A Sinner in Mecca(2015)
For a gay filmmaker, filming in Saudi Arabia presents two serious challenges: filming is forbidden in the country and homosexuality is punishable by death. For filmmaker Parvez Sharma, however, these were risks he had to assume as he embarked on his Hajj pilgrimage, a journey considered the greatest accomplishment and aspiration within Islam, his religion. On his journey Parvez aims to look beyond 21st-century Islam’s crises of religious extremism, commercialism and sectarian battles. He brings back the story of the religion like it has never been told before, having endured the biggest jihad there is: the struggle with the self.
Movie: A Sinner in Mecca
Top 6 Billed Cast
Self
HomePage
Overview
For a gay filmmaker, filming in Saudi Arabia presents two serious challenges: filming is forbidden in the country and homosexuality is punishable by death. For filmmaker Parvez Sharma, however, these were risks he had to assume as he embarked on his Hajj pilgrimage, a journey considered the greatest accomplishment and aspiration within Islam, his religion. On his journey Parvez aims to look beyond 21st-century Islam’s crises of religious extremism, commercialism and sectarian battles. He brings back the story of the religion like it has never been told before, having endured the biggest jihad there is: the struggle with the self.
Release Date
2015-04-29
Average
5.8
Rating:
2.9 startsTagline
Genres
Languages:
Englishالعربيةहिन्दीاردوKeywords
Recommendations Movies
Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room(en)
A documentary about the Enron corporation, its faulty and corrupt business practices, and how they led to its fall.
Beneath the Skin(en)
After his family falls apart Joshua is forced to move to Canada. It is there he meets Jay, a local tattoo artist who fled the violent actions of his parents back home in Alabama. Both young men, abandoned and lonely in their own way, find themselves falling for one another... until a pair of high school brats intrude on the boys' growing relationship.
Oppenheimer(en)
The story of J. Robert Oppenheimer's role in the development of the atomic bomb during World War II.
Zack Snyder's Justice League(en)
Determined to ensure Superman's ultimate sacrifice was not in vain, Bruce Wayne aligns forces with Diana Prince with plans to recruit a team of metahumans to protect the world from an approaching threat of catastrophic proportions.
Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood(en)
Los Angeles, 1969. TV star Rick Dalton, a struggling actor specializing in westerns, and stuntman Cliff Booth, his best friend, try to survive in a constantly changing movie industry. Dalton is the neighbor of the young and promising actress and model Sharon Tate, who has just married the prestigious Polish director Roman Polanski…
Julieta(es)
The film spans 30 years in Julieta’s life from a nostalgic 1985 where everything seems hopeful, to 2015 where her life appears to be beyond repair and she is on the verge of madness.
Extraction(en)
A hardened gun-for-hire's latest mission becomes a soul-searching race to survive when he's sent into Bangladesh to rescue a drug lord's kidnapped son.
Soul(en)
Joe Gardner is a middle school teacher with a love for jazz music. After a successful audition at the Half Note Club, he suddenly gets into an accident that separates his soul from his body and is transported to the You Seminar, a center in which souls develop and gain passions before being transported to a newborn child. Joe must enlist help from the other souls-in-training, like 22, a soul who has spent eons in the You Seminar, in order to get back to Earth.
Call Me by Your Name(en)
In the summer of 1983, a 17-year-old Elio spends his days in his family's villa in Italy. One day Oliver, a graduate student, arrives to assist Elio's father, a professor of Greco-Roman culture. Soon, Elio and Oliver discover a summer that will alter their lives forever.
Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)(en)
Harley Quinn joins forces with a singer, an assassin and a police detective to help a young girl who had a hit placed on her after she stole a rare diamond from a crime lord.
Ex Machina(en)
Caleb, a coder at the world's largest internet company, wins a competition to spend a week at a private mountain retreat belonging to Nathan, the reclusive CEO of the company. But when Caleb arrives at the remote location he finds that he will have to participate in a strange and fascinating experiment in which he must interact with the world's first true artificial intelligence, housed in the body of a beautiful robot girl.
