Holy ground is director Michael Jolls’s YouTube documentary detailing the development of Chicago from the 1800s to the 1960s, from the perspective of the influence of the Catholic church on the city. The historical narratives are presented by noted historians offering an in-depth study of the origin of Chicago’s Catholic foundations.
The most fascinating aspects of the story involve the interactions and impact of the indigenous peoples of the area and the early French settlers. With both of those groups having had heavy church engagement, Catholicism had an advantage at the very beginning of the city. Historian Ann Durkin Keating, professor at North Central College in Naperville, elaborates, “…that world is predominantly Catholic… That connects into an indigenous history. There were many Catholic indigenous women in Illinois, often married to French men. The Catholic story there is tied up in trade and French colonialism.” The narration takes the viewer deep into these details.
The film’s quality is good. It’s clear that this is a well-funded project. The cinematography, beautiful soundtrack, editing, and archival images are well researched and clearly presented. The historians featured are articulate and passionate about their various focus subjects.
“…Chicago from the 1800s to the 1960s, developed with the influence of the Catholic church…”
Jolls says his intention with Holy Ground is “…people can exit the film with a better understanding of the city of Chicago. Not just the history of the parishes, but of the way the parishes anchor communities. … I didn’t make this film for Catholics. This film was made for Jews, for Muslims, and for atheists, as well as for Catholics, so they understand how these communities developed.”
While his intentions command respect, Jolls doesn’t have the knack of pulling in a viewer the way Ken Burns does. The film opens in 1673 with French explorers coming across the confluence of two rivers and goes straight down an unmercifully involved rabbit hole of events, people, and deep details of history. There’s little to give a casual viewer a reason to care. It is not clear that the average cinema attendee is meant to connect with this material. The film is more of a reference source than it is a contiguous narrative. The narrator is reading in a stiff, formal tone, as if from scripture. Fair enough, I suppose, as the person voicing the narration is Father Gregory Sakowicz. This is not negative criticism, but rather meant to filter for the engaged audience for the doc who will enjoy and learn from it.
The audiences likely to enjoy the Catholic history of Chicago in Holy Ground are specific, narrow niche groups. Avid history buffs will stay engaged with the dizzying array of detail and esoterica. Chicagoans may also be interested in knowing how the church helped establish their city as the area evolved. Catholics, too, could have a vested interest. The film could be shown in classrooms, and indeed, it will be intensely valuable in that context. I could also see the film being presented in a museum or on a church tour by pulling out clips to play for specific contexts like architectural details. Holy Ground is an impressively ambitious project created with academic integrity and thorough research, but if you’re not a Chicago Catholic, you may struggle to find it emotionally compelling.
"…an impressively ambitious project created with academic integrity..."
