tones and textures to the fore in a tapestry of storytelling which is uniquely his own. In one extraordinary scene, an online community exchanges opinions about the consequences of violence, showing all the faces and voices joined together in a pattern of emotions.

The film is full of notable performances, including Scott Speedman as Simon’s well-meaning uncle, and long-time Egoyan collaborator Arsinée Khanjian as the mysterious French teacher Simon turns to for advice and consolation. Years after Family Viewing and The Sweet Hereafter, Adoration marks a welcome return for this Canadian filmmaker who is still pushing the boundaries of cinematic language.