On Stylish Horror with Son of Saul

Son of Saul (2015) is about as harrowing and impressive as a film can get. This story of a working prisoner discovering the body of his son and desperately looking to bury him not only sees the protagonist fail in his quest, but also explores in brutal half focus the mechanics of the Nazi death camps.

The story is a heartbreaking exploration of silent devotion, as Saul must keep secret his motives in a dangerous environment that looks to end his life at every turn.  Relative newcomer Géza Röhrig is very good as Saul, performing the physical demands of the role well and communicating the helplessness of his situation. He is pushed through life, bouncing from one problem to the next. When first watching, Röhrig may seem to convey too little emotion, especially when discovering the body of his son in a pile of corpses, or watching him drift away on a river as his task fails. However, he is so surrounded by danger that his blunted reaction is, it should be expected, contextually appropriate.

Director Nemes’ method of telling this story is striking. The camera follows Saul around, often from behind, trailing him closely, feeling his danger and catching, in his periphery the horror. The shallow focus also blurs much of what surrounds Saul, keeping our attention fixed on his quest, but not disguising the death camps. It is as if Nemes is saying that pain can be so great it blinds out greater horror. Yet, more than commenting on the second world, Son of Saul is a human struggle narrative and a difficult, important film.