Film Review: THE ZONE OF INTEREST (2023): Jonathan Glazer’s Film is Disturbing and Will Create a Sense of Dread All the Way Through

The Zone of Interest Review

The Zone of Interest (2023) Film Review, a movie directed by Jonathan Glazer, written by Martin Amis and Jonathan Glazer and starring Sandra Hüller, Christian Friedel, Freya Kreutzkam, Ralph Herforth, Max Beck, Ralf Zillmann and Stephanie Petrowitz.

Jonathan Glazer’s frightening, disturbing and unflinching film of horrific proportions, The Zone of Interest, is the most grotesque film of the year. Yet, it’s what the movie doesn’t show that will leave the viewer trembling by the time the picture ends. I just reviewed Origin which showed some very tragic events in vivid detail. The Zone of Interest is a bit different. The viewer will feel a sense of dread from the music which is composed by Mica Levi who certainly deserves an Oscar nomination for the creation of fear from just the very existence of the score. The movie opens with what sounds like vibrating noises that are played against a dark screen. The film doesn’t show a thing to the viewer and the black screen speaks volumes as to what is about to transpire during the course of the picture.

Sandra Hüller co-stars in the movie as Hedwig Höss, a nazi married to Rudolf (Christian Friedel). Rudolf was the commander of Auschwitz and the film sets itself over that wall where horrible murders were being executed. Hüller’s performance is nothing short of superb as the actress takes on a role which many actresses would be afraid of playing. She’s the essence of evil in a household that the movie shows with bone-chilling, documentary-style authenticity. Friedel has the more monstrous role as a man that words could not describe because what Rudolf says (and orders others to do) defies humanity. Hüller’s performance stands out more for some reason, though, because Hedwig looks innocuous at first glance, almost like one of our friends or neighbors. Hedwig is equally as evil as Rudolf, however. Hüller’s characterization is nothing short of brilliant. It’s no wonder she’s being discussed as a potential double Oscar nominee this year for this role and her leading work in Anatomy of a Fall.

I was shaken by the scene in The Zone of Interest in which words were read from a famous fairy tale, Hansel and Gretel. The symbolism of what the story can imply through the use of the oven is simply bone-chilling. The Zone of Interest doesn’t have a plot like a typical movie. It’s almost like a glimpse into the world of evil that existed during the time and place the film is set. A picnic or a pool on display in the movie can show the desire for peace of the central characters but the tendency of Rudolf to be a living monster is manifested even in the mundane, seemingly harmless things that he and his family do.

You can hear the sounds in the background of the events that are occurring in the movie on the other side of the wall. This film creates sound-effects that would give any action picture a run for its money. That’s because the sound complements the mundane aspects of the central characters’ lives in such a way that it creates twisted revelations of how these people could move on with their lives almost as if nothing wrong is happening.

The best scenes are clear to differentiate from the rest of the movie. The scenes are distorted by a different type of lighting. A girl leaves food out for those who are suffering. She sneaks away to do this in order to give some things to Jewish laboring sufferers to try to ease their pain. It’s heart-wrenching to watch but the quality of this section of the film is crucial to understanding what is going on beyond the sick “managing” of the torturing of innocent people that is going on in the house.

There are reminders of the horrific elements of the situation here. The older son holds some loose teeth dearly, the barbed wire and the smoke that is present clearly hint to what is happening, and other similar situations occur which keep true the nature of the deranged situation in full view.

The Zone of Interest is hard to rank alongside other movies. it stands on its own as a powerful piece of film-making that fearlessly shows situations that were a part of a history that we need to remind ourselves of at times to know that life is precious but, also, to understand that evil exists. You can’t view this as a movie in the traditional sense because the scenes don’t add up to a plot that will be resolved. At least not on screen anyway. As a work of art, Glazer’s film is haunting and disturbing and will stay with the viewer for days, weeks or months but know that this is not a traditional movie in terms of its structure. It’s ambitious to show the occurrences it does because it makes the audience question what lives inside the minds of evil people. It’s an excellent film but be reminded that it’s driven by sound, actions and images and what each person takes from it will certainly be devastating. This picture demands attention.

Rating: 9/10

Leave your thoughts on this The Zone of Interest review and the film below in the comments section. Readers seeking to support this type of content can visit our Patreon Page and become one of FilmBook’s patrons. Readers seeking more film reviews can visit our Movie Review Page, our Movie Review Twitter Page, and our Movie Review Facebook Page. Want up-to-the-minute notifications? FilmBook staff members publish articles by Email, Feedly, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr, Pinterest, Reddit, Telegram, Mastodon, and Flipboard.