The Armenian Genocide” has long been curiously underrepresented on film. Over the 101 years since the Ottoman Empire systematically murdered as many as 1.5 million Armenians, as few as34 films have been made on the subject. By way of comparison, in barely two decades there have been nearly as many films about the Rwandan Genocide—an average of more than one a year since 1994. One of the best is Hotel Rwanda, directed by Terry George, who is now turning his attention to the slaughter of the Armenians with The Promise, from a script written by the director and Robin Swicord.

The Promise starring Oscar Isaac and Christian Bale. Set during the heart of World War I, the film will tackle the Armenian Genocide, with Isaac and Bale's characters thrown into the middle of the conflict. Set in 1914 right before the fall of the Ottoman Empire, the film follows Michael Boghosian (Oscar Isaac), a hopeful medical student who arrives in Constantinople to bring modern medicine to his ancestral village of Siroun in Southern Turkey. In the bustling capital, he soon meets Chris Myers (Christian Bale), an American photo-journalist, and Ana (Charlotte Le Bon), an Armenian artist. Both Michael and Chris soon fall in love with Ana and a love triangle ensues just as the Turks join the war on the German side, turning against the Armenians. Everyone must find a way to settle their differences in order to survive the coming chaos.

The Promise seems intriguing enough and seems poised to be a hit when it comes to theaters, but there are some questionable decisions that could weigh it down. The trailer really walks the line with its love story and we'll see how it balances a love triangle with the violent war scenes.

System of A Down’s Serj Tankian wrote a song for the Armenian Genocide-themed movie The Promise produced by Kirk Kerkorian’s Survival Pictures.

 

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