Where Are You Adam?
Filmmaker’s synopsis:
«Where are you, Adam?» is set at the ancient Dochiariou Monastery on the western shore of Mount Athos, the Aegean peninsula dedicated solely to Eastern Christian monasticism. Images of nature alternate with the monks' almost ceaseless round of work and prayer, creating a rhythmic bond between man and the natural world that hints at a paradise we all dimly yearn for.
The jewel of this rich Byzantine setting, however, are the monks themselves, whose warmth and authenticity has been captured through a revelation of their daily lives, each with its joys, hopes and frailties. By inviting the filmmakers into their midst, the monks hope to encourage each viewer to awaken to his own resurrection. A central figure in the film is the monastery Elder, Abbot Gregory, whose decades of leadership have given him a keen understanding of the souls under his charge and their desire to regain for themselves a state akin to the humanity of Adam before the Fall.
Watch the trailer, and visit the website at https://denpeirazei.com/.
NOTE: This documentary is not narrated, and the filmmakers aim to allow the audience to make meaning of it, and to be open perhaps to the voice of the divine as they contemplate it. Watching the film is like being on Mt. Athos, a real impossibility for at least half of us. As one might as a visitor, we sit quietly looking at the rugged landscape, we silently watch monks hard at work on construction projects and in the kitchen, we obeserve beekeeping and olive harvests. In the midst of the work, one suddenly finds oneself in a short conversation with whatever monk happens by, or having a short word with the abbot, Archimandrite Gregory (Zumis) of blessed memory. Frequently, we gether in a very dark, ancient chapel in the middle of the night, chanting in the dark, unti the sun rises. This is very likely what it would be a like to visit Mt. Athos - the sights and sounds, the services and the people. It’s a gift to take an 80 minute journey that many of us could never take.
