A former concentration-camp doctor is left paralysed after a failed attempt on his own life. When a nurse is sought to assist in his day-to-day care, a young man steps forward who was one of his victims years earlier.

If you need a warning as to how shocking this film is, John Waters calls In a Glass Cage the most shocking film he’s ever seen. He loves it, but it’s one he couldn’t show his friends.

He’s right. It’s very shocking but never titillating, and it is beautifully shot, acted and directed. The inside of the mansion and the way it’s lit and coloured reminded me of Argento in the film’s second act.

But this certainly isn’t The Sound of Music. In a Glass Cage is a serious study into power, control, abuse and trauma bonds. It’s also an interesting film in that director Agustí Villaronga shifts the audience’s allegiance and sympathies in alarming directions.

An amazing film that feels less like peering into the abyss and more like diving into it headfirst.

4.5 out of 5 stars