Die immediately or choose to live four months longer is what Nazi jailers offer 13 "Special Squads" of Jewish prisoners inside the Auschwitz death camps. The Grey Zone explores the moral and ethical dilemma faced by those selected prisoners who choose to help in the process of incinerating their fellow Jews.

The squads, known as Sonderkommandos, were composed of Jews headed to the gas chamber who were assigned to carry out the gruesome task of readying other prisoners to die – including removing hair and jewelry. They also collected the bodies after the gassings and stuffed them into the crematoria.

Tim Blake Nelson (yes, one of those "Soggy Bottom Boys" from O Brother Where Art Thou?) directed and wrote The Grey Zone – both the film version and a play produced in New York in 1996. His story is based on a book by Miklos Nyiszli, a Hungarian Jewish doctor who used the inmates for medical experiments. Nelson’s story centers on a group of inmates from the 12th Sonderkommando. Although knowing it’s only a matter of time before they too turn to ash, they take every moment as a precious gift while trying not to think about what the extra few weeks cost them.

David Arquette offers a strong performance in his role as Hoffman, one of the squad members. Normally known for his comedic films (Scream, Ready To Rumble), Arquette finally gets a chance to show off the profound dramatic levels of his talent.

"Hollywood has a way of pigeon-holing you, in a business sense," stated Arquette. "I wanted the opportunity to play a darker, more dramatic role."

As the squad members revel in the fruits of their trade-off – great food, books, alcohol – for doing "the dirty work," there are moments when they must deal with the consequences of their decisions. Hoffman soon comes to realize that he has gained so little at a truly high price. The act of betraying his friends and comrades fills him with self-hatred.

While pretending to be grateful for the extra privileges they receive, the Special Squad plans a revolt. They intend to burn down the crematoria. Steve Buscemi (Mr. Deeds) has too little screen time as Abramowics, the main conduit responsible for the exchange of jewelry for goods, guns and gunpowder. Harvey Keitel (Red Dragon), also one of the film’s producers, brings little strength to his role as a German official, especially with his inadequate German dialect. Mira Sorvino (At First Sight) plays Rosa, a young woman found alive at the bottom of a pile of bodies in the gas chamber. Out of a sense of their own guilt, the men rally to hide and protect Rosa.

With credit to Nelson, his film itself emerges as an equal component in this moving story. Cinematographer Russell Lee Fine works diligently to make the harrowing images of nude bodies in the gas chamber or piled high on the carts on the way to the incinerator, memorable. Those images resonate long after the movie. I played them over and over in my mind for days. Fine’s creative vision infiltrates the movie through more than hand-held camera techniques. A build up of layered scenes offering light moments contrasts with those that frighten us by detailing the historical brutality of this era.

Nelson said he hoped to make a film "which will force each of us making it to ask questions of ourselves and our audiences – which most would say are better left unanswered. I believe they must be asked, and if we succeed at our work, the film’s impact will prove this to be so."

(Released by Lions Gate Films and rated "R" for strong holocaust violence, nudity and language.)