The very moment I cracked open the program guide at last year's Toronto International Film Festival to plan out my screening schedule for the day, one film listing stopped me dead. It featured an otherworldly photograph of an gigantic, ominous fish surrounded by hula dancers and a synopsis that began: in this chilling and inventive documentary executive-produced by Errol Morris and Werner Herzog, the unrepentant former members of Indonesian death squads are challenged to re-enact their many murders in the style of the American movies they love. An anxious stir formed in my gut and I was unable to concentrate on anything else. Not only did I have to see this movie, but I knew at that moment that Drafthouse Films simply, absolutely had to distribute The Act Of Killing. And I hadn't even seen it yet.
A few days later during its pre-premiere press screening, I finally got my chance. Exiting the theater I felt chilled to the bone, I was speechless, my forehead was numb from slapping it for the past 2 hours and I was overwhelmed with a sense that I may have just experienced what could be the most important film of the decade. I looked over to the dazed person next to me and he remarked, I have never seen anything like that before. This was BIG. Bigger than any movie. Bigger than Indonesia. Bigger than the Toronto International Film Festival. HUGE.
After viewing the film, it was no surprise to me that Errol Morris and Werner Herzog had united to support this monumental documentary. I had always been interested in Herzog's approach to documentary filmmaking and what he believes constitutes truth in the art form. Herzog had always argued just because something is factually true, it does not constitute truth, per se. If that were true, the Manhattan phone book would be the book of books, he told me and a VICE film crew when we interviewed him this past May about The Act Of Killing. He is after a self-described ecstatic truth, somewhere blurred in the lines between fact and truth.
Joshua Oppenheimer, the first-time filmmaker of The Act Of Killing is after a similar truth in this film. By utilizing reenactments, a tool that Errol Morris has used several times in his work, and hypnotic surrealism, Josh aims to access the disturbing mindset of these former executioners and how they ultimately want the world to perceive them. I can say that never before have I felt the feeling of wandering inside the subconscious of a man who believes it was okay to kill. And that is what makes Oppenheimers work a powerful milestone in the landscape of documentary cinema.
In April, we teamed up with VICE, who was equally passionate about the film, and set out to Cambridge, MA to interview Errol Morris at his office while he was finishing the final edit of his upcoming doc The Unknown Known: The Life and Times of Donald Rumsfeld. And shortly thereafter Werner Herzog was also interviewed from the top of Laurel Canyon in Los Angeles for this piece below.
The Act Of Killing opens next Friday in New York City at the Landmark Sunshine and will expand to other markets beginning July 23. For tickets and additional info, go to www.actofkilling.com.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
13/05/2026
New Adobe Premiere Color Grading Mode Accelerated on NVIDIA GPUs
Joel Pennington May 13, 2026
0 Comments
New NVIDIA RTX-accelerated features streamlin...
13/05/2026
Grass Valley announced that dB Broadcast has delivered new IP-based outside broadcast (OB) trucks for Cloudbass, featuring Grass Valley LDX 100 Series cameras a...
13/05/2026
Ikegami will exhibit the latest additions to its wide range of broadcast production cameras, control units, viewfinders and monitors on stand 5D3-1 at Broadcast...
13/05/2026
FISE, working with the founding members of the XR Sports Alliance (XRSA), Accedo, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and HBS, have collaborated to develop an immersive...
13/05/2026
Canon Unveils New EOS R6 V Full-Frame EOS Camera and RF20-50mm F4 L IS USM PZ Bu...
13/05/2026
Boston Conservatory at Berklee Honors Beth Morrison and Moses Pendleton at Comme...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Creative software developer Foundry today announced the latest developments on Nuke Stage. A purpose-built application for end-to-end virtual production and in-...
13/05/2026
A definitive portrait of one of Ireland's most influential musicians
New TV documentary airs Monday 18 May on RT One and RT Player at 9.35pm
Watch the...
13/05/2026
Agentic AI is changing the way users get work done. Following the success of OpenClaw, the community is embracing new open source agentic frameworks. The latest...
13/05/2026
Reinforcement-learning agents - AI systems that learn by trial and error - can c...
12/05/2026
Beyond the Hype: A Strategic Post-Hoc Analysis of NAB 2026 If NAB Show 2026 had an underlying theme, it was a quiet, industry-wide pivot from the high-energy sp...
