WERNER HERZOG

Bil’s rating (out of 5):  BBBB.  

Original title:  Aguirre, der Zorn Gottes

West Germany, 1972.  Werner Herzog Filmproduktion, Hessischer Rundfunk.  Screenplay by Werner Herzog.  Cinematography by Thomas Mauch.  Produced by Werner Herzog, Hans Prescher.  Music by Popol Vuh.  Film Editing by Beate Mainka-Jellinghaus. 

Marvelous, exotic visuals of the lush jungles of South America highlight this fascinating tale of greed and power. Klaus Kinski gives a disturbing performance as a Spanish soldier who leads an expedition down the Amazon river in search of El Dorado, the fabled city of gold. The idea is to capture the city for his king, but lust for power overcomes him and he decides he wants the place for himself to build his own kingdom. As the dream becomes less of a reality, however, his dominance over his crew members and passengers becomes more cruel and insane. Werner Herzog tells this offbeat tale with energy and freshness, and would later be defeated by the jungle himself when he’d attempt to make the film Fitzcarraldo in the Amazon.