Herzog & Kinski

Almost 4 years ago I bought a collection box of all the Herzog/Kinski movies, but it just laid on my shelf for all the years still wrapped in plastic. I had already seen all of the movies before and I kinda liked some of them, though never been a big fan of them. Only reason I actually bought it in the first place was because of the documentary which I hadn't seen. But then it just stayed there unopened as I never had the mood to watch them again. Until now. Unfortunately after watching the movies I realized why it stayed there for so long.



Aguirre: The Wrath of God (1972)

This movie is beautifully shot. The opening scene alone is something worth seeing. The movie itself isn't really brilliant, it drags on a bit too much for the little content it has. Though some of the content is quite great, especially Aguirre's insanity creeping in is brilliantly portrayed and the fact that everything is slowly falling apart. The problem with this film is that I don't think Kinski is that good of an actor. I mean sure he fits the role quite well and at times is magnificent, but he has those moments where he glimpses at the camera and kinda checks to reposition himself. Brings down the illusion quite a bit. Despite that he was still quite good on this one. But like I said, I'd prefer a bit more content to it as it did get quite boring at times.
70%



Nosferatu: Phantom of the Night (1979)

Well this is a movie where Kinski and his goofy face doesn't fit at all. I mean it's kinda hard to be scared when you can hardly stop laughing at the goofy guy with funny teeth. Sure the movie follows the book very closely and has it's moments here and there, but all in all this is an unnecessary remake.
35%



Woyzeck (1979)

I had seen this one long time ago and didn't understand it back then so I was kinda looking forward of seeing it again to see if I could make some sense of it now. Well unfortunately I still couldn't. Guess I'm stupid or something, but this movie makes no sense, well it does in a way, but I've read that it has more than meets the eye sense in it. So as I still failed to see what it's all about I was left with utter nonsense. Sure the emotions are portrayed by the characters quite well and the cast is great, but that's about all I can say of this. I love movies that leave the audience some things to think about and not everything has to be underlined so you don't have to use your brain to figure it out, but some sanity to it would be nice. Guess I'm just too simple for this movie. 20 percent for the cast.
20%



Fitzcarraldo (1982)

Now this movie I liked. It's the most simple of the lot so it's very easy to approach (ye I know I'm simple). Anyway it's a great story of a man who doesn't let anything stop him from making his dreams come true, no matter how insane they might be. It's slow paced, but this time it doesn't matter at all as you get into the story so easily. The movie looks stunning, the setting being almost another character in the movie. Kinski is brilliant in his role and the rest of the cast isn't bad either, always a big plus to have Claudia Cardinale in it. Not a masterpiece, but a very good movie anyways.
83%



Cobra Verde (1987)

Another grand scale movie from the two. Unfortunately this brings nothing new to the table, the story is too simple and so familiar. Kinski is being himself mostly and the whole movie has this feel of we've seen it all before. There are some wonderful scenes in it though and some of them are almost worth seeing the whole movie, but all in all it's not worth more than one watch at most.
31%



My Best Fiend (1999)

Now this documentary was what I was waiting for and it really delivers. Very interesting trip down memory lane with tons of great info about the movies. And of course the most important to see and hear how crazy Kinski really was and what was it like working with him. Even though at points Herzog makes himself a selfish prick, it's still not only a story of how much better person he was than Kinksi, there's much more in it too. Recommended watching for people who think they have problems working with some person, it can't be worse.
82%