12/05/2026
Guntermann and Drunck (G&D), a Panoptec Technologies Group company, and CT Square, led by Chandresh Shah, have announced a joint venture to distribute G&D and V...
12/05/2026
With 30 days until the start of the FIFA World Cup 2026, Telemundo, the exclusive Spanish-language home of the tournament in the United States, has announced th...
12/05/2026
The NHL has announced the return of Stanley Pup for its third consecutive year, a 90-minute special featuring adoptable rescue dogs competing on a miniature rin...
12/05/2026
NBCUniversal presented its 2026 Upfront to advertisers at Radio City Music Hall, detailing upcoming programming across NBC, Peacock, Bravo, and Versant properti...
12/05/2026
FOX Sports has announced funding for the Fandom and Social Connection Initiative at Harvard Kennedy School's Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics, and Publ...
12/05/2026
TNDV and Live Media, both divisions of Live Media Group, supported live broadcast coverage around NCAA Final Four weekend in Indianapolis, including the March M...
12/05/2026
The European Football Alliance (EFA) has announced a content distribution agreement with Fubo Sports Network, the free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channel ...
12/05/2026
For the first time, Spanish-speaking fans in the U.S. will have two separate tel...
12/05/2026
CP Communications led a comprehensive spectrum management initiative on behalf of Churchill Downs during Kentucky Derby week, coordinating RF assets across the ...
12/05/2026
LiveU has announced a strategic partnership with DRONERESPONDERS, a 501(c)3 non-...
12/05/2026
Open Broadcast Systems has announced that BMC TV, a specialist in IP transport of broadcast content, has selected the Open Broadcast Systems 5G Flyaway solution...
12/05/2026
NEP Europe, part of NEP Group, has announced it will deliver broadcast solutions...
12/05/2026
Grass Valley has announced continued collaboration with Ravensbourne University ...
12/05/2026
Stats Perform has announced the launch of Opta Pulse, an AI-assisted video creation and distribution platform for leagues, rights holders, and broadcasters. The...
12/05/2026
FOX Sports has announced a collaboration with Sesame Workshop to integrate Sesame Street characters into FOX Sports' FIFA World Cup 2026 programming. Conten...
12/05/2026
To date, NHL Productions has produced 19 broadcasts with commentary in American Sign Language
NHL in ASL (American Sign Language) may be just one show, but the...
12/05/2026
Google's Brian Albert: creators, athletes, highlights, nostalgia, second-scr...
12/05/2026
A still from Past Lives by Celine Song, an official selection of the Premieres program at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. (Courtesy of Sundance Institute | p...
12/05/2026
Spotify is where fans and artists come together, turning discovery into somethin...
12/05/2026
Features patented Marco-MMC clocking technology
Black Lion Audio's latest release combines the company's expertise in clocking with their renowned p...
12/05/2026
New Track Panel, sequencer upgrades & more
Following their recent public beta release, Reason Studios have announced the full release of Reason 14. With the...
12/05/2026
One month to go! SBS reveals expansive FIFA World Cup 2026 lineup beyond the pi...
12/05/2026
Rohde & Schwarz presents its advanced solutions for power electronics testing at...
12/05/2026
aconnic AG (ISIN: DE000A0LBKW6), Munich, has developed a modified fund raising p...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
Tyrell Corporation, specialists in high-end live sports and entertainment broadcasts, was tasked with delivering compelling broadcast coverage of premier equest...
12/05/2026
Registration is now open for IBC2026 as the global media, entertainment and technology community prepares to converge on the RAI Amsterdam from 11 14 September ...
12/05/2026
Ross Video, a global leader in live video production technology, will present its latest innovations and integrated production workflows at BroadcastAsia 2026, ...
12/05/2026
500 selected leaders from around the world across start-ups, corporates, and venture capital. Over 50bn in assets under management among attending investors, a...
The very moment I cracked open the program guide at last year's Toronto International Film Festival to plan out my screening schedule for the day, one film listing stopped me dead. It featured an otherworldly photograph of an gigantic, ominous fish surrounded by hula dancers and a synopsis that began: in this chilling and inventive documentary executive-produced by Errol Morris and Werner Herzog, the unrepentant former members of Indonesian death squads are challenged to re-enact their many murders in the style of the American movies they love. An anxious stir formed in my gut and I was unable to concentrate on anything else. Not only did I have to see this movie, but I knew at that moment that Drafthouse Films simply, absolutely had to distribute The Act Of Killing. And I hadn't even seen it yet.
