Herzog’s grandest folly was almost his undoing, but became his greatest triumph. One of cinema’s least convincing Irishmen, Klaus Kinski plays Brian Sweeney Fitzgerald, who has a dream to bring opera to the Amazon. Not content to bring in a phonograph, he means to ship in an entire opera house, and invite Caruso down in person. But first he’ll need to portage a 350 ton steamship over a mountain…
None of this should work—and if you watch Les Blank’s legendary documentary about the film, Burden of Dreams (also at VIFF Centre this week) you’ll see how close it came to disaster on multiple occasions—but Herzog has the gift of stealing fire from the gods and pulling off impossible movies like this. Today, of course, they would use CGI and the film would be nothing.
Does the movie “excuse” colonialism? It’s complicated. This is a subject Herzog has returned to many times over the course of his long career. Fitzcarraldo is a more benevolent madman than Aguirre, and here there appears to be little distinction between the obsessive filmmaker and his hero—but only if we decide that visionary artists are truly insane. Irish or not, Kinski has no trouble selling that idea.
One of the great visions of the cinema, and one of the great follies. One would not have been possible without the other.
Roger Ebert
Stunning spectacle.
New York Times
Media Partner
Werner Herzog
Klaus Kinski, Claudia Cardinale, Grande Otelo
Germany/Peru
1982
In German, Spanish and Asháninka with English subtitles
Indigenous & Community Access
Credits
Screenwriter
Werner Herzog
Cinematography
Thomas Mauch
Editor
Beate Mainka-Jellinghaus
Original Music
Popol Vuh
Production Design
Ulrich Bergfelder, Henning von Gierke
Also in This Series
Amelie
One of the most popular French films of the past 25 years, Amelie is a delightfully whimsical confection from the ever-inventive Jean-Pierre Jeunet. Audrey Tautou stars as a young Parisienne who resolves to make the world a happier place...
The Conversation
Gene Hackman is Harry Caul, 'the best bugger on the West Coast', a surveillance expert whose jealously guarded anonymity is threatened when he happens across what seems to be a murder plot.
The Fall (4K Restoration)
Shot over four years across 24 countries, cowritten by a six year old girl, and entirely self-financed by commercials director Tarsem, The Fall is such a mind- (and eye) boggling movie it's hard to believe it actually exists. Yet here it is!