Summary
This Five Mile River film adapts the Biblical story of the prophet Jeremiah.
The tale of Jeremiah is, on one hand, about fighting with all one's might to
be heard--no matter how bleak or unattractive the message may be. And,
on the other hand, it is about learning to listen and being able to decipher the truth.
In the end it is a cautionary tale of the consequences of both. When Jeremiah is young
he is visited by God in human guises and told he has been selected to be the voice of God
to his people: to warn against worshiping false idols, to alert them to impending attack
from the north and to save Jerusalem and her people from exile and destruction.
But over and over again no one listens to him. His prophecies are unpopular and
unwelcome--and Jeremiah suffers great personal pain and suffering for continuing to
speak them. He is attacked, thrown in jail and wholly ignored with the exception
of a few disciples, most important among them Baruch, a temple scribe. Yet
Jeremiah cannot walk away from God's mission, eventually abandoning his one
love, Judith, in order to continue his work. It is only when the forces of Babylon do
threaten that Jeremiah finds an audience--but it is too late. The King,
unable to react quickly and decisively, loses his opportunity to save his nation and
Jerusalem burns--forcing his people into exile in Babylon. Thus, the prophecies of
Jeremiah came true and no one is less pleased about it than Jeremiah himself.
His only consolation is that God has told him the Holy City will be resurrected--both
physically and spiritually--in the future. And Jeremiah, the Prophet, knows this
to be true. Patrick Dempsey stars in the title role. This film '
is part of Turner Entertainment's Biblical epic series.
This film is made for television and not rated.