Mulan(en)
When the Emperor of China issues a decree that one man per family must serve in the Imperial Chinese Army to defend the country from Huns, Hua Mulan, the eldest daughter of an honored warrior, steps in to take the place of her ailing father. She is spirited, determined and quick on her feet. Disguised as a man by the name of Hua Jun, she is tested every step of the way and must harness her innermost strength and embrace her true potential.
The Suicide Squad(en)
Supervillains Harley Quinn, Bloodsport, Peacemaker and a collection of nutty cons at Belle Reve prison join the super-secret, super-shady Task Force X as they are dropped off at the remote, enemy-infused island of Corto Maltese.
The Shawshank Redemption(en)
Imprisoned in the 1940s for the double murder of his wife and her lover, upstanding banker Andy Dufresne begins a new life at the Shawshank prison, where he puts his accounting skills to work for an amoral warden. During his long stretch in prison, Dufresne comes to be admired by the other inmates -- including an older prisoner named Red -- for his integrity and unquenchable sense of hope.
His House(en)
After making a harrowing escape from war-torn South Sudan, a young refugee couple struggle to adjust to their new life in a small English town that has an unspeakable evil lurking beneath the surface.
Titanic(en)
101-year-old Rose DeWitt Bukater tells the story of her life aboard the Titanic, 84 years later. A young Rose boards the ship with her mother and fiancé. Meanwhile, Jack Dawson and Fabrizio De Rossi win third-class tickets aboard the ship. Rose tells the whole story from Titanic's departure through to its death—on its first and last voyage—on April 15, 1912.
Gifted(en)
Frank, a single man raising his child prodigy niece Mary, is drawn into a custody battle with his mother.
Similar Movies
Fez: City of Saints(en)
This exclusive documentary follows the journey of some of the worlds leading Muslim thinkers in a gathering that took place at the heart of an ancient Islamic city It was Habib Umar's first trip to the Maghreb and the film captures his travels and responses as he journeys through a land brimming with spirituality, knowledge and vast history. From the serene courtyards of the University of Qarawiyyin to busling souk streets, from walled city of Fez to the mountainous sanctuary of Moulay Idris, the film shares the spiritual secrets of the places and their stories. The beauty of the great city of Fez, founded by descendants of the Noble Prophet (May Allah swt shower blessings upon him), is shared by a visitor who is himself a direct descendant of that great household. The result is a moving meeting of two traditions that form the very core of great Islamic narrative.
Encontro das Águas(pt)
This short film follows the journey of Rosane Pires and Iara Viana, during the preparations for their wedding, as well as the civil and religious ceremonies.
The Zone(en)
In times of conflict, a companion can be the final thread linking one to human connection. In Call of Duty: Warzone, communication is fractured, making it even harder to truly know those you play with. Dialogue is just a series of terse exchanges of orders and instructions; everything revolves around the game, everything is subsumed by war. Forming a meaningful connection with an anonymous player seems nearly impossible. In The Zone, the protagonists confront this challenge, pushing beyond the fleeting interactions dictated by random matchmaking. They seek to reclaim their humanity, engaging with pressing themes — religion, terrorism, and representation — subtly embedded in the game’s mechanics and geography.
Afghan Star(en)
This documentary on the effect the talent competition "Afghan Star" has on the incredibly diverse inhabitants of Afghanistan affords a glimpse into a country rarely seen. Contestants risk their lives to appear on the television show that is a raging success with the public and also monitored closely by the government.
Tarnation(en)
Filmmaker Jonathan Caouette's documentary on growing up with his schizophrenic mother -- a mixture of snapshots, Super-8, answering machine messages, video diaries, early short films, and more -- culled from 19 years of his life.
Homotherapy: A Religious Sickness(fr)
In 2019, some still consider homosexuality as a disease that needs to be cured. Focusing on movements with roots in the United States, which draw on both religion and psychiatry to justify so-called conversion therapies, an investigation into the devastating consequences of certain practices that seem to successfully avoid any control by European public authorities.
