On the surface, it's a family drama. The film opens with a family on a lovely picnic. They are a loving bunch, and have moved up to some success. The are light moments around the dinner table, the celebration of the father's birthday. there are quiet, romantic moments between the husband and wife. there is a scene of suspense when the father must rush to get two of his kids out of immanent danger. There is even some sadness when the father is promoted and must leave the family at their home while he goes away for work. Glazer films all of these moments in a way that under certain circumstances you could come to care for these people and what they go through. But you won't.
The Zone of Interest is the story of the idyllic life of Rudolf Höss and his family.
For those of you who don't know, Höss was the commandant of the Auschwitz Concentration Camp. He oversaw and the execution of 2.5 million Jewish prisoners during his time in power. He devised more efficient and quicker ways to exterminate lives, and was responsible for "Operation Höss," which killed 430,000 Hungarian Jews in a mere 56 days. Monster is not a strong enough word.
Glazer presents the monster as an every man, just fulfilling his duties to the Nazi Party. He goes to work at the camp (right next door to his spacious country home) like any businessman heads to the office. We never see what happens in the camp, only the after effects. Plumes of smoke from the crematorium. Ashes and the bones. The Zone of Interest isn't a film about the visceral horrors of the Holocaust, it's about the banality of evil people. Höss, his wife and children, and the multitude of Nazis we see are unaffected by the mass death and torture. They're just living out their best lives.
Here is where the brilliant sound design come into play. While watching the cute Höss children playing in the garden that Mrs. Höss has build from nothing, or swimming in the backyard pool (with a slide), or riding horses in the countryside, in the background are gunshots,screams, and the ominous arrivals of unseen trains coming to Auschwitz. These are just the usual noises for the Höss family. Background noise.
Friedel and Hüller ground their performances as Rudolf and his wife, Hedwig, with such naturalness and dare I say humanity, you almost forget. But Glazer won't let you forget. Throughout the film, the director cuts away from the Höss family to show the cruelty and devastation they are responsible for. Equally chilling are the casualness of such lines as, "I could have my husband spread your ashes in the river," spoken by Hedwig or "I was unable to focus (on the extravagant party) because I spent my time thinking about the most efficient way to gas everyone in attendance," said by Rudolf.
The Zone of Interest won this year's Academy Award for Best International film. It raises the mirror to the audience and gives us pause to contemplate the horrors may is capable of doing to his fellow man. A vital film during these troubled times.
The Zone of Interest is still in theaters, available to rent digitally and to stream on Max.
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