Now Playing: A Virtual Visit to Jerusalem

I’ve never been to Jerusalem, or any part of the Holy Land, to be honest. Not because I am not fascinated by the whole region (I do love a good historical drama of the swords-and-sandals-biblical-epic kind) but I have to confess that the politics of the city have probably pushed it lower down on my travel list. Which is exactly why director Daniel Ferguson made his new film, Jerusalem, in the first place – he wanted to give those of us who are a little hesitant a taste of what it might be like to visit this city.

It worked.

An aerial view of Masada, an hour outside Jerusalem

Jerusalem, as I learned, is a very small city, for all of its enormous political and spiritual significance in the world, both past and present. In fact, the old part that is contained within what remains of the walls is barely one square mile. This particular film gives a birds-eye view of the city, literally, with aerial photography that the director obtained special permission to shoot, as the airspace over the city is a strictly monitored no-fly zone. This fact alone is a small indication of the volatility of this tiny part of the world, fought over for generations, but where for the moment there is a relatively stable albeit somewhat awkward peace between the Muslims, Jews, Catholics and Armenians who live in its 4 quarters.

Revital overlooking the West Wall

But politics is not what the film is all about; in fact, striving to avoid what he calls ‘Israeli/Palestinian fatigue’ in the world, Ferguson looked for a different lens through which to view Jerusalem, and he found it not just in his high-tech IMAX cinematography, but through the eyes of 3 young women who call the city home.

Farah Ammouri, a Muslim, Nadia Todros, a Catholic, and Revital Zacharie, a Jew, are the ‘guides’ through which we are introduced to the city, young women who despite walking the same small streets would likely never have met each other, had it not been for the fact that they were cast in this documentary. They take you to visit 3 different Jerusalems, each one influenced by the girls’ unique cultural perspective as we are invited into the sacred celebrations of each of their 3 religions – all of which put this city at their centre.

The Mosque above Temple Mount at the centre of the city

Alternately epic and intimate, visually this film takes you high above the domes and minarets of the city in sweeping passes that make you feel like you are flying, to almost claustrophobic walks through the tunnels and tombs beneath its walls and sacred sites. Filling in some of the historical picture is narration by Benedict Cumberbatch, and commentary from Dr. Jodi Magness, an archeologist who works in the city’s innumerable digs and who is both objective and passionate about the city and its historical treasures.

Holy Fire celebration at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre

If the goal of the film was to provide a virtual visit to the city, Jerusalem does that, on both a grand and human scale. But as Nadia Todros commented in a media interview which she attended along with the other two women, the three of whom have become friends since the filming, ‘Jerusalem is a puzzle with more than one picture’.

So I might just have to move it up on my list so I can see those other pictures (and maybe take a few) for myself.

TIP: The film ‘Jerusalem’ is playing at the OMNIIMAX Theatre at the Ontario Science Centre in Toronto, starting Friday March 7, 2014. Definitely worth seeing (but be aware that the IMAX effect can create a little dizziness so if you’re prone to motion sickness, you might want to take a Gravol first!)