The 50 best films
of 2015
in the US
No 6
The Look of Silence
Continuing our countdown of the best movies released in the US this year, we’re still haunted by Joshua Oppenheimer’s chilling companion piece to The Act of Killing
Benjamin Lee
Friday 11 December 2015 12.00 GMT
Friday 11 December 2015 12.00 GMT
There’s become an increasingly tiring and narcissistic trend in documentary film-making: the refusal of the documentarian to stay behind the scenes.
Perhaps it’s yet another reason to blame social media for being the cause of all societal ills but there’s often an overdose of vanity in the place of something more substantial. There are occasions when his or her inclusion is unavoidable but most of the year’s greatest examples of the genre (Amy, Dreamcatcher, Going Clear) have succeeded by placing the onus on the subject in front of the camera, not behind.
Despite the effect that making both 2012’s horrifying The Act of Killing and this year’s The Look of Silence have had on his life, Oppenheimer has kept himself quietly tucked away. The focus of his work is never in question and the motives are entirely devoid of ego. Off-screen, he’s admitted that he can’t safely ever go back to Indonesia, the setting of both films and it’s depressingly easy to see why this is the case.
The repugnance and bravado of the men behind the country’s brutal late 60s killings are yet again on display but this time, we also get a closer look at the effects on the families left grieving and, thanks to a corrupt legal system, without any closure. The gaudy shock value might be somewhat diminished but its impact remains equally devastating.
The film’s central figure is Adi Rukun, a man whose brother was captured and killed with unimaginable cruelty for being a suspected subversive. The damage on his life and those of his parents, all of whom still live in the same village as the murderers, provide Oppenheimer with the emotional backbone for a more reflective and haunting companion to the horror of The Act of Killing.
But the effect remains similar. As the viewer, we’re left angry, heartbroken and frustrated by a lack of justice. The culture surrounding Adi and his broken family is one of denial and bizarre acceptance of crimes without justification. Since the film’s release, they’ve been moved to a safer part of the country.
Again, Oppenheimer’s careful and unobtrusive direction makes this a sensitive yet vital film, shining a light on atrocities that still, 50 years later, remain unpunished. The consequences on Oppenheimer’s own life mean he won’t be able to make more films on the subject but, along with The Act of Killing, this will remain a brave and important document on a subject that no one else dares to touch.