Jesus Is a Palestinian


Jesus Is a Palestinian is a 1999 Dutch comedy film written and directed by Lodewijk Crijns. The film parodies on religious fanaticism and millennialism, which involves the topics of self mutilation, incest, and euthanasia, is the director's first full-length movie. It premiered at the 1999 International [Film Festival Rotterdam].

Plot

Natasha goes to Limburg to collect her brother Ramses, who has joined a sect, prying him from the cult so he can consent to cutting their father's life support. The cult's leader Pieter Bouwman frowns upon sexual activity and, to prevent sex from happening, they have put a kind of lock, self-applied by way of piercing on the male member's penises. Ramses slowly develops a mind of his own and falls in love with Natasha's roommate, Lonneke. Ramses finds out that his sister and the nursing home staff are essentially trying to kill his father, and ends up delivering his father to a crackpot zealous Palestinian who prophesies the return of Christ. In the meantime, the cult is also out to get Ramses back, but Ramses now is unwilling to return to mandatory celibacy.

Cast

Reception

According to NRC Handelsblad, the film was a flop. The Volkskrant critic, in a sometimes positive review, summarized the movie as "occasionally funny, but mostly superficial." David Rooney reviewed the movie for Variety and commented positively on "Crijns' spirited direction and the appealing cast."