JONATHAN GLAZER’S MOST recent film, The Zone of Interest, is one of the more difficult-to-watch nominees at this year’s Academy Awards. Set in 1943 and inspired by a novel by Martin Amis, it focuses on the lives of concentration camp commandant Rudolf Höss and his family, whose seemingly idyllic home is situated right next door to Auschwitz.
The Zone of Interest stars Christien Friedel and Sandra Hüller—who has also received critical acclaim this awards season for her performance in the Oscar-nominated Anatomy of a Fall—as married couple Rudolf and Hedwig, whose domestic life is placed in stark contrast with the sounds of the atrocities that can be heard occurring on the other side of the garden wall. While the prison camp is never depicted on-screen, its presence looms over the entire film.
Director Jonathan Glazer, known for divisive films that invite interpretation such as Birth and Under the Skin, eschewed traditional shooting techniques for The Zone of Interest. Rather than film on sets, the movie’s creative team dressed an entire residence to resemble a German family home in the 1940s and fitted the entire house with cameras which then ran constantly, enabling actors to improvise and perform as if unobserved. Glazer has described this approach as “Big Brother in the Nazi house.”
The film’s subject matter, and the decision to frame the story from the POV of those committing the atrocities, may well prove harrowing to some viewers—and that is, of course, the point. The Zone of Interest shows us the banality of human evil, and how it is possible to be sitting just yards away from unspeakable acts of violence and cruelty. It’s not an easy watch, but it is certainly worth your time and attention.
And in case that wasn’t enough to convince you, the film took home Best International Feature award at the 2024 Oscars. If you want to check it out, here’s how.
How to watch The Zone of Interest
Viewers in the United States can buy The Zone of Interest to watch at home from a number of sources, including Prime Video, iTunes, YouTube Movies, and Vudu.
Watch The Zone of Interest on Prime Video
Watch The Zone of Interest on iTunes
Watch The Zone of Interest on YouTube
Watch The Zone of Interest on Vudu
Is The Zone of Interest on streaming?
The movie isn’t available on streaming services just yet. However, given that A24 is its distributor, we know that when it does eventually come to digital platforms, it will hit Max first.
Philip Ellis
Philip Ellis is News Editor at Men’s Health, covering fitness, pop culture, sex and relationships, and LGBTQ+ issues. His work has appeared in GQ, Teen Vogue, Man Repeller and MTV, and he is the author of Love & Other Scams.
Milan Polk is an Editorial Assistant for Men’s Health who specializes in entertainment and lifestyle reporting, and has worked for New York Magazine’s Vulture and Chicago Tribune.
