Aguirre, The Wrath of God

Aguire, The Wrath of God (1972) begins with an astounding image of a Spanish exploring party descending from the Andes into the jungle that will be their undoing. This party includes Indian slaves, lamas, conquistadors, palanquins, pigs, cannons, and more. It is shocking to me that Werner Herzog was only 28 at the time, had a budget well under $500,000, and used only one camera for the shoot. Klaus Kinski, in his first collaboration with Herzog, is magnificent as Aguirre the megalomaniacal leader of the party’s demise deep in the Amazonian jungle in search of the illusive city of gold, El Dorado. There are many stunning shot throughout the film, which Herzog had filmed on location in Peru. It’s hard not to see that Coppola and Malick borrowed from Herzog in their respective films Apocalypse Now and The New World. Interestingly, I learned from the commentary with the director that the black slave played by Edward Roland named Okello, is named after John Okello a leader of a rebel group that took Zanzibar in 1964 killing between 5,000-20,000 Arabs in the process. It seems that Herzog was in contact with Okello, who wanted him to translate a book that he had written. Aguirre is partly modeled on him. Herzog said, “I chose the name Okello because I owe his craze, his hysteria, his atrocious fantasies quite a bit for this film." It is a fascinating film with many beautiful sequences, perhaps Herzog's masterpiece.

Comments

[Pat James]

Thanks for reminding me to check this one out. Have you seen Fitzcarraldo?

[MC]

Hey Pat, I also bought Fitzcarraldo, so I'll be watching it sometime soon. Another in my series of films in preparation for my summer trip to Peru. I just saw "State of Fear," a documentary about the violence in Peru in the 80s and 90s as well. Recommended.