# The Act of Killing by Joshua Oppenheimer

6 Hacker News commenters recommended The Act of Killing by Joshua Oppenheimer and 0 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 5 of 13 months.

**Verdict:** A documentary following former Indonesian death squad members as they reenact their 1960s killings, praised as haunting and deeply unsettling; critics raise no recurring complaint.

## Why people recommend it

- Permanently haunting and unsettling viewing (3 comments): "The Act of Killing is near the top of my list of underappreciated films. Permanently haunting." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47144364)) "It was like I went to Germany 40 years after WW2 and found out the Nazis had won" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46536526)) "the only other film that's had the same effect on me as a Herzog documentary" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48339298))
- Exposes self-delusion behind atrocities (2 comments): "the capacity for self-delusion in the face of horrific atrocities" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49709947)) "probes into one of the most grotesque aspects of human nature" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47143493))
- Strong recommendations from viewers (2 comments): "I hear 'The Act of Killing' is an amazing film." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49709978)) "It's one of my favourite documentaries" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47143712))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [You Can See Everything](https://hackerapproved.com/p/you-can-see-everything.md): 39 recommend
- [The Thinking Game](https://hackerapproved.com/p/thinking-game-documentary.md): 15 recommend
- [HyperNormalisation by Adam Curtis](https://hackerapproved.com/p/hypernormalisation.md): 14 recommend
- [It's Quieter in the Twilight](https://hackerapproved.com/p/it-s-quieter-in-the-twilight.md): 12 recommend
- [BBS: The Documentary](https://hackerapproved.com/p/bbs-the-documentary.md): 11 recommend

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "The Act of Killing by Joshua Oppenheimer", https://hackerapproved.com/p/act-of-killing/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).