Each year, the small town of Lourdes in southern France hosts six million visitors from all corners of the world. Since a peasant girl saw apparitions of the Virgin Mary 160 years ago, the city has become one of the world's most important sites of religious tourism, and a French attraction second only to Paris. Among the thousands of pilgrims gathering each day, the most poignant are the sick and disabled, who make the long trip praying for a miraculous healing. This unprecedented portrait of Lourdes follows a few of these hopefuls, listening to their moving stories with empathy and respect, while also observing the behind-the-scenes workings of a vast institution. Both grand and intimate, heartrending and clear-eyed, this anthropological theatre masterfully conveys the fascinating intensity of a place where humanity is laid bare in the face of illness and death. Charlotte Selb
Co-presented with Alliance Française Toronto.
World Showcase program sponsored by Delta Air Lines.