Werner Herzog: Radical Dreamer

In this meticulously crafted documentary by Thomas von Steinaecker, Werner Herzog, an unparalleled figure in popular culture, is explored not just as a filmmaker but as an extraordinary auteur. Featuring insights from luminaries like Wim Wenders, Volker Schlöndorff, Nicole Kidman, and others, the film delves into Herzog's illustrious career, from early successes like "Even Dwarfs Started Small" to grandiose masterpieces such as "Aguirre, Wrath of God" and "Fitzcarraldo," with Klaus Kinski as his tempestuous alter ego. The narrative extends to his impactful documentary work, including "Grizzly Man." Released alongside Herzog's autobiography, the film joyfully navigates rich anecdotes, from Herzog's nonchalant response to being shot during an interview to his stoic determination in refusing medical attention. Zhao and others assert that Herzog's films orbit a singular theme: himself-the dissident, risk-taker, and existential disruptor challenging sanity's boundaries. Whether in the Amazon or documenting penguins, Herzog's presence remains an unwavering force, with a work ethic often described as "dreamer-like." This documentary encapsulates the brilliance of Herzog's cinematic journey and the indomitable spirit propelling it forward.

Kaja Popko.

Werner Herzog is someone who definitely warrants a documentary. Just the very fact that he has been making really interesting films over a period of decades sets him apart from virtually every other filmmaker. His way of looking at the world is fantastic and his choice of subject matter always interesting. Just listening to him speak is in itself a joy. So, going into this one, it is hard to see how it can fail really. Having seen it, I would have to say that it is predictably a very good watch but it maybe skims over his work a bit more than is ideal. But then again, its hard to see how this could ever be entirely avoidable given the sheer volume of films Herzog has made over the years.

His relationship with Klaus Kinski is again covered, hardly surprising given the insanity of it. And consequently, the Kinski films are given a decent amount of screen time too. There are also nods in the direction of some of his more prominent documentaries, such as Grizzly Man. Its testament to how good a filmmaker Herzog is, that incredible works such as Land of Silence and Darkness, The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser and Into the Abyss aren't even mentioned at all. You do get some idea about how his mind ticks by watching this but I would recommend the excellent book Herzog On Herzog to those wanting to discover even more.

Herzog is one of the founders of the New German Cinema along with Alexandra Kluge, Volker Schlöndorff, Win Wenders and of course Rainer Fassbinder. Throughout his career he has directed, written and produced more than 60 films. With the locations of his films he has been able to take us to the most remote places on the planet and his characters have allowed us to imagine what we thought unimaginable.

This documentary analyzes the work of this visionary dreamer. The director himself, accompanied by those closest to him, as the writer Lotte Eisner and including his wife, analyzing his career since his beginnings in cinema with Lebenszeichen (1968) . Together with them, Christian Bale who played in ¨Herzog's Rescue Dawn¨, while Nicole Kidman, Robert Pattison acted in ¨Queen of the Desert¨, review their works with him. Herzog's usual cameraman Thomas Mauch tells his experiences while shooting these spectacular on the dangerous Amazon lands . Wim Wenders tells us how the director helped him reach a wider audience and Chloe Zao tells us about his admiration for him,

