Product Details

• Actors: Rachel Levy & Ayat al-Akhras
• Directors: Hilla Medalia
• Format: Color, DVD, NTSC
• Language: Arabic, English, Hebrew
• Region: All Regions
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Priddy Brothers & HBO Documentaries
• DVD Release Date: December 1, 2007
• Run Time: 76 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00119XVN2
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #55,965 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "To Die In Jerusalem" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Review

Some politically minded documentaries work hard to elicit a reaction from their audiences. Without even trying, the beautifully structured and emotionally devastating "To Die in Jerusalem" is strong medicine about the toll on human life and family ties exacted from suicide bombings in the Middle East. Without ever manipulating or appearing to sermonize, the documentary, directed Hilla Medalia, makes the viewer wonder when and if the nightmare will ever end. It takes a simple story, and Medalia has it down. One day in 2002, a 17-year-old Israeli student, Rachel Levy, walked into a Jerusalem supermarket -- the exact same moment 18-year-old Palestinian suicide bomber Ayat al-Akhras blew herself up in the market. Both girls died, and it wasn't until several years later that their mothers finally met. "Jerusalem" is that simple in structure: the meeting of two mothers whose grief represents two grieving populations. The docu resounds with emotion and lessons learned, lessons that go unheeded, emotions that ignite time and again. Medalia catches the two mothers and their families in close-up shots that have much larger implications. It couldn't be simpler than the grief of two mothers and two peoples at war. Yet after decades of retaliation between Israelis and the Palestinians, as the docu shows, grief is just part of the landscape. --Hollywood Reporter By Marilyn Moss

Product Description

To Die In Jerusalem recounts the heart-wrenching story of two teenage girls - 17-year-old Israeli student Rachel Levy and her killer, 18-year old Palestinian suicide bomber Ayat al-Akhras -- who died together at a Jerusalem market in 2002. The horrific incident ignited international outrage and set in motion one mother's journey to meet the mother of her daughter's killer. More than four years later, they finally meet in an emotionally charged encounter that underscores the deep roots of the Israel-Palestinian conflict.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful and heart renching., August 31, 2008

By 

Ammar Al Marzouqi (WI, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: To Die In Jerusalem (DVD)

A true documentary, no hidden agenda. A great insight into the daily struggles of both sides of the Palestinian-Isreali conflict. I would recommend it for everyone.

5.0 out of 5 stars Movie review, September 30, 2010

By 

Siberian309 (Alexandria,LA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: To Die In Jerusalem (DVD)

Heart wrenching , but thought provoking documentary.It shows a side of the middle east conflict from a mother's perspective. I highly recommend this video.

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another statistic..., August 6, 2009

By 

Ruby Marlowe (NYC, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: To Die In Jerusalem (DVD)

This is why I can't support the Israelis or Palestinians. I learned of this tragedy when I first saw the infamous Newsweek cover photo of the girls. I thought, "My God, they could be twins!" I showed it to Arab friends (none of whom are Palestinian, I admit) and Israeli friends (not particularly religious) and asked them if it was really true how (at times) you can't tell the difference between an Israeli and an Arab (I'd always heard that from my father). They said yes, sometimes it can cause a problem.

I've read so many books on varying standpoints (left, right, center, and straight up bare bones population/religion/ethnicity stats) on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that I just get frustrated! Two girls under the age of 18 are dead because of this insanity! These people need to pull their heads out of the sand and realize that the Knesset and Ramallah don't give a damn about them! Money, power, and death is orgiastic to politicians and the wealthy- yes there are rich Palestinians living inside and out of the PA.

Did the Holocaust happen? Without a doubt! But I don't see Israel standing up for the Darfurians or standing up for the million-plus Armenian Christians who were slaughtered by the Turks in 1917 (BTW the beloved Moshe Dayan was born in the Ottoman Empire- dhimmi!). Israelis start cleaning your ears! As for the Palestinians, wake up! The revered Yasser Arafat and his FATAH party were pretty well-off were they not? And isn't his upper class-borne Palestinian Christian widow, Suha, known for her lavish lifestyle and the fact that she refused to live in the PA?

Does that disgusting wall make life better for anybody? Will getting land and villages back make the Palestinians truly happy? Do Israelis want to live under the gun? But it's making certain people rich, while everybody else suffers. I think this film does an excellent job is demonstrating the cultural barrier between the two societies. Avigail's family were very Westernized, in fact they had time here in the U.S. But she can't understand why Um can't speak to her without her husband Abu being present. On the other hand, Ayat's best friend Haifa did say that some of their school friends didn't celebrate her as a martyr, they were slandering her. And Shadi (Ayat's fiancee- that's right FIANCEE- Rachel didn't want to date because it would interfere with school and the only way a Muslim girl could have a boyfriend was to submit to a typically arranged marriage) claimed he would've stopped her had he known of her intentions.

I see how beautiful Jerusalem is, but none of that crosses over into the Dehesheh refugee camp where Ayat was from. I feel sympathetic to both families, and especially to the Palestinian Christian minister (and I hope he's alright- thank you Hamas) who played mediator trying to help Avigail understand the intricacies of the Arab-Islamic culture. But with the recent attacks in Gaza (and the crap in Lebanon), I don't think there's much hope for peace talks.