[phileysmiley]

<img src="http://parcom.pronetworks.org/images/0915ador2.JPG" align="right" alt="adoration"></img><font color="maroon">by Larry Richman </font>
<font color="gray" size="1">September 15, 2008 7:13 PM</font>

<em>Adoration</em> is, at its heart, a coming-of-age story. It's about that time of self-discovery when the question "who am I?" becomes an obsession. But what makes this film so startlingly refreshing is that it also has a classic structure rarely seen in contemporary cinema. The viewer is never quite sure whether or not the images onscreen are real or imagined. Think of a chess game where each move prompts you to replay the entire game in your head. Such is the experience of watching <em>Adoration</em>, brilliantly conceived and executed by writer/director/co-producer Atom Egoyan.

Egoyan is a legend in his adopted country of Canada with dozens of awards and nominations to his credit (1997's <em>The Sweet Hereafter</em> earned him Oscar noms for writing and directing). The mere mention of his name widens the eyes of citizens north of the border, as I learned here at the Toronto International Film Festival, where I attended the film's North American Premiere (it debuted at Cannes, where it was nominated for the prestigious Palm D'Or). Locals hold him to a very high standard. For me, I prefer going in cold, knowing as little as possible about a film. Similarly, I won't reveal much about the story here -- I abhor spoilers.

After losing his parents under questionable circumstances, Simon (Devon Bostick) is reluctantly being raised by his Uncle Tom (Scott Speedman). Simon's memories of his mother Rachel (Rachel Blanchard), an accomplished violinist, and father Sami (Noam Jenkins) are shrouded in mystery. Enter Simon's teacher Sabine (Arsin