THE CHOSEN Actress Highlights Armenian Struggles in New Movie
By Movieguide® Contributor
Elizabeth Tabish stars in BETWEEN BORDERS, which explores the true story of an Armenian family’s battle with discrimination in the Soviet Union and Azerbaijan.
The synopsis reads, “After finding their eternal hope through a church planted by American missionaries, the hostility of everyday life pushes them to seek refuge in the United States. In the shadow of exile, hope became their home.”
“I’ve been wanting to help tell an Armenian story for a really long time,” Tabish said. “I’m part Armenian myself, and, when I read the script, I saw so much of my family members in it…it seemed like a very timely piece and also a really important piece.”
The movie came to theaters Jan. 26-28. It currently has a 97% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.
Actor Patrick Sabongui, who plays Ivan, said the movie “helps humanize displaced people.”
Though it’s set in the 1980s, the movie’s timely arrival lines up with today’s high tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
“The Petrosyan family, it’s Ivan and Violetta and their two daughters, and…they were born and raised in Baku in Azerbaijan,” said Tabish, who plays Violetta. “They have incredible jobs. Ivan is a rocket scientist and Violetta is a principal at a school.”
READ MORE: ELIZABETH TABISH SHARES HOPES FOR NEW MOVIE BETWEEN BORDERS
When they saw their neighbors getting killed, they fled to Russia.
“They are allowed to stay there by the government, but even within that, they are faced with a lot of bullying and threats and sort of this constant promise of danger to their family,” Tabish said.
Then, the family meets American missionaries.
The Petrosyans were “raised in a communist society,” Tabish explained. “So religion was a very foreign concept to them, and they kind of open their hearts to it and learn more about it, and it really transforms their lives.”
After finding faith, the family shares their story in America and eventually applies to become citizens.
“It’s just a really beautiful story about them seeking a home in this world and also really finding…home in their faith, too,” Tabish told Movieguide®.
“It’s such an unfortunate thing to have to go through so much trauma and tragedy,” Tabish said. “But there is this beautiful light at the end of that. There’s this beautiful meaning behind it all…They gave up everything for their family and for love, and there is this [this] rich reward for them.”
“The struggles that they were facing… So much of it was handled with love on their end,” Tabish told Movieguide®.
Movieguide gave BETWEEN BORDERS a +1 rating for its strong Christian, moral worldview.
BETWEEN BORDERS is a powerful historical drama with a compelling true story that’s well produced. Tight direction by Mark Freiburger and excellent acting and film editing make this an outstanding cinematic offering. Elizabeth Tabish (Mary Magdalene from THE CHOSEN series) is particularly effective as the mother. BETWEEN BORDERS has a strong Christian, moral worldview. It repeatedly shows the positive impact a small Christian church can have as it works in the lives of the Petrosyan family. MOVIEGUIDE® advises caution for older children and teenagers for some references to genocide and brief sequences of violence and peril.
READ MORE: BETWEEN BORDERS MOVIE REVIEW
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