Investigating Paradise

The caricatures of the jihadist who wants to blow himself to pieces because he thinks 72 virgins are waiting for him in heaven is not an unfamiliar image. Director Merzak Allouache examines the promises of an everlasting reward in heaven in his documentary Investigating Paradise. He combines interviews with excerpts from speeches made about the afterlife the way it has been described by religious leaders from Saudi-Arabia. There is no doubt that the mind-set from these religious leaders has penetrated society, but this way of thinking is facing more and more resistance from the upper middle class in the country. Questions arise. Like what really happens with the women, whose men are busy with the beautiful virgins? Or what happens with unmarried women who arrive at the pearly gates alone? Answers come from both those who believe in the afterlife and those who make fun of the mind-set. The result is quite remarkable.

Merzak Allouache (b. 1944) is an Algerian film driector and with over 18 films in his filmography since his debut in 1976, among them Chouchou (2003), Es-Stouh (2013) and Salut cousin! (1996). His films have been shown at festivals worldwide and Allouache has been nominated to several awards during his career.

Read Hollywood Reporter's review of the documentary here.