One Day in the Haram (2017) User Reviews

very interesting

[mjoyceh · 8/10 · 6 August 2020]

This film consists of interviews with employees at the Mecca pilgramage site. I found it very interesting while also being educational.

I have only three objections:

(1) Not a single woman was interviewed. It would be interesting to know whether this is because no women are employed there, or because the film just ran out of time.

(2) Some members of the religious police are included as interviewees. The narrator repeatedly mentions how "gentle" they are. This is probably true. Mecca gets millions of international visitors. Saudi Arabia probably makes gentleness a condition of employment, to avoid giving visitors a bad experience. But I doubt Saudi religous police OUTSIDE the shrine have this same temperment. In other words, when it comes to religious police, these interviews are a little misleading.

(2) At the end of the film the narrator says Mecca is "the oldest place of prayer to the God of mankind". Not true. As a place of single God prayer, Jerusalem preceded Mecca by a few hundred years.

Aside from the above, I highly recommend this film. It was enjoyable and I learned a lot. I may even watch it again, because a lot of the information is somewhat technical, and another viewing would be helpful to absorb it all.

Interesting

[am-by · 6/10 · 13 July 2021]

The religion itself seems no. Less bonkers than other religions. But the architectural scale and obsessive behavior is a sight to behold. Its well made but narrow in its scope.

Informative

[mikalrkayn · 8/10 · 22 February 2019]

An very interesting and informative documentary. Educating yourself is key to understanding.

Stunning shots. Nice narrative.

[adilsonuk · 10/10 · 21 January 2018]

I got to see the UK premiere of this documentary movie yesterday and I'm glad to say it delivered! As the trailer for the movie attests to there are some really beautiful shots in this movie. Both the aerial long-range shots as well as the on-the-ground close-range shots of the Ka'bah, the Haram and wider Makkah are stunning.

As well the beautiful shots the movie has a running narrative which works to keep the viewer engaged. Though the movie was shot over a number of weeks it's edited and presented to the viewer as a single day in the Haram from the morning prayer to the night prayer. It works. The narrative also strikes a good balance in my opinion so that it's understandable and enjoyable for both Muslim and non-Muslim audiences.

Yesterday's premiere included a Q&A with the producer and director of the movie and it was inspiring to hear how such a young team with a limited budget and working against the bureaucracy of the Haram's custodians managed to pull off this project and deliver such a polished product. One thing that I found funny about the movie was how the Saudi workers in the Haram were on their best behaviour when the camera was on and came across as humble, gentle and jovial towards visitors. Although this is a little away from reality it was good to see the filmmakers didn't have to exaggerate this point too much to get the film authorised. It would have been great to see the non-Saudi workers in the Haram get a little more air time in the movie but alas it is what it is.

Overall a stunning first of its kind. Hats off to the producers. An excellent initiative and a beautiful product.

Outstanding

[masud-85131 · 10/10 · 21 September 2019]

Some of the key informations are missing but it's a great documentary. Thanks to the producers and the presenter to find a beautiful place to show the world. I think this is the only quality documentary available to date.

Beautiful Insights into the Holy Sanctuary

[jamaal · 10/10 · 22 July 2020]

A rhythmic, beautifully filmed journey through a day at al-Masjid al-Haram, the Sacred Mosque at Makkah, the heart of the Islamic world. Naturally, and authentically, the filmmakers follow the observance of the Five Daily Prayers as they open window after window into the workings of this center of the Pilgrimage to Makkah, the Hajj, and the Ancient House rebuilt by Abraham and Ishmael as commanded by God Almighty, which Muslims turn toward every day when they stand, bow and prostrate before the Creator of the heavens and the earth. The human element in the maintenance and care of this Holy Sanctuary is rightfully highlighted in this amazing documentary, one of discovery and wonder. One Day In The Haram is not merely a film to watch. Rather it is a beautifully woven visual and aural experience of the center of Islam.

Absolutely Breathtaking

[fatti-18043 · 10/10 · 25 November 2020]

Having been to Makkah before, it was amazing to see how thing work behind the scenes and giving recognition to all the people who work so hard every day between all five prayers. A beautiful representation of the diversity and unity of the pilgrims and ummah.

Medieval superstition meets 21st century modernity

[wisDOM87 · 5/10 · 13 April 2020]

Your experience of this film will largely depend on whether or not you are a Muslim. Those belonging to the 1.8 billion faithful will no doubt find this to be an awe-inspiring look at what to them is the holiest site on earth. For the rest of us, seeing this film is something of a more mixed experience.