There's also a chilling portrayal of Klaus Kinski and his profoundly creative partnership with his friend/enemy Werner Herzog , the latter regards him as a man plunging into insanity but also to lucidity and genius , as Kinski is assaulted from all sides by forces he cannot control between brilliance and craziness . Werner Herzog depicts this prestigious actor as a very strange , mysterious and bizarre person , gradually devolving into maniac instinct and attacks of rage . Werner Herzog offers a sturdy studio from Klaus Kinski , an extremely furious and strong actor , usually providing magnificent performances . Werner Herzog's relationship with Klaus Kinski reached thunderous walks . Being five the Werner Herzog/Klaus Kinski collaborations; Klaus Kinski gave portentous interpretations in these films providing various eccentric , queer , insane characters similar to him . The first was : ¨Aguirre, Warth of God¨ (1972) , from now on , a violent, intense , love-hate relationship was born ; the four remaining and essentially combative relationships were the following ones : ¨Nosferatu, the vampyre¨ (1979) ¨Woyzeck¨ (1979) and ¨Fitzcarraldo¨(1982) , while this interesting documentary depicts the tumultuous relations between them . ¨Aguirre¨ was the start of an extremely stormy, and sometimes violent, professional relationship with Herzog that lasted 15 years .There are frames from films as ¨Aguirre , Wrath of God ¨ (1972) , according to director Werner Herzog, Klaus Kinski threatened to abandon the film entirely at one point during the shooting. Herzog says he threatened to kill Kinski and then turn the gun on himself if Kinski left and later declared he was quite prepared to do so. Kinski stated in interviews that Herzog wielded a pistol to emphasize the threat, but Herzog denies this . While in Nosferatu the Vampyre (1979) , Klaus plays an outlandish Count Dracula who moves from Transylvania to Wismar, spreading the Black Plague across the land and only a woman pure of heart : Isabelle Adjani , can bring an end to his kingdom of terror.¨Fitzcarraldo¨based on an actual story of a charismatic Irishman's impossible quest at the turn of the Century . Here Kinski gives an awesome acting as the dreamer who moves mountains , carrying out a monumental mission : hauling the ship manually over a hill towards a parallel river . ¨Woyzeck¨ the same dizzy folly as Aguirre , but Herzog´s similarly long perspective conjures as a brooding and thought-provoking film , giving a harsh vision of suffering beyond despair , eventually cracking when Woyzeck discovers his wife's infedility played by Eva Mattes who tells a splendid description about her colleague Kinski . Kinski/Herzog relation was also tumultuous in their last collaboration : ¨Cobra Verde¨ in which he delivers a peculiar and intense acting in his usual style as the freed outlaw Cobra Verde hired by a plantation owner to supervise his slaves , being fifth and final reunion. Even by Werner Herzog/Klaus Kinski standards , their last collaboration was a wild trip, as well .

This documentary was competently directed by Thomas von Steinaecker, though some may find hard to take . This great German director Herzog has made several thoughtful , provoking and interesting films , such as : "Fata Morgana" , "Aguirre Wrath of God" , "The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser", "Heart of Glass" , "Stroszek", "Woyzeck" , "Nosferatu the Vampire", "Where the Green Ants Dream" , "Cobra Verde" ,"Lessons in Darkness", "My Dearest Enemy", "Invincible" , "The White Diamond", "Rescue Dawn" , and without forgetting the prestigious documentaries such as: ¨Grizzly man¨, ¨Into the Inferno¨, ¨Fireball: Visitors from Darker World¨, ¨Cave of forgotten dreams¨ . Rating : 7/10 above average and irresistible movie thanks to the great Werner Herzog . The flick will appeal to Werner Herzog followers.

Too limited if I could start with that. It barely touches the true depth of his body of work. This could have been a series 4,6 or 8 one hour episodes. I was so looking forward to this film and I didn't learn anything I didn't know before. It might be ok for someone who discovered Werner as a character on a Star Wars show and they wanted to know more.

His humbleness is seen here, his work ethic as well.

It just doesn't seem to get a full story. It doesn't show the grit and determination that is his passion and defiance to get the film made.

I wish Terry Gilliam could have been as successful as Werner has been.

Finally it is really no better a documentary than an average YouTube video and this man deserves a better movie about him.

A bit like with the late Ennio Morricone, I'd love to just sit in a room with Werner Herzog and chat. He's such an enigmatic character who comes across in this documentary as a human being of vision and imagination, sure, but also as a man who cares about ensuring that the audience never bore of his work. The range of his projects is well illustrated here from his embryonic (and not exactly great) stuff from the later 1960s through his successes with "Aguirre" (1972), "Nosferatu" (1979) and "Fitzcarraldo" (1982) whilst we learn of his tempestuous relationship with the headstrong Klaus Kinski as well as how he faced struggles from childhood in post war Germany all the way through to funding films that drag dilapidated paddle steamers across South American hilltops. Of course, there's the obligatory collection of adulatory comments - some more interesting than others, but essentially what makes this work is the time we get to spend with him at his home. His conversation is laced with a sense of goodwill towards his audiences that is at tines quite contagious. His determination never to settle for second best or to churn out same old, same old is palpable and his ability to embrace concepts from differing genres, for differing age groups and to participate in the development and evolution of his medium is really quite inspiring to watch. Unfortunately, there just isn't enough of that intimacy and the film all too often falls into the trap of the supporting quotes. Be they from Wim Wenders or Nicole Kidman, I just don't think they added much to what I wanted to see and that was just him in a room with some fine wine and meandering natter. A charismatic man with a limitless ability to dream - and if you're at all interested in just how cinema got to where it is now (warts and all) then this is well worth a watch.