Contrapuntal living in The Zone of Interest
⏱ 5 min
2024 feels like a year for great movies, and here’s another that I’d like to pay homage to - The Zone of Interest, directed by Jonathan Glazer. When reflecting on the sensitive theme surrounding this film, I wondered where to start. Honestly, the narrative isn’t one that has directly impactfed my lived experience - I’m neither Jewish or German, but I am a human being and thus I have the capacity to empathise and provide the space & understanding required to be sympathetic to the film’s message.
In modern culture, when war is rife in a place around the world, if it is not close by, we often overlook it and pay it no attention. We might be aware of it, talk about it, see it on the news, but if it doesn’t affect us directly we might not care to tune into it. The image evoked here is what I want to draw your attention to — a lack of awareness, a lack of acknowledgement — a free-flowing careless sense of self. No compassion. Ignorance.
The Zone of Interest captures a German family, who I describe as “contrapuntally living”. In the language of cinema, the word “contrapuntal” is often used to explain the contrast between sound and visual media. For example, a classical composition with a beautiful tone playing alongside horrific visuals of murder, or brutality, would classify as contrapuntal. It’s not what you’d expect to hear. The visuals are sinister, eary, and unsettling. So why are we experiencing a soundtrack that is of beauty? That’s the essence of this film.
The family live in a blissful paradise (aesthetically speaking), with floral decadence surrounding their home. Fresh fruits and vegetation at arms reach, large spacious bedrooms; they have a bright and safe compound. But what lurks over the fence is a horrific mania which is hard to ignore, yet the leading family of this film all do throughout. Even the director, gracefully refrained from sharing the visceral murders which took place. Instead, the ambience of Glazer’s style of storytelling is to showcase the oblivious, complicit acts of brutality during the Holocaust, that were conducted, without providing direct imagery to convey the traumatic history.
When I entered the cinema, the stewardess said “Enjoy!” whilst handing me a token to review the film and my experience after watching. As I walked away, she second guessed her statement, sharing with her colleague “Perhaps, I shouldn’t have said Enjoy for this type of film”… but actually, in the midst of deep compassion, empathy, and sensitivity to the history & horror, the director created an enjoyable experience through the power of transmutation. The compositions, audio effects, colour grading, and mundane moments created an act of beauty which transmuted a brutal history, conveying the importance of moving beyond a contrapuntal living state and into one that is aware, conscious, and empathic towards all, which our human collective needs.
The Zone of Interest is in films in the UK from 2nd February 2024, and follows the commandant of Auschwitz, Rudolf Höss, and his wife, Hedwig, who strive to build a dream life for their family in a house and garden next to the camp. Watch the trailer below and book your tickets to experience what I mean by: contrapuntal living.
