Cerro Torre: Schrei aus Stein

"Scream of Stone" tells of a happenstance competition between a mountain climber and a rock climber to see who is first to the top of a foreboding 3000 ft needle of rock and ice in Patagonia, South America. As with most Herzog flicks, the film is rough hewn and one can imagine the filming crew is having more of an adventure than the characters. Plodding, dull at times, and subpar on most counts the film does feature some good climbing scenes. Pass on this one unless you're into climbing.

Herzog succeeds to show simultaneously several issues related to climbing.

The issue of the spectator: he is rather driven by roman circus spirit than by olympic ideals. The issues of the media: if there is an audience, there is money. The issues of the climbers: they are described as a king of athlete driven by a competitive spirit which allow betting its own life to reach a summit. The outdoors views of the famous Cerro Torre are beautiful and rare.

Some spectators might feel bored by the way the film is conducted. Actually, this conduction reminds some Nouvelle Vague issues and many spectators felt bored by films directed by monsters of the Nouvelle Vague like Antonioni, Goddard etc... C'est la vie.

Yet, Cerro Torre: Schrei aus Stein deserves to be seen by those who appreciate Herzog cinema.

This is probably one of Herzog's least known films in States,but it's definitely worth seeking out.As always his visuals are stunning.Especially in the Climbing sequences.There is this really great shot of the younger climber hanging on the edge of the cliff ,and the way Herzog holds this shot and let's us absorb it .He always has things like that in his movies,that's one of the things that makes a Werner herzog much more than just another movie.A note to Herzog fans,you'll find all of his trademarks in this movie if you look close enough.

Or maybe it is the best. Characters are 100% convincing, shooting on location is terrific and the story itself is absolutely thrilling. It is another exploration of human obsession undertaken by Herzog with brilliant (as usual) results. Of course, one may question the technical side of the two solo climbs but here we can completely rely on the expertise of Reinhold Meissner. Unfortunately, it is not likely that this film will be ever appreciated by the mainstream American audience.

Donald Sutherland plays a news reporter who goads a sport climber into challenging a legendary mountain climber. A 3000 meter supposedly unclimbable Patagonia peak is their place of destiny. "Scream of Stone" is an extremely uneven film, with abrupt editing and despite Werner Herzog directing, the whole thing really never pulls together. There is a battle of egos for most of the movie that eventually wears thin. I found the most interesting character to be "Fingerless", played by the always intriguing Brad Dourif. Despite the spectacular mountain vistas, the film has several near fatal flaws, including some really unfunny attempts at humor, a "bimbo" who's acting is atrocious, and an ending on the mountain that seriously lacks credibility. - MERK