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Reviews
Mein liebster Feind - Klaus Kinski (1999)
Kinski as Herzogs objet d'art
As mentioned in other reviews and as already communicated by the film title, this documentary offers a very subjective view on Kinskis personality: Kinski as seen and as "utilized" by the director Werner Herzog. The film describes Herzogs artistic vision of filmmaking and the rough personality Kinski contributed to this mission. By doing this, it is at least a fascinating documentary about filmmaking itself.
It's obvious that Kinski with his impulsive, uncut and nearly superhuman presence that nearly blows up the screen is the prototype actor for the typical Herzog protagonist: a man whose over-individuality tears him apart from the human society and whose untamed passion only finds a metaphoric equivalent in the wild and uncivilized nature - in which he will finally collapse; well, at least in most cases.
The documentary gives impressive evident for Kinski being this ideal candidate by comparing alternate scenes from Fitzcarraldo, one with Kinski as Fitzcarraldo and one with Mick Jagger. Jagger, a charismatic wild-man on stage, ends up as a harmless milksop when compared with Kinskis furious insanity.
However, it seems that Herzog still wants to watch Kinski through the eyes of the director, not allowing too much deviation from the intended role. This becomes obvious in a short dialog with actress Eva Mattes, who describes Kinski as a polite, shy and 100% professional person. Herzogs reaction can be paraphrased as "But wasn't he also a madman?" Biographical research or psychological analysis are not the matter of this film. The reason is simple and becomes obvious during the movie: while showing some kind of "best-of-Kinski" moments, the documentary focuses more and more on Herzog himself and his mission, and in one scene Herzog will happily tell that he is a little bit insane, too.
So, his approach to this documentary is rather comparable to the great films he made with Kinski: Kinski is the headliner and catalyst for Herzogs artistic vision to accomplish the 'impossible' gesamtkunstwerk: realizing filmmaking in a hostile environment, revealing the unseen and pushing everyone involved to his individual limits.
With many unreleased flicks from film shootings and Kinski stage shows, interviews with involved actors and staff and some very intense shots (butterfly scene), this film is nevertheless highly recommendable to all Herzog / Kinski followers.
Bal (2010)
Beautiful, but very sad movie - and yes, it's slow!
*** THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS ***
I must admit that I was a bit skeptical about this movie. It won the Golden Bear in Berlin, but, first, it's a German co-production (so, who knows...) and second, festival winners are not always the movies that bowl me over.
After having seen it, I must say that I am very touched. The reviews about the movie always focus on the beautiful and calm storytelling and the awesome Anatolian landscapes. But in my view it's primarily a chamber play with a quite depressing story. The young boy Yussuf suffers from strong stuttering. The only person he opens to is his father, a beekeeper. Only with his father the boy can communicate, he whispers complete sentences and expresses his feelings. At the end of the movie, the son will realize that his father died in the woods, the last screen showing the child sleeping under a giant dark tree.
The acting from the boy is superb. There are many heartwarming scenes, especially when the boy sees his mother crying and drinks a cup of milk (what he normally hates to do), looking hopefully at her afterward, as if his self-conquest could change anything about the cruel situation. In this scenes the movie really manages to take us into the child's world.
What makes the movie a little irritating is not only the slow rhythm (that helps to create those real-life magic moments) and the very few dialogue, but also the lack of emotional gestures, especially between Yussuf and his mom. If the director of the film would have been let's say Michael Haneke, it would surely not be interpreted as a hymn to (natural) life, but as a sober analysis of failed communications.
Finally, if you generally do not like slow and minimalistic movies, don't watch this one. It's breathtaking slowly, and very many and very long scenes will only show the boy looking around an empty room with big eyes. All in all, Honey is a naturalistic child drama offering enough space and time for free associations and deep feelings. It's surely recommendable to watch it in a cinema. Although it's overall great done, you might not stay awake until the end when lying on a soft couch at home.
The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things (2004)
Very sad plot that won't leave you with good feelings
There is something natural yet amazing about the fact that some movies about real, maybe tragic or shocking events have barely touched me - I might have consumed them as light arts - while this fictitious story has recalled so many shocking, depressing facts within a very short time, mainly those newspaper articles you just do not want to read, though you know this are the articles that are to be read, but you're conscious you simply will not read them because they evoke so much helpless anger ... it's within the sad topic itself.
I think the overall strategy of the movie is chosen quite well. The aesthetics, photography and visuals of this movie reflect the world of the and confused child mother: this pictures are somewhat clichés of those typical highway movies: cool music, a music clip feeling, hard rock cafes, violence and cheap lust, passing road markings. I think it's a good strategy for this movie: it's the atmosphere from this glaring movies you would normally consider as cool "trash" and you might expect Dennis Hopper appearing. But this time the scenery will enclose a plot that will not give you just an amazing story, some thrills or good "sounds & visuals", but a real punch in the gut.
As said before: this movie is depressing. It's surely not the best selection if you plan to have a popcorn movie session with your friends (well, it depends on you).
If you are interested in the topic of child abuse or if you are convinced that arts are not just for entertainment and escapism, but may confront yourself with oppressive themes of the real life, you might want to watch this one.