Fitzcarraldo (1982) by Werner Herzog - (7/10)

The making of Fitzcarraldo is the stuff that legends are made from. The creation of the film itself was an act of madness and an artpiece on its own. Werner Herzog insisting on realism, demanded that the scene where they pull a 320 ton up a very steep hill, a feat never done before in history and unlikely to be ever repeated again. Perhaps even comparable to the construction of Stonehenge. They were attacked by native Indians. Klaus Kinski threw such tantrums that, the chief of the tribe that were playing the extras even offered to kill him for Herzog. Herzog even had to force him to act under gunpoint. Several actors backed out after shooting had already been done halfway. Having lost all of his money, Herzog traded shampoo at the local market for rice and lived only on that for 3 weeks. It is no wonder that Herzog called it his best documentary.

The story is about the typical Herzog outsider who has an impossible dream, to build an opera house in the middle of the jungle. He needs to raise the money necessary for this and has tried a couple of harebrained schemes for far in order to do but no luck so far. He comes to the idea of earning his fortune with rubber. In order to do so he has to not only travel through a region infested with hostile natives but he has to perform the near impossible feet of dragging his steamboat uphill through the jungle. Somewhat based on the true story, the original had a boat that weight 30 tons and was dismantled and transported like that also no opera was involved I think. As usual his quests fails but at the end there is redemption of sorts and it is gorgeous and like Herzog said, without dreams we would be just like cows grazing in the fields.

Seven Samurai (1954) by Akira Kurosawa – (7/10)

Seven Samurai is untouchable, it is a classic. It is one of the handful of non-English spoke movie that have gotten into the Imdb top 250. It has met near universal praise from directors, critics, film lovers, casual movie going public. There is very little disputing its merits. Several scenes from it have now become universal like the approaching horde coming into view as they crest a hilltop. It is wonderfully filmed (notably the action sequences), characters are wonderful (especially Toshirō Mifune, just love him and Takashi Shimura who also played the lead in Ikiru) and the story is a classic. More importantly it is morally ambiguous with the farmers being shown as being far from perfect themselves.

I cannot say that I love it as much as everyone else seems to (I feel like some of Kurosawa’s other movies are better, Roshomon for example or even High and Low), I think that it might be held in a higher regard because of its ambitious scope but there is very little in denying its merits.

The Wrestler (2008) by Darren Aronofsky – (7/10)

The Wrestler was quite a surprise when it was released because of how, simple almost documentary like it was filmed considering Aronofsky’s previous movies. This might have been a reaction to the (undeserved, in my opinion) backlash that The Fountain received and how much difficulties he had getting that movie made and how long it took him. It did play in Aronofsky’s favour considering all the praise that Wrestler received. It did deserve it. It is a simple, straightforward story about a down on his luck wrestler who still tries to hand onto his glory days that are long gone now. He is suffering from health problems, has a troublesome relationship with a stripper, an estranged daughter, dead-end job, he has trouble paying his rent,… It is a touching, humane story with a deeply flawed character but one that you can sympathize now. Mickey Rourke plays perfect and delivers the performance for which he will probably be remembered for, mostly because he is portraying in a way his own life story. It is a touching but realistic and not sappy movie, it is worth your while. It proves an interesting and charming insight into the world of wrestling, something that I had no knowledge prior to seeing this or even a positive disposition towards it.

A Man Asleep (1974) by Bernard Queysanne - (7/10)

A wonderful (or more correctly accurate) portrait of depression that shows it just the way it is. It shows a french student who one day just decided to serve all contact with society. The actor never speaks but you hear what he is thinking, his endless ramblings. How he is trying to make sense of the world. How loneliness both seems like the only solution and is slowly killing him at the same time. How boredom grows around. For those who never experienced this, this as close as you will get inside the mind of someone suffering depression. Those who have will surely be capable of relating. As a matter of fact, this movie will seem nearly autobiographical to them.

Eraserhead (1977) by David Lynch - (7/10)

Eraserhead is one hell of a way to start a career as a director. It is a Freudian nightmare, made more horrifying by the fact that David Lynch allegedly didn’t remember writing it, David Lynch has said that that it is his most spiritual film and that no one understands it the way that he does and I am going to agree with because as far as I can tell it is about sexual repression.

It is a story about a simple guy Henry Spenser who is on vacation and lives in an industrial wasteland of sorts. His estranged girlfriend suddenly calls him up, invites him to dinner and after a pretty odd gathering he is notified that she is pregnant with what he is assured is a human child. She gives birth to something that one would be really, pressed to call human. The thing scream the whole night, eventually his girlfriend abandons them. Also he lusts after the woman living next door and at night the woman in the radiator sings that in heaven everything is all right. He winds up killing his child. I would say that sex and sexual desires are a bad thing. It is an unsettling experience to say the least even if your interpretations are completely different from mine. It doesn’t matter, Eraserhead is an unsettling but interesting place to be.

