Next Year Jerusalem

A lovely documentary, Next Year Jerusalem follows members of a sometimes-invisible population—senior citizens in nursing homes—who do something extraordinary. Proving that there are no age barriers to adventures and new experiences, a group of seniors at a U.S. retirement home makes a long trek to Israel along with a handful of nursing staff, where they visit historic sites, are entertained by schoolchildren, drink wine and converse with locals, and go floating in the buoyant waters of the salty Dead Sea. Before any of that happens, however, filmmaker David Gaynes gets to know these tourists back in their familiar digs, giving viewers a chance to learn something about their individual histories. Serving up a solid reminder that people in their 80s and 90s deserve better than to be warehoused and forgotten, this inspirational film is recommended. (T. Keogh)