The Sacred Science

The documentary follows the journey of eight patients. All of them are carrying serious illnesses. Among these are diabetes, prostate cancer and Parkinson’s. Alcohol dependency is among them too. The eight travel to Peru, into the Amazon forest. There they stay for a month at a secluded centre. They take part in the practices of indigenous healers. Plant preparations and rituals are part of those practices. The film builds this as a story of searching. The patients also come face to face with their own fears. The outcomes are not the same for everyone. Five return with an improvement and two return disappointed. One does not return at all. The documentary stands on the side of the method and offers no medical proof. The seventy seven minute documentary was directed by Nicholas J. Polizzi. It is an American and Peruvian co-production finished in 2011.