What qualifies as an accident or an apology when your own beliefs, your own religion, become the target of a violent act that seems unintentional. Hysteria is one of the latest “film-within-a-film” films that follows Elif, working on a movie set, which is thrown into turmoil when a Quran is burned during one of the scenes. An act performed in a shot for the film, seemingly not performed with any malice, causes tension for all, as the question is raised of why a real Quran, and not a prop, had to be burned. This tense film perfectly articulates many of the world’s current anxieties surrounding targeted attacks and freedom of speech, keeping viewers on the edge of their seat until the film’s explosive ending.

Elif is a young woman new to the film industry, excited to work with one of her mentors. When recreating a real-life event in which a fire took place and killed innocent people during racist attacks in Germany of the 1990s, a Quran is burned in the process. This sends cast and crew members into turmoil as the act is considered Quran desecration, as the extras question the director on why a prop could not have been used in its place. When Elif is tasked with transporting the daily tapes and they go missing, it is anyone’s guess who the culprit is, and why they have done it.

Right off the bat, this movie had me intrigued from its description. A thriller-mystery movie set on a movie set, that spoke to real life issues and events currently happening, it truly lived up to my expectations going in. The film’s largest success here is how it so efficiently builds tension throughout its runtime. The event that kicks off the dramatic storyline, the burning of the Quran, happens almost immediately, as we are introduced to the real life story behind the film being made in the film we are watching. From this moment on, we join Elif with our breaths held throughout, to find who stole the tapes with the burning Quran, and try to work out their motive behind it.

As the tension builds throughout, an explosive ending feels imminent, and is delivered as promised. As tensions come to a high, and as alliances fail and trust is broken this film, which started from a young Elif bringing tapes back to her boss’ home, becomes one that will have all viewers on the edge of their seat.

Throughout the film, there is also a large question of who is right. We are largely aligned throughout with Elif, our protagonist who was tasked with bringing the tapes home the night they went missing. Throughout, Elif is introduced to new information; about the extras on set who found the burned Quran, and about the director, who seemingly did not mean any harm by his actions and was merely trying to capture the events as they happened in the past. Lines become blurred as it becomes clear that everyone could have had a motive, and we are left constantly questioning everything that everyone says on screen, even Elif herself.

It is of course, then, very obvious from the subject matter that it is all very relevant to the world we live in today. Hysteria will most definitely spark conversations about freedom of speech, and what lines should be drawn for what can be done in the name of art. If the director’s vision was to present information in his film as accurately as possibly, then is he in the wrong if he had no ill-intentions? But then why could he not have burned a prop, or done more accurate research to know why the burning of a Quran would be taken so seriously?

Similarly, this film brings to light the question of how much violence should be shown in films and in art before it can be seen as too much. How would this burning of the Quran impact viewers, both within the religion and outside of it, and what does it mean when an artist does not take the necessary steps to understand the implications of their own actions they have performed in the name of their art. Highly relevant in so many other ways, the points the film bring up on freedom of speech and what we show in media are pointed, and ever so relevant.

If you didn’t expect an early in the year political thriller film to be one of the most enthralling films so far, then think again, because Hysteria takes this title by a long shot. Very relevant while keeping viewers on the edge-of-their-seat until the final explosive seconds of the film, Hysteria does exactly what it’s name entails, and leaves everyone involved in hysterics, as they try to find the truth.

Hysteria was screened at the 2025 Berlin International Film Festival.