“Ticket to Jerusalem,” written and directed by Palestinian Rashid Masharawi, premiered Thursday at the Wexner Center.

The movie stars Ghassan Abbas, who plays Jabir, a middle-aged Palestinian living in present-day Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank.

Filmed in Arabic and subtitled in English, the entire movie is based upon Jabir’s precarious occupation as a man who shows cartoon films to children in refugee camps at a time when there is lack of food and freedom.

As a result, Jabir is constantly the center of criticism among his peers and family for his so-called ridiculous obsession with insisting to show the children the films.

“I would risk everything to show movies to the children,” Jabir said.

In an early scene, his father-in-law questions why Jabir would leave his wife in a time of war and suggests he move to Canada to start a new life. Meanwhile, his peers question his sanity for trying to show films in the context of incredibly poor circumstances.

“People can’t eat and he wants to show cartoons,” a gatesman said.

One of Jabir’s few supporters is his wife, Sana. Although she constantly must deal with anxiety and depression caused by her husband’s disappearing acts, she inevitably takes his side and insists on traveling with him to show the films.

However, jealousy strikes Sana when questions are left unanswered regarding a spunky school teacher, Rabab, who urges Jabir to premiere a film in the courtyard of her now Israeli-occupied home in Jerusalem.

Even with the unending pressures of the war and his wife’s worry, larger problems remain to be the greatest conflict to Jabir – how can he, a Palestinian, cross into Jerusalem?

Eventually, with a little help from his friendly mechanic, he, Kamal and Jabir transport the heavy film projector cautiously by foot into the Holy City. Jabir shows his film to a large audience of Palestinians and even to some Israelis, and everyone is content in the end.

“The ending was very anti-dramatic. I was expecting some kind of interaction between Israelis and Palestinians,” said Naaz Diwan, a junior in Arabic and international relations. “It was still a good movie.”

The piece is filmed much like a documentary, with the situations leading the audience through the movie rather than the acting. However, the issues at hand are indeed heartfelt.

No huge conflict was resolved and no self-discovery was made, yet “Ticket to Jerusalem” is sure to please those who enjoy a happy ending.