Werner Herzog is nothing if not an obsessive film maker. This obsession leads to stark and beautiful sights captured through his camera, which serve more of a philosophical aesthetic than any true narrative. I went into this expecting a documentary about the history of volcanoes, perhaps a narrative on their cultural considerations. Instead what I got was a personal rumination on the discompassionate, violent nature of volcanoes, put into relief by the helpless, delusional stories primitive communities create about them.
Herzog superimposes his trademark "Man as nothing but subject to the indifferent forces of nature" theme subtlety throughout the film, until the end it comes forward in full, with nothing short of an apocalyptic speculation about volcanoes annihilating the planet in synchronized eruption....K.
I respect Herzog's view that man is a futile, helpless, and deluded organism at the mercy of the objective and inconsiderate forces of nature, but that is nothing more than a reflection of his personal view on humanity and nature. It is not inspiring, it is not particularly original, but it is vastly dark. To that I simply say, I prefer to see the world as something of beauty, something from which we are inextricably linked, that supports us, and provides this incredible experience called human life. I am thankful for the sometimes violent beauty of nature. Herzog does a good job of disguising his nihilism beneath gorgeous shots, imagery, and commentary, and slowly leaks it in as time ticks by. It's like a good magic trick, that if pulled off effectively might just leave the viewer feeling somewhat nihilistic at the end of the movie too. Nice try Werner, not this time.
Herzog superimposes his trademark "Man as nothing but subject to the indifferent forces of nature" theme subtlety throughout the film, until the end it comes forward in full, with nothing short of an apocalyptic speculation about volcanoes annihilating the planet in synchronized eruption....K.
I respect Herzog's view that man is a futile, helpless, and deluded organism at the mercy of the objective and inconsiderate forces of nature, but that is nothing more than a reflection of his personal view on humanity and nature. It is not inspiring, it is not particularly original, but it is vastly dark. To that I simply say, I prefer to see the world as something of beauty, something from which we are inextricably linked, that supports us, and provides this incredible experience called human life. I am thankful for the sometimes violent beauty of nature. Herzog does a good job of disguising his nihilism beneath gorgeous shots, imagery, and commentary, and slowly leaks it in as time ticks by. It's like a good magic trick, that if pulled off effectively might just leave the viewer feeling somewhat nihilistic at the end of the movie too. Nice try Werner, not this time.