With a camera which he had stolen from his film school Werner Herzog travelled to South America to make his movie Aguirre, the Wrath of God. He got the idea for the film and turned it into a script into the back of the when his football team was travelling to games. It’s a story about a group of Spaniards in search of El Dorado, the place in which there is gold everywhere. To realize that story Herzog worked together with actor Klaus Kinski, who was very difficult to work with (still he would do so as well on other films) in circumstances which tested the whole crew. One of their sets was almost completely destroyed when the river rose considerably during the night.
The movie opens with a beautiful shot of a couple of dozen man walking past steep mountaincliffs across narrow winding roads up a mountain, carrying heavy items and food. Like a long line of ants they try to get through the environment, a jungle in which the local people are hostile and they have no idea what other dangers might be around the corner. Gonzalo Pizarro (Alejandro Repullés) leads the expedition, but when their resources start to dwindle he decides that a small group of soldier will continue the search for El Dorado. This group, which is led by Don Pedro de Ursúa (Ruy Guerra) with Don Lope de Aguirre (Klaus Kinski) as second in command, builds a couple of rafts en let the river take them further into the jungle. Soon their mission is not only one where they are fighting nature, but also where trust, power and control is fought for.
Aguirre is not a movie with lots of story. There is character development, but the feeling of the pride of man versus the almost unconquerable nature is the one that stands out. As the relation between the members of the company worsen, nature is a silent but patient witness. The river slowly seems to make everyone go crazy, with Aguirre as an almost tyrannical main character. A role which is very well realized by Kinski, who can show the madness with his piercing eyes. As you are watching it, it’s not difficult to imagine how difficult it must have been, both for the characters in the movie, but also for the crew filming this. That alone is enough reason (as is the commentary track by Herzog) to give this movie a chance.
For me, this is one of the greatest films ever as it plays into Herzog’s obsession with man vs. nature as it features Klaus Kinski at his best.
Nice to hear that Steven and it definitely is interesting to see that man vs nature story in this film.
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