Jerusalem, the Adulterous Wife Matthias De Groof, 2008

The film Jerusalem, the adulterous wife is an urban symphony on Jerusalem, inspired on the text of Ezekiel 16 of the same name. The citys actual complex relation to politics and religion is brought into perspective by historical images and an historical text. In that manner, the cinematic approach to the city is not only historicized, but the text and images are also actualized. This archeological approach is visualized both by the use of archive footage (mostly propaganda films) and by what these footage represents (namely excavations). The archeological approach cuts though historical layers en depths of the city in order to give a diachronic view on the conflict that is persisting in Jerusalem. Under the surface, Jerusalem, the adulterous wife reflects the difficulty of approach towards Jerusalem and the adultery of images.