Being a cradle Catholic, I wondered if there was even a point in viewing it. After all, how many revelations could you have if you already believed you understood what the Eucharist truly is and received it yourself each Sunday?
As I learned more about the documentary through its June 4 release, I discovered the feature produced by Castletown Media (the same company responsible for 2022’s Mother Teresa: No Greater Love) was exactly what it was said to be — a deep exploration into the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist and its everlasting significance to the Catholic Church.
I was lucky enough to view a private film screening, a real treat seeing that it has only been available to audiences in select theatres across the United States during a limited-time-only run. It only took me until the opening credits when I was shown an all too-relevant Bible verse that I started to understand just how powerful the documentary I was about to watch would end up being.
“I am the living bread that came down from Heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world” - John 6:51.
From that point onwards, Jesus Thirsts presents an awe-inspiring collection of real-world insight from Catholic Church figures both past and present whose historical knowledge and testimonial experiences result in one of the most spiritually re-affirming features I have seen in a long time.
Produced in collaboration with James Wahlberg and the Diocese of Orange in California, the film interviews various bishops, priests, deacons, brothers, sisters and even lay people such as authors and historians, all from different Catholic communities.
“We were blessed to speak to many of the leading voices in the Church today, which required preparing for each and every discussion separately. Our team at Castletown felt that to bring the very best out of our interview subjects, we needed to be as thoroughly prepared as possible,” said Stefan Slovak, producer and co-writer on the film. “To complete the film in advance of July’s National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis, we shot our first interviews in August 2023 and wrapped up filming in January 2024.”
Using as its hook the 2019 study by the Pew Research Centre that showed that only 30 per cent of Catholics believe in the Real Presence, Jesus Thirsts takes advantage of its platform to unveil the reality of transubstantiation in a way simultaneously easily comprehensible yet mystifying to the viewer.
Testimonies from Church figures are shown on a global scale, with explanations coming from Catholics in North and South America, Africa, Europe and Asia. It is done in a way that conveys the far-reaching universal truths of the Eucharistic experience while the footage of communion taking place everywhere from Texas penitentiaries to villages in Uganda is beautiful enough to stand on its own without any dialogue. Seeing Catholics from abundant backgrounds profess their experiences of healing, comfort, revelation and devotion to the body and blood of Christ in their native language, be it English, Spanish, Swahili, Polish or Vietnamese, were touching moments throughout the documentary.
“The belief in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist transcends any single country, continent or people,” Slovak said. “Castletown Media is blessed to have developed a global network of film crews, enabling us to capture stories from anywhere. This network allowed us to travel extensively and produce a high-quality film within the narrow constraints of an accelerated production schedule.”
Interwoven throughout the interview segments are reenactments of Biblical and historical accounts such as Melchizedek’s encounter with Abraham, the Last Supper and the Road to Emmaus. These showcases not only break up the ongoing testimonies and interviews in a fluid way, they also provide specific lessons from the Bible concerning the Eucharist. The film explained these accounts in such detail that it was as if I was revisiting a collection of the best of all the homilies I have heard in my life.
Perhaps even more interesting, I came to learn through my research that many from the production team are local to the Toronto area, with the film’s post-production process and colour correction all being done here. Slovak noted a particularly charming local tidbit that had me pointing at the screen during my first watch of Jesus Thirsts.
“If viewers watch carefully, they can catch a quick glimpse of our local shepherd, His Grace Archbishop (Francis) Leo, and two of his auxiliary bishops with one of our interview subjects.”
Jesus Thirsts also explores different Eucharistic miracles throughout history as far back as the miracle of Lanciano in the eighth century right up to Poland’s miracle of Sokółka in 2008 — another welcome addition that further amplifies the film’s message of the True Presence as opposed to that of mere symbolism.
With a runtime of an hour and a half, it can be a lot of back and forth between interviews, reenactments and historical accounts in a short time. However, segments like seeing how unconsecrated hosts are made by Franciscan Sisters or how the Order of Friars harvest grapes for wine add a much-needed personal element to a broad and highly spiritual topic.
Having been initially slated for a limited three-day release, Jesus Thirsts drew such impressive crowds it managed to extend its cinema run twice. Despite only being in theatres for under a month, it became the number-one documentary of 2024 thus far, grossing over $2.9 million (U.S.) at the box office.
“The feedback Castletown has received about Jesus Thirsts has been overwhelming. It has reignited so many people’s belief in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist at a time when that belief has been waning,” Slovak said. “As the film continues to reach audiences far and wide, we pray it will light a fire in people’s hearts for Christ.”
Slovak confirmed that due to the film’s successful theatrical run, Castletown Media is actively exploring possibilities for international distribution that includes Canada. How and when it will be available to audiences in Canada is still being finalized, with more information expected soon.
For me, it was difficult to put into words how to best describe the content I had just seen after completing the film. It was not funny like a traditional comedy, yet it displayed unrestrained joy. It was not fast and action-packed, yet the adventures portrayed managed to spread across the entire globe. While not cheesy like a blockbuster romance, it contained the greatest love story ever told. The only certain thing was that it had been the most in-depth Catholic documentary I had seen up to this point in my life.
In a word, Jesus Thirsts is a celebration. It is an encapsulation of the most foundational truth of our Church in that the Eucharist is not only the Real Presence of Christ but that we are loved because of it as well. It is a film that is not embarrassed to share that reality nor one that encourages the viewer to be. Jesus Thirsts is an absolute must-watch for any Catholic or fan of Catholic media when it inevitably makes its way north of the border.