Home 
Actualités A Poet in Jerusalem
Actualités A Poet in Jerusalem | A Poet in Jerusalem |
|
|
Jacob Israel De Haan, an ardent utopian Zionist, a brilliant lawyer, an international journalist, a controversial poet, and a homosexual, immigrates to Palestine from Holland in 1919. Upon his arrival he tours the land, visiting Arab villages andnew Jewish settlements, recording his impressions of thenew land for both Dutch and British magazines. But, in avery short time he becomes aware of local Arab aspirationsand realizes they are in direct contradiction with the ones he believes in. Foreseeing an endless cycle of bloody conflicts in the area, he pens critical articles damaging the Zionist cause and advocating a creation in Palestine of a Bi–National state for Arabs and Jews alike. Soon, he receives threatening letters from an obscure group called «the black hand», ordering him to leave the country, or die. But De Haan will not budge. He forms strong personal ties with people in high places and becomes a key figure in the power struggle between the Arabs, the English, the Zionists, and a small group of ultra-orthodox Jews whom he joins. Pressure mounts, but De Haan, who is not willing to give up fighting for his truth and his ideals soon has to sacrifice his friendships, his chance for love, and his personal security. On June 30th, 1924, three shotgun blasts shatter the quiet Jerusalem sunset. Jacob Israel De Haan, now an ultraorthodox Jew, is shot to death by two young Zionists as he walks out of a Synagogue. Paralleling De Haan’s turbulent political journey is a hidden inner journey of the soul: a soul sensitive to the suffering of «the other», a soul deeply rooted and drawn to the Jewish religion but at the same time driven by homosexual desires that define it’s artistic identity, desires which it cannot control. His poetry provides an insight into his unusual personality: For whom should I wait late at night? When the city is sound asleep? While I’m sitting by the Temple’s wall? For God, or for the Moroccan lad? A Poet In Jerusalem is a «Bio» film, based on a real character and on factual historical events. |
