TO DIE IN JERUSALEM

TO DIE IN JERUSALEM - 2007

RATED - NR but probably PG for themes.

RATINGS - 1 Amazon (4/5), 114 Netflix (3.9/5), 60 IMDB (7.4/10).

THEMES - Justice, forgiveness, spirituality.

STORY - An HBO documentary telling the story of two mothers, one is Israeli and the other Palestinian. Both had daughters killed in a suicide attack in a Jerusalem supermarket in 2002. One daughter was the victim, the other daughter was the bomber. Both were teenagers with full lives ahead. Why did 18 year old Ayat al-Akhras, an honors student, decide to blow herself and Rachel up and is she a murderer or a martyr? Is this terrorism or is it resistance to an occupation on the part of Israel. Who is willing to stop the vicious cycle of violence or is there no hope for this part of the world? Both sides believe in God. Whose side, if either, is God on? Can these two groups ever learn to live together? Those are some of the questions the mother of Rachel Levy wanted to try to find answers to. She set about trying to arrange a meeting between herself and Ayat's mother. It took four years to finally arrange a meeting. The meeting is a powerful microcosm of the whole Israeli/Palestinian conflict. This film documents the story that led to the meeting which includes a trip to an Israeli prison where 58 Palestinian women are held, 20 of whom were suicide bombers that were arrested before their bombs went off. While this film does not pretend to give answers to the complex realities of this area, it does show extremely well the tensions and the attitudes of these people toward each other. Highly recommended for those interested in another look at why there is continual conflict in this City of Peace, JeruSALEM. Lu G. for Lus' Reviews. 03/30/2008.

LINKS - AMAZON, IMDB