As an agnostic (leaning towards atheism if I was absolutely forced to choose) I was alternately impressed by the sheer scale of operations depicted here, where 200 workers make the kiswah cloth covering the Kaabah using only the finest and most expensive of material and vast legions of workers are employed purely to hand out free water to pilgrims, and dismayed by the fact that such conformity and uncritical religiosity still exists on our planet.

Watching this film I was reminded of documentaries from North Korea, where everyone spoken to is unswervingly on message - 'North Korea is the best country in the world, the Kim family are the best rulers in existence - completely selfless and ruling only for the good of the Korean nation' etc. No one has a bad thing to say, and it's hard to tell how much of it genuine and how much motivated by fear of the consequences in a system that does not tolerate criticism. The same principle, alas, works to a degree here. Religious freedom does not exist in Saudi Arabia and any non-Islamic faith must be practised in private. Blasphemy or apostasy can be punished by death (or at the least, a long prison sentence). Indeed, religious freedom even within Islam does not exist in the country, as the kingdom exclusively promotes the ultra-strict Wahabbi form of Sunni Islam which deems Shi'a Muslims, Sufis and others as heretics (the word 'Wahabbi' is tellingly not used once in this film). I would perhaps lean towards being more generous here, as much of the religious fervour on display is most likely genuine.

However, having studied Islam and the world's other great faiths, the fact remains that there is no proof for any of the assertions of Islam, and much of the material in the Koran has since been comprehensively disproven by science. Islam's claims to be the absolute and final truth inevitably gives it an intolerant edge that has waxed and waned over the centuries, and moreover is directly contradicted by similar claims made by other faiths. The inability to countenance criticism displayed by many of its adherents, and the tolerance of this intolerance by some supposed liberals in West, is deeply troubling to anyone who values untrammelled freedom of enquiry in the pursuit of truth. The film gives an insight into what it must have been like to exist in the European Middle Ages, with the absolute grip the Catholic church had on all aspects of life. Yes - when visiting a medieval cathedral I am enthralled and uplifted by their beauty and scale, yet I am also glad that the unthinkingly conformist, irrational, unscientific and deeply intolerant societies that gave rise to them is in the past.

Of course none of those points is covered in the film, which adopts a fawning, reverential tone throughout. Despite constant talk of the unity of the Ummah (Muslim people) there is no mention either of the vicious sectarianism that had ripped apart Iraq, Syria, Pakistan and Lebanon. And of course, no talk of Saudi support for terrorist groups in the past, or their indiscriminate bombing of fellow Muslims in Yemen. There is no mention either of repeated safety failures at the site (there have been at least 8 stampedes since 1990, the last in 2015 resulting in over 2000 deaths), nor of the outcry caused in the Muslim world by the destruction of an old Ottoman fort to make way for the grotesquely tasteless Abraj Al Bait clocktower which now towers over the Haram. The cutting-edge use technology on display is also impressive, though one has to wonder if this is the best use of Saudi money given that so many of the 'Ummah' live in appalling poverty in places like Afghanistan and Somalia. Also, not a single woman is interviewed in this film, which says a lot.

In conclusion, I must say that seeing the hitherto unseen organisation that exists behind the scenes at Mecca is fascinating, and anyone with an interest in religion or even just grand human spectacle will enjoy this film. However, the flipside of a film made by pious Muslims working at the behest of the Saudi government is very one-sided, uncritical look at the Haram. Watch it by all means, but take what you see with a grain of salt.

Allah Is The Greatest

[imnever · 10/10 · 27 June 2021]

May Allah make this documentary a means to guidance. Ameen ya Rabb.

PR

[shanayneigh · 2/10 · 23 May 2021]

I looked forward to this "documentary", but it's not really that. It's a PR puff piece made by the Saudi regime. I studied Arabic and the language in this film is a direct echo of the language used by Saudi state controlled media. All positive PR saying little of substance. And just as tired as you get reading Saudi "news" my eyes start to glaze over as the speaker drones on about how good the people in Mecca are at using the latest technology, how much they have spent on the sound system etc. I gave up after 45 minutes or so.

Not focused on Kaba

[ssafavi · 1/10 · 18 March 2019]

Based on workless and chunky arab staffs that not working for prayer and they are very rude and unprofessional engineers who had made big mistakes and killed lots of people in last few years by falling the lifts and wrong work safety

Mildly interesting

[fersegundo-87782 · 3/10 · 13 June 2022]

Some of this documentary (30% maybe) has some interest for the imagery and ridiculousness of it all. There are more interesting and critical documentaries about islam and saudia arabia out there, but this one-sided view of the inside of the Haram is an ok complement.

I would give this a 5.5 (giving actually less to compensate for the fanatics)