Occupied City
Occupied City is a 2023 documentary film directed and produced by Steve McQueen, and based on the book Atlas of an Occupied City, Amsterdam 1940–1945 by Bianca Stigter. The film features narration by Melanie Hyams, describing the occupation of the Netherlands by Nazi Germany, juxtaposed against footage of modern-day Amsterdam echoing much of the narration. The film is a co-production between the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and the United States.
Occupied City had its world premiere at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival on 17 May 2023 as a special screening, where it competed for the L'Œil d'or. It was released in the United States on 25 December 2023, and in the United Kingdom and Ireland on 9 February 2024.
Production
In January 2022, it was confirmed that Steve McQueen would direct and produce the film about Amsterdam under Nazi occupation during World War II, with A24 and New Regency handling the domestic and international and both co-financing. Film4 also provided co-financing and retains United Kingdom linear television rights.McQueen said that there is a 36-hour version of the documentary and that he shot everything that is covered in the source material, the nonfiction book Atlas of an Occupied City, Amsterdam 1940–1945 by Bianca Stigter.
Release
The film premiered at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival as a special screening on 17 May 2023. It also screened at the 50th Telluride Film Festival on 31 August 2023.A24 released the film in North America and New Regency released it internationally, while September Film released it in the Netherlands. The film was released in the United States on 25 December 2023 and in the United Kingdom and Ireland on 9 February 2024 through Modern Films, with a nationwide live Q&A from the Barbican Centre in London.
Extended cut
The Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam announced a 34-hour version of the film would be projected silently and continuously onto the museum’s south façade from 12 September 2025 until 25 January 2026.During this time, in the museum’s auditorium, there will also be a version with sound and voice‑over shown during museum hours on selected days, including a full continuous screening of the entire 34‑hour version starting Saturday 11 October 2025 at 9:30 AM, running until Sunday evening 12 October 2025.
Reception
Critical response
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 65% based on 37 reviews with an average rating of 6.9/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Occupied City is an impressively ambitious attempt to connect the past with the present, although its repetitive approach and overwhelming length will be too much for many viewers." Metacritic assigned the film a weighted average score of 77 out of 100 based on 14 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".Reviewing the film following its Cannes premiere, Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian called it a "monumental film" that "allows its emotional implication to amass over its running time."