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MOVIES / ON DVD / THE HOLY LAND
The Holy Land

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The Holy Land (2003)

53%
56%
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N/A
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53 %
Reviews Counted: 53 Fresh: 28  Rotten:25 Average Rating: 5.8/10
 
Consensus: This messy coming-of-age tale is of interest only because of where the story takes place.
 

How does the Tomatometer work?

The Tomatometer measures the percentage of positive reviews from Approved Tomatometer Critics for a certain movie.[-]

Runtime: 1 hr 36 mins

Theatrical Release: Jul 11, 2003 Limited

Synopsis: Mendy (Oren Rehany) is a young man living in Bnei Brak, Israel, struggling to keep his mind focused on rabbinical school. His family is supportive of him, and they realize that adolescence involves soul-searching and discontent. But his teacher sees that deep down Mendy is full of lust, and he... Mendy (Oren Rehany) is a young man living in Bnei Brak, Israel, struggling to keep his mind focused on rabbinical school. His family is supportive of him, and they realize that adolescence involves soul-searching and discontent. But his teacher sees that deep down Mendy is full of lust, and he tells Mendy to rid himself of these desires by visiting a prostitute in Tel Aviv. At a whorehouse called The Love Boat, Mendy falls head over heels in love with a Russian harlot named Sasha (Tchelet Semel)--a baby-faced rebel who secretly longs for an escape from her difficult life. Next Mendy meets Sasha's boyfriend, Mike (Saul Stein)--a gruff American who runs his own bar, a den where drunken Arabs and Jews mix merrily. Soon Mendy is working at the bar, living with Mike, and courting Sasha. Little does he know, a dark political and criminal current runs through Mike's Bar, and just behind it follows big trouble. Meanwhile, Mendy is asking himself important questions about God and life, but he's not finding any answers. Director Eitan Gorlin has crafted a multidimensional film with THE HOLY LAND. Under its coming-of-age veneer lies a darker story about sin, religion, faith, loyalty, and the fear of terrorism. Serene moments overlooking the prayer wall and the city of Jerusalem are contrasted with perturbing sexual sequences in the Love Boat. As Mendy, Rehany doesn't miss a beat, while it is Stein in the role of Mike who steals the show as the unpredictable father figure who is at times nurturing and at other times just plain scary. [More]

Genre: Dramas

Starring: Saul Stein, Tchelet Semel, Albert Illuz, Arie Moskuna, Oren Rehany

Director: Eitan Gorlin
Screenwriter: Eitan Gorlin
Producer: Udi Yerushalmi, Ran Bogin

DVD Info

Release:

Jun 22, 2004

[DVD Details]

DVD Features:

  • Region 1
  • Keep Case
  • Widescreen

Audio:

  • Dolby Digital Stereo - English

Additional Release Material:

  • Audio Commentary - 1. Director and Cast
  • Featurette - 1. Opening Night Party
  • Interview with the Director

Text/Photo Gallery:

  • Photo Album Narrated by Saul Stein

Buy It On DVD

Reviews

 
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1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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Ratings Image
B-

Gave me a better understanding of what it's like to live in modern Israel.

Full Review | comment Comment
09/13/04
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Ratings Image
2/4

A mixed bag.

Full Review | comment Comment
08/13/04
Robert W. Butler
Kansas City Star
Ratings Image
3/4

A stimulating cinematic experience in every sense.

Full Review | comment Comment
01/23/04
Phil Villarreal
Arizona Daily Star
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3/4

The Holy Land espouses love and sex and in the wrong, or right places, and doesn't flinch, even if the story wanders off into an occasional dramatic desert.

Full Review | comment Comment
12/15/03
Elias Savada
Nitrate Online
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2/4

The flat dialogue and cardboard characters often undercut any social points that Gorlin seems on the verge of scoring.

Full Review | comment Comment
12/04/03
Rob Thomas
Capital Times (Madison, WI)
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2/4

An unholy mess.

Full Review | comment Comment
11/28/03
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
St. Paul Pioneer Press
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N/A

Casts intriguing characters in interesting situations but leaves them adrift in a disjointed narrative that gives away its conclusion too early.

Full Review | comment Comment
11/28/03
Jeff Strickler
Minneapolis Star Tribune
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image
2.5/4

Too many characters, each too quickly drawn, hobble the film's momentum.

Full Review | comment Comment
11/21/03
Ty Burr
Boston Globe
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image
2/5

Gorlin's vignettes work only in fits and starts, and his plodding pace makes 96 minutes seem like so many hours.

Full Review | comment Comment
11/18/03
Jim Lane
Sacramento News & Review
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B

putting a human face on the same tribulations that many face in Jerusalem

Full Review | comment Comment
11/04/03
John A. Nesbit
Old School Reviews
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2/5

A bit of a mess.

Full Review | comment Comment
11/01/03
Richard Nilsen
Arizona Republic
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image
4/5

Gorlin's main agenda is to show that young Mendy hasn't at all found the respite from Judaism he perceives, but there's just as much torque to the relationship between this naïf and his hooker of choice.

Full Review | comment Comment
10/31/03
Steve Schneider
Orlando Weekly
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2/5

[Gorlin] tries to bring in too many elements without laying the groundwork for them or placing them in context.

Full Review | comment Comment
10/31/03
Jay Boyar
Orlando Sentinel
Ratings Image
N/A

The screenplay doesn't have enough force to take us anywhere particularly interesting.

Full Review | comment Comment
10/31/03
Kim Morgan
Oregonian
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2/4

Gorlin supposedly based this material on some of his own experiences in Israel, but it still seems overly familiar.

Full Review | comment Comment
10/24/03
Jeff Vice
Deseret News, Salt Lake City
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2.5/4

Director-writer Eitan Gorlin provides flashes of the dire straits of Jerusalem life ... but fails in the end to bring them together into a relatable or sympathetic story.

Full Review | comment Comment
10/24/03
Sean Means
Salt Lake Tribune
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N/A

The film doesn't hit with the impact it should.

Full Review | comment Comment
10/17/03
Laura Kelly
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
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2/4

Fails to capture the anguish and struggles of an ultra-Orthodox Jew adapting to a more secular world.

Full Review | comment Comment
10/16/03
Marta Barber
Miami Herald
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2/4

The movie flounders in a way that calls too much attention to itself -- and is hurt by jarring and unbelievable plot twists.

Full Review | comment Comment
10/10/03
Jonathan Curiel
San Francisco Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image
2.5/4

A fairly standard coming -of-age drama.

Full Review | comment Comment
10/10/03
John Hartl
Seattle Times
1 - 20 (sorted by date)
Text View | 1 2 3 >> >|
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Around the Network

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