Essential viewing for Middle East studies and for campuses engaged in debate about the Israel-Paelstine conflict, the film zeroes in on Israeli settlers in the West Bank, and the Israelis and Palestinians who oppose them.
Director/producer Peter Cohn comes to the story with an outsider's unaffiliated perspective, gaining intimate access to the lives of key players on both sides. They include an LA-born Orthodox Israeli settler, a millenial Palestinian journalist inspired by the Arab Spring, an unconventional settler rabbi, and the progressive mayor of a Palestinian town.
As the action shifts from Palestinian villages to Israeli settlements, there are many unexpected turns: blood is shed, loved ones are lost, and homes are destroyed.
Holy Land is also a story of families with children growing up and grandfathers facing death, of generational passage in a land of conflict and faith, and of the rhythms of life in a majestic landscape of mountains, deserts, vineyards and olive orchards.
With no preaching and an uflinching focus on the realities on the ground, Holy Land is a film that challenges conventional viewpoints about the Palestine-Israel conflict. A valuable resource for balanced discussion around such flashpoint issues as BDS, the two-state solution and the US approach to peace negotiations.
