Review of Cobra Verde (1987) by Mike P — 09 Jul 2011

Herzog and Kinski's last film together is a stunning and fitting end to a legendary collaboration. It's the sort of film that I can't imagine being made nowadays, and certainly couldn't be made without the combined creative insanity of those two.

Kinski plays another in a long line of characters who are entirely unlikeable and yet utterly enthralling. Though his actions are all deplorable, he demands a begrudging respect in much the same way a salivating grizzly would.

We follow Francisco from his start as a loathed Brazilian bandit all the way to his unlikely end as a slave baron in Africa. As usual, Herzog doesn't spare humanity's ugliest moments, while paradoxically admiring a man who does what he must to survive and thrive in impossible circumstances.