O Grande Êxtase do Entalhador Steiner

The best of Herzog's shorts, this film documents the mysterious soaring Walter Steiner as he destroys the world ski-flying record in 1974 Yugoslavia.

To be fair, this is not really a documentary about Steiner, the Swiss woodcarver and ski-flyer, nor the sport in general, nor the competition and breaking off the world record, but something more intense and esoteric -- a poem of obsession, ecstasy and escape.

This mesmerizing piece (set to an airy Popol Vuh soundtrack) is marred only by repetitive shots of ski-jump accidents, Herzog's inserting himself into several shots and his unnecessary and clumsy closing line.

Great Ecstasy of Woodcarver Steiner, The (1974)

*** (out of 4)

Another interesting documentary from the German director. The film takes a look at Walter Steiner, a Swedish ski jumper who was considered the greatest in history. At least he was considered the greatest when this film was made and since I'm not too familiar with the sport I can't say if he has been pasted or not. The film, like most of Herzog's documentaries, takes a look at something that a lot of people might not find interesting yet Herzog does his magic and in the end the film works quite well. It seems that Herzog is interested in the sport as well as the man himself so a lot of attention goes into both as we get to learn the rules behind the sport and we see what sets Steiner off. Steiner is constantly upset with judges for making the judges do things he thinks are dangerous and this attitude has gotten him in trouble at times. We get to see Steiner go through various ups and downs and his attitude really isn't any different no matter how he does. The film runs 45-minutes and remains entertaining throughout even if you aren't too interested in the material being talked about.

Werner Herzog's The Great Ecstacy of Woodcarver Steiner is a glimpse of a man who is quite amazing at his gift of ski-jumping- he's the world record holder at the time of filming (and a record he actually tops over himself more than once)- and how he's all the more impressive because of his humble attitude towards the activity. He's a woodcarver as his other profession, but has it as his primary obsession to fly, to get whisked away someplace that is of his design but not entirely of his control. And he's affected by the pressure of his own skills, skills he acknowledges but doesn't flaunt; like some comic-book hero, he has to deal with the responsibilities he has at his disposal, of not going down for his audience (who might want to see that happen), or for himself, and at the same time staying true to his gifts. He's often by his own, seen through Herzog's long lens contemplating or trying to stay on his own two feet well enough when not ski-jumping. But he knows that he can't be brought down, as his touching story about his pet raven as a kid, who got pecked away by other birds, and in order to stop it, as an act of compassion, he shot it down. At the end of the day, however, the thrill of flight is all that counts, high scores be damned.

Herzog takes this man's obsession, albeit with modest feelings about his own worth as a mega-star in Switzerland, and transforms it into a beautiful spectacle of simple facts- of the moment by moment updates of Steiner's conditions or what has to be done to the slope or what rules have to be changed to accommodate Steiner alongside the other contenders- with some of the most beautiful shots in any Herzog film. It's not anything alien to see someone in a typical sports documentary to see the athlete in slow-motion speed, but somehow Herzog transforms the familiar into something akin to the theme, of Steiner's own thrill and 'ecstacy' as what the audience feels as well. It's very interesting as well to see Steiner in slow-motion when he skids, when he or another ski-jumper gets injured (and almost everyone seen ski-jumping in the film, and there aren't many shown other than Steiner, get injured in tumbles in rough ways), as it's something one usually wouldn't see in the glorious montages of sports figures. I also really enjoyed seeing Herzog combine voice-over taken after the event, with Steiner slightly rambling on, over the footage of his jumps.

Just seeing a ski-jumper in and of itself is a fascinating sight, as one curls up and has to anticipate what's to come in mere mili-seconds. And Herzog adds his visual poetry of motion with some usual-yet-compelling behind the scenes footage to make it an exceptional work. Steiner isn't a simple hero, but one who's got complexities even Herzog can only see so much into, as he's an otherwise everyman who goes to fantastic lengths for greatness, yet is very aware of the fragility of such power in a sport so reliant on deadly competition and spectator unrest. Very well done.

After the madness of Aguirre the Wrath of God, Werner Herzog turned his attention to the greatest ski flier of his day Walter Steiner. Herzog follows Steiner as he get ready for and competes in an international competition. The film is less about the man, I know very little more now that I've seen the film, than it is about what he can do, and that is fly very far on skis. Steiner is so good that he starts farther down on the ramp than the competition and still blows everyone else out of the water.

While the film is very good, and at time exceedingly beautiful, it is ultimately a film made by a fan in celebration of his hero. Its really quite amusing to see the seemingly unflappable Herzog reduced to being a rather human sports nut. Herzog is in love with his subject and what he can do and it shows, thankfully in a positive way.

Despite being a very rough film in many ways it still captivates in its rawness. There is something about the imagery and Steiners achievement that makes it all worth watching.

It is necessary a great filmmaker to transform a simple sport in something interesting and fascinating.This 45 minutes documentary show us that it is possible!. HERZOG acts as a witness leaving STEINER do the entire work becoming a bird and talking freely about his fears. One the most amazing moments is when STEINER tell us a certain story that happened when he was a child,pure poetry in complete resonance with the film as a whole. In other moments ,the camera captures in a thrilling way all the danger involved in ski-jumping. STEINER made a small appearance in other HERZOG'S masterpiece, KASPAR HAUSER. Where is STEINER now?. I have read in internet that he lives in a small village in Sweden and works as a Gardener.