It may not have taken the Palme d’Or, but Jonathan Glazer’s “The Zone of Interest” is now a part of Oscar history. The A24 release won the International Film Oscar at the 96th Academy Awards, becoming the first submission from the United Kingdom to take the honor. “Zone” was also The Playlist’s top film of 2023.
A stark and horrifying depiction of the lives of Auschwitz camp commander Rudolf Höss and his family, “Zone” also earned Best Picture, Best Director (Glazer), Best Adapted Screenplay (Glazer), and Best Sound nominations. The movie effectively came in second at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival earning the Grand Prix. The film it lost to, “Anatomy of a Fall,” also earned five Oscar nominations, but was not selected by France as its international submission (perhaps one of the biggest mistakes in Academy Awards history).
Since its Cannes debut, “Zone” was named Best Film of 2023 by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association. Star Sandra Hüller also won numerous Best Actress awards which honored her both for her performance as Hedwig Höss and her Oscar-nominated turn in “Anatomy.” It also won the BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language and Best British Film, among other accolades.
This is Glazer’s first Academy Award. One of the more celebrated but less prolific auteurs of the 21st Century, his previous films include “Sexy Beast,” “Birth,” and “Under the Skin.”
The other nominees in this category include Wim Wenders’ “Perfect Days” (Japan), Matteo Garrone’s “Io Capitano” (Italy), J.A. Bayona’s “Society of the Snow,” and İlker Çatak‘s “The Teacher’s Lounge” (Germany).
“The Zone of Interest” is available for digital download.
