Review of Aguirre, the Wrath of God (1972) by Ryan N — 26 Jun 2008

Took me four different sittings to get through this movie all the way, and it's only an hour and 40 minutes. A tragedy from the word go, we watch Aguirre a Spanish conquistador, stage a mutiny, and attempt to lead his men to The Lost City Of Gold (which as explained in the films opening text, was invented by the Indians to trick the greedy invaders). So while the audience watches a slow boat to nowhere, the captain and crew become more and more obsessed and assured of their quest to become like God Kings of the New World.

Why this movie is worth seeing is for it's photography, the Amazon looks real in this film in all it's inhospitable glory, the films only music comes from native flute, and thought the characters are Spanish, they all speak German, ha! I'm not sure if I'm sold on this being in the top ten greatest films of all time list (which it is by many), but I can see how it adds and deepens the Herzog mystique. Grueling, but rewarding watch for cinephiles.