Film festivals are a great place to get some early buzz on the big movies of the year, and this year one of these titles is Jonathan Glazer's The Zone of Interest, which premiered at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival.
There, the World War II drama not only garnered some of the best reviews of the year, but it already claimed a trophy, the Cannes Grand Prix, which is the festival's second most prestigious prize behind its Palme d'Or (which this year went to Anatomy of a Fall).
As a result, there are a lot of expectations that The Zone of Interest is going to join movies like Killers of the Flower Moon, Oppenheimer, Maestro and more as strong contenders for this year's Oscars.
Time will tell, but in the meantime, here is everything that you need to know about The Zone of Interest.
The Zone of Interest release date
A24 has announced The Zone of Interest is getting a limited release on Friday, December 8. "Limited" usually means the movie will play in New York and Los Angeles before expanding to more markets in the US and abroad.
At this time we don't have any info at what pace The Zone of Interest will expand to additional markets.
The Zone of Interest plot
The Zone of Interest is based on the novel of the same name by Martin Amis. Here is the movie's official synopsis from A24:
"The commandant of Auschwitz, Rudolf Höss, and his wife Hedwig, strive to build a dream life for their family in a house and garden next to the camp."
Jonathan Glazer wrote the adapted screenplay.
The Zone of Interest cast
There are just two confirmed cast members for The Zone of Interest, Christin Friedel and Sandra Hüller as Rudolf and Hedwig Höss, respectively. Both are German-born actors that have worked primarily in their home country, though some of their roles may be familiar to wider audiences.
For Friedel, his past credits include the Michael Haneke movie The White Ribbon, as well as the crime thriller Perfume and the series Babylon Berlin, both of which are available on Netflix.
Hüller's resume includes the Oscar-nominated German movie Toni Erdmann and a previous World War II movie, Munich: The Edge of War, which is also available to stream on Netflix. Hüller also stars in the other big Cannes 2023 movie, Anatomy of a Fall.
The Zone of Interest trailer
There is no trailer for The Zone of Interest currently available online. When one becomes available we'll add it here.
The Zone of Interest reviews
Because The Zone of Interest premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, there are a number of reviews already available for it. As of August 2, the movie has a 96% "Fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Here is a sampling of some of the critics takes on the movie:
Anupama Chopra, Film Companion: "The Zone of Interest is bone-chilling."
David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter: "A devastating Holocaust drama like no other, which demonstrates with startling effectiveness [director Jonathan Glazer]'s unerring control of tonal and visual storytelling."
Stephanie Zacharek, Time: “The Zone of Interest is possibly the least overtly traumatic film about the Holocaust ever made, yet it's devastating in the quietest way.”
Owen Gleiberman, Variety: "It's a remarkable film — chilling and profound, meditative and immersive, a movie that holds human darkness up to the light and examines it as if under a microscope."
Jonathan Glazer movies
It's been 10 years since Jonathan Glazer has directed a feature-length movie, with 2013's Under the Skin being his last offering. His other offerings include Sexy Beast (2000) and Birth (2004). While he has only directed three movies (though plenty of music videos and other visual projects) he is known as a filmmaker who likes to push the boundaries.
