The writer and screenwriter Tony Kushner has spoken out in support of director Jonathan Glazer, whose acceptance speech at the Oscars nearly two weeks ago continues to divide opinions.
On March 10th, as he accepted his award for best foreign language film, Glazer connected his movie, The Zone of Interest, to present-day happenings in the Middle East.
The speaker expressed his desire for his film to demonstrate the personal lives of Rudolph and Hedwig Höss, who lived near the Auschwitz concentration camp where Rudolph was a commander. He believes it highlights the consequences of dehumanization, especially at its extreme, and its impact on our past and present.
Glazer was joined on stage by producer James Wilson and financier Len Blavatnik as they spoke.
Currently, we are in a position where we, as men, reject our Jewish identity and the hijacking of the Holocaust due to an occupying force. This has caused conflict for many innocent individuals, whether it be the victims of the October 7 event in Israel or ongoing attacks on Gaza. In the face of this dehumanization, how can we resist?
Kushner, known for his Pulitzer Prize-winning play Angels in America and his work with Steven Spielberg on four films (including the upcoming The Fabelmans in 2022), appeared as a guest on Monday’s episode of the Haaretz podcast.
When asked if he related to the speech, Kushner responded positively, stating that it is a message that everyone can understand. He explained that the speech emphasizes the importance of Jewishness, Jewish identity, Jewish history, and the history of the Holocaust, while also denouncing the use of these things as justification for dehumanizing or massacring others.
Kushner further stated that equating being Jewish and the meaning behind the Holocaust with the current situation in Gaza is incorrect and incorrect. He also mentioned that Glazer opposes this belief and questioned the mindset of anyone who believes the situation in Gaza is acceptable.
In an interview with the Guardian, Kushner, who is of Jewish descent, expressed his pride in The Fabelmans, a film based on Spielberg’s early life, for addressing and condemning antisemitism in the US. He stated, “It’s important to denounce the abhorrence of antisemitism, a history filled with disgraceful actions. Any tolerance towards it can lead to disastrous consequences as fascism and authoritarianism tend to utilize the same tactics repeatedly.”
“They lack a vast arsenal of imagination, but anti-Semitic attitudes have been present for centuries. Therefore, if anyone begins to exhibit anti-Semitism, they should be rejected and not be supported. Do not align with them in any way.”
In 2011, the City University of New York reversed its decision to deny Kushner an honorary degree due to his views on the Middle East conflict. He has often publicly addressed this issue.
The aftermath of Glazer’s speech, which received a warm reception at the Dolby theater, started the next week with criticism from the US Holocaust Survivors Foundation and Anti-Defamation League (ADL), who stated that his words “justify terrorism.”
However, Glazer has received strong support from vocal advocates like Boots Riley, Zoe Kazan, and Asif Kapadia, who have spoken out in his defense. Kapadia, in an interview with Variety, praised Glazer for bravely telling the truth, stating that it is an admirable trait of a true artist.
An opinion piece in Haaretz contended that Glazer was accurate, and the director of the Auschwitz Memorial supported him, stating that Glazer provided a moral message about the dangers of dehumanization.
Dr. Piotr MA Cywiński elaborated that the intention was not to engage in political discussion. Those who criticized the lack of a definitive political stance or a focus solely on the genocide failed to fully understand the profound significance of his message.
Towards the end of the week, Danny Cohen, the executive producer of The Zone of Interest, went against the norm and expressed his strong disagreement with Glazer’s statement on the Unholy podcast. On Friday, Laszlo Nemes, who won the foreign language Oscar for his film Son of Saul set in Auschwitz during the final stages of the war in 2015, voiced his opinion to the Guardian, stating that Glazer should have kept quiet rather than revealing his lack of understanding of history and the factors that led to the downfall of society, both before and after the Holocaust.
Nemes further stated that if the filmmaker had accepted the responsibility that comes with creating such a significant film, they would not have relied on talking points influenced by propaganda aimed at eliminating the Jewish people from existence.
On Monday, Spielberg’s sister, Laura Spielberg, was one of some 450 Jewish creatives who signed an open letter condemning Glazer’s speech and criticising what they perceived as his “drawing a moral equivalence between a Nazi regime that sought to exterminate a race of people, and an Israeli nation that seeks to avert its own extermination”.
By the time Tuesday came, approximately 700 more individuals had added their names to the letter. The letter also raised concern over Glazer’s choice of language, specifically referring to indigenous Jewish people defending their home that has existed for thousands of years and has been officially recognized as a state by the United Nations, stating that it distorts historical facts.
The Guardian reached out to Glazer and Spielberg to request a statement.
Source: theguardian.com
