'Occupied City': Steve McQueen's Unconventional Look at Amsterdam's WWII History

The film intertwines narration of wartime events with present-day footage, offering a unique perspective on the Nazi Occupation of Amsterdam.

Steve McQueen's latest film, 'Occupied City,' is a documentary about the Nazi Occupation of Amsterdam during World War II, which doesn't use archive footage, talking heads, or dramatize any scenes.
The film intertwines narrator Melanie Hyams stating what happened during the war at particular locations throughout the city while McQueen and his team record what that place looks like today.
'Occupied City' is structured geographically, introducing each of the movie’s 130 locations with an exact address, followed by a verbal account of what is known to have befallen the Jews who may have once lived, worked or played there.
The film does not show archival footage from the 1940s or any historical reenactments, relying entirely on Hyams’ narration to lead viewers into the past.
The film ends with a bar mitzvah ceremony, showing the persistence of Jewish life in Amsterdam.