Waiting for Abou Zayd(ar)
"Nasr Hamed Abou Zayd is not Godot, and the expectation promised by the title is misleading: this great gentleman is present in almost every shot. Who is he? An Egyptian Muslim theologian of international reputation, he has published exegeses of the Koran which led to his being condemned for apostasy. Exile, forced divorce from his wife Ibtihal Younes since his marriage was subject to annulment, separation from his son, such are the consequences of his writings. But Abou Zayd has not given up, residing in Leiden in the Netherlands, he continues, always on the road, to give conferences, to explain with great serenity his positions in public debates, on television, etc. C It is this particularly impressive dedication that Mohammad Ali Atassi's camera recorded over a period of six years.
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan: Live in Wolverhampton(pa)
Taken from DVD Volume 9, this documentary features the legendary Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan live in concert during his 1985 UK tour. Recorded at Wolverhampton’s Wulfrun Civic Hall on October 25, 1983, the film captures his mesmerizing performance. Known as the "Shahenshah of Qawwali," Nusrat revolutionized the Sufi devotional music tradition with his powerful vocals, intricate improvisations, and deep spiritual expression. Originally produced by Oriental Star Agencies Ltd. in 2004.
Obsession: Radical Islam's War Against the West(en)
Obsession is a film about the threat of Radical Islam to Western civilization. Using unique footage from Arab television, it reveals an 'insider's view' of the hatred the Radicals are teaching, their incitement of global jihad, and their goal of world domination.
Isis: The Origins of Violence(en)
Historian Tom Holland traces the origins of Isis’ barbaric and sadistic violence which it claims is justified by the tenets and scriptures of Islam.
HIV=AIDS: Fact or Fraud?(en)
One of the most powerful video documentaries of our time boldly reveals the modern medical-industrial complex’s dire descent into utter corruption. HIV/AID$ - A deadly and dangerous DECEPTION! This feature-length expose explains exactly how the 300-Billion-dollar AID$ fraud began, why HIV can NOT be the cause of AIDS, what the real causes could be, and who manipulates the public’s good intentions while poisoning hundreds of thousands with toxic drugs that cause the very disease they are supposed to prevent.
Young and Hooked on Chemsex(en)
The chemsex scene is a subculture within the gay community where men mix drugs like methamphetamine & GHB with sex to maximize pleasure and decrease inhibitions. In this documentary, three young men from New Zealand share personal accounts of what it was like to be involved in the chemsex scene.
Do I Sound Gay?(en)
What makes a voice “gay”? A breakup with his boyfriend sets journalist David Thorpe on a quest to unravel a linguistic mystery.
Los Exóticos(es)
The documentary portrays the life and history of Mexican wrestlers who for various reasons have decided to participate in this contact sport characterizing exotic characters. The exotic refers to the strange, the mysterious, the weird, the unusual. Particularly in wrestling exotic style refers to refined athletes in their clothing, well groomed, with a very special walk, occasionally thin effeminate. Not rude, not technical, but not rare height or size, these mannered gladiators have represented a third option within the Mexican rings, some shamelessly displaying their sexual preference and thereby defying the homophobic, or secretly homophily, mood of the wrestling fans.
For the Bible Tells Me So(en)
An exploration of the intersection between religion and homosexuality in the U.S. and how the religious right has used its interpretation of the Bible to stigmatize the gay community.
The Hand of the Butterfly(fr)
Fourth film in the Mafrouza series. Two events mark the early winter in Mafrouza: the birth of a boy and a young woman's engagement. Within their homes, the intimate and the holy, cries, whispers and rituals: individuals' destinies are taking shape. Amidst the familial agitation, each finds their own way to live. Through their actions, but also through what they say, summoning the imaginary to reflect on reality, make it livable, and speaking of life, death and gender roles.
The Ornament of the World(en)
Filmed in Cordoba, Granada, Seville, and Toledo, this documentary retraces the 800-year period in medieval Spain when Muslims, Christians, and Jews forged a common cultural identity that frequently transcended their religious differences, revealing what made this rare and fruitful collaboration possible, and what ultimately tore it apart.