Presented by HARROGATE FILM SOCIETY

The Zone of Interest (12A) | Dir. Jonathan Glazer | 2023 | UK/POLAND | IMDb 7.4 | 105 mins | Subtitles

German-occupied Poland, summer of 1943. More than anything, Hedwig, an indefatigable mother of five, wants to keep her well-organised life as is. After all, she has worked her fingers to the bone to create a fragrant slice of paradise to raise her children, and nothing will change that. If only her husband, the distinguished SS officer and Auschwitz commander Rudolf Hoess, weren't always burdened by his duties. But perfection is a fleeting illusion. As the oblivious life of the commandant's wife unravels in cloudless bliss, Rudolf finds himself swamped with work, saddled with testing a new ventilation design and overseeing the installation of a highly effective Topf and Sons multi-muffle, non-stop incineration oven system. Indeed, it's hard to imagine that just a hair's breadth away from the peaceful and idyllic Höss household, the unimaginable horrors of the Final Solution were unfolding in full swing. And as noisome fumes and muffled, blood-curdling noises blemish Hedwig's fragrant utopia, a question emerges. When evil becomes banal and apathy requires no effort, what separates man from beast? Uncomfortable but essential viewing.

Trivia
Mrs. Höss describes to her friends getting a coat from "Canada" while mocking another woman who thought she meant the sovereign country; Kanada was in fact the name given in Auschwitz to the vast storehouse of goods confiscated from the prisoners.

Entry is free for HFS members.

Tickets for non-members cost £6 each (Under 25's £3). These can be purchased online or will be available on the night from the HFS desk in the Odeon lobby (contactless payments only please, we are not taking cash this season). A small processing fee will be applied to all tickets.

Please note that doors open at 7pm and the film will start at 7.30pm. All seating is unreserved so grab a seat wherever you like.

Parking is free after 6pm for all Odeon cinemagoers but you MUST display a voucher obtained from the Odeon lobby.