High and Low (1963) by Akira Kurosawa – (7/10)

It seems like an odd thing to say considering Kurosawa’s legacy (and the fact that I consider him to be overrated, good but overrated), I do think that High and Low is a bit of an underrated movie. It is among his best works (and better than many famous works) but it doesn’t seem to be quite as highly regarded or quite as famous, maybe because it doesn’t have samurai in it?

It plays out as an excellent ransom/ detective story in which a companies executive (played by Toshirō Mifune) son gets kidnapped and a ransom for him is demanded at the exact same time that he needs the money to complete a buyout or else he will loose everything. The movie centers on both the decision that he has to make as well as the police’s chase for the culprit. Kurosawa was a bit obsessed with getting things right so it is wonderfully shot, the moral dilemmas get handled in an interesting way, the chase is exiting but what makes the whole truly great is the ending. Where the victim and the culprit are confronted and we find out about his motives. It is one of the best things that Kurosawa has made in my opinion.

Black Ice (1994) by Stan Brakhage – (7/10)

I am still not quite sure yet about Stan Brakhage’s “painted” movies or the majority of his oeuvre for that matter but this one is rather beautiful. It is almost 2 minutes of this gorgeous, azure, purple, blue, crystal patterns coming straight at you. Reminds me a bit of one of the space sequences from 2001: A Space Odyssey. Looks very pretty and has a certain sense of depth to it.

Manderlay (2005) by Lars von Trier - (7/10)

Manderlay is the second film in what seems like now, a never to be finished trilogy. It seems rather obvious as to why Lars von Trier might be reluctant now to finish the trilogy.


On its own right, Manderlay would have been an excellent movie. Following the masterpiece, Dogville, its impact was lessened somewhat. The visual style which was not as unique and shocking as it had been in the first movie, is was no longer as new and fresh as before. No matter how hard the story hits you, it is not as soul crushing as it was the first time around. Sadly Nicole Kidman wasn’t around this time, Lars von Trier apparently bullied her a bit to much the first time around, she was often reduced to tears. Bryce Dallas Howard does a pretty good job here, I wouldn’t be surprised if some people preferred her over Kidman. Despite this complaints, Manderlay is an excellent movie. It is a study about racism in America, one that I might find easier to agree with than some Americans might because just like Lars von Trier, I too have never been outside of Europe. I do think that, the lessons to be learned and conclusions to be drawn are universal in many ways. The movie is made more interesting by the main characters good intentions, she is not someone who is racist by her own accord and tries her best to avoid being one. She is perceived as one by the ones that she tries to help. Wait for the wonderful twist at the end, misanthropic ending. Reminded me a bit of The Village, the twist is meaningful, realistic and interesting here. Much like the first part, Manderlay is not as much anti-American as it is simply misanthropic. It makes you question the worth of the human race.

My Son, My Son What Have Ye Done? (2009) by Werner Herzog - (7/10)

My son, my son what have ye done? is one of the two feature films that Werner Herzog released in 2009 (the other one being Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans). Although this one received less glowing reviews than the Bad Lieutenant, I did find it to be the by far superior one of the two. Comparisons are bound to be made between the two movies but besides the fact that both movies share some cast members (luckily both featured Brad Dourif, he plays a redneck, racist ostrich farmer in this one), they are radically different in style and substance. David Lynch as most will know by now, produced it and although Herzog says that he had no creative influences. The movie not only features references to several Lynch movies (try to spot them), it does play out like Herzog tried to channel Lynch into this movie, style-wise. It contains plenty of Herzog elements as well, some of the lines are really typical of his, animals act important roles in this one (ostracises and flamingos are present) and it has that thing – which he used a lot in his recent documentaries – where he just lets actors stand around without giving them any clue as to what he expects of them and they just stand still and it is so incredibly awkward.

Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans might have been promoted as the comedy and My son, my son what have ye done? as a horror movie of sorts, My son was by far the funnier and more absurd one of the two. This one does play out like a dark comedy with plenty of absurdity.

My son, my son what have ye done is a mood piece, a character study. It is slow, not much happens, the ending is both odd and anticlimactic and it is all about the mood and atmosphere. The atmosphere is just superb, the music is excellent. I heard some complains from everyone including Herzog himself about the quality of the image, it was shot on a digital camera but I though that it look beautiful. The story is based on a true story – true in they typical Herzog way – of a man who killed his own mother, believing that he would safe the world by doing this. A man that Herzog felt was too demented and dangerous to ever meet again.

Although I am usually not one to gasp over the cast, I am more about the directors. The cast of this one must be mentioned. Brad Dourif which I mentioned before makes his fourth collaboration with Herzog and does a great job. Udo Kier does a nice job as the gay theatre director (not sure whether he is just being himself or playing but it does make some comments funnier). Grace Zabriskie plays as usual the insane mother, she has worked with Lynch before, she was the crazy neighbour in Inland Empire. Willem Dafoe is sort of just there. Most import of all was Michael Shannon who plays the role of mentally troubled main characters well, with such subtle and brilliance that I wouldn’t be surprised if he went out tomorrow and stabbed his own mother. He is just so convincing that I find it almost hard to believe that he is acting.