Films › László Nemes

Son of Saul (2015)

Film

DirectorLászló Nemes

Meta takes5

Figures

Characters

The choice of a Sonderkommando member as the film's protagonist

Form & technique

The complex, multi-layered soundscape of off-screen screams, commands, and machinery → The Unseen Soundscape
The camera's strict adherence to Saul's limited point-of-view
The film's use of a quest narrative structure within Auschwitz
The final scene where Saul smiles at a young peasant boy → The Piercing Detail

Tropes

The visual strategy of partially showing and mostly obscuring atrocities
The shallow focus, long-take cinematography that clings to Saul's body → Haptic Visuality
Saul's obsessive quest to bury the boy he claims is his son → The Face of the Other
The use of the 4:3 Academy aspect ratio
The film's creation of an immersive, present-tense experience for a contemporary audience → The Hand-Me-Down Haunting

Films most connected to Son of Saul

Tori and Lokita (2022) — via Haptic Visuality, The Face of the Other, The Unseen Soundscape
Amour (2012) — via The Piercing Detail, The Face of the Other
Grave of the Fireflies (1988) — via The Hand-Me-Down Haunting, The Unseen Soundscape
Life Is Beautiful (?) — via The Hand-Me-Down Haunting, The Unseen Soundscape
No Country for Old Men (2007) — via The Piercing Detail, The Unseen Soundscape
Lorna's Silence (2008) — via Haptic Visuality, The Face of the Other
Beau Travail (1999) — via Haptic Visuality, The Face of the Other
Poetry (2010) — via Haptic Visuality, The Face of the Other