In a historic first, the harrowing Holocaust drama “The Zone of Interest” took home the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film on Sunday night. The win marks the first time a film submitted by the United Kingdom has ever won the newly renamed category, previously known as Best Foreign Language Film.
Based loosely on the Martin Amis novel, “The Zone of Interest” offers an unflinching look at the banality of evil through the daily lives of Nazi officer Rudolf Höss and his wife and children, who reside adjacent to the Auschwitz death camp.
In his acceptance speech, writer-director Jonathan Glazer condemned the ongoing “hijacking” of the Holocaust narrative to justify conflict, namechecking recent violence between Israel and Gaza.
“Our film shows where dehumanization leads, at its worst,” said Glazer, as the audience applauded his plea for global human rights. “How do we resist?”
Starring Sandra Hüller and Christian Friedel as the commandant and his wife striving for domestic bliss against the backdrop of mass murder, “The Zone of Interest” has drawn praise for its daringly subtle approach to depicting one of history’s greatest atrocities.
The A24 production premiered at Cannes, winning the Grand Prix and FIPRESCI awards before earning BAFTAs for Best Film Not in the English Language and British Film of the Year.
In addition to Best International Feature, the visually striking drama scored four other Oscar nominations including Best Picture, Best Director for Glazer, and Best Sound. Regardless of any potential upsets in those races, “The Zone of Interest” has cemented its legacy by breaking new ground for British cinema on Hollywood’s biggest night.
