Review of Encounters at the End of the World (2007) by Kitty Kitty B — 03 Jul 2008

[font=Century Gothic]There are three reasons to watch a documentary:[/font].

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[font=Century Gothic]1. To be informed about a fascinating subject.[/font].

[font=Century Gothic]2. To be challenged about the way we view the world.[/font].

[font=Century Gothic]3. To see what kind of crazy stuff Werner Herzog is up to this week.[/font].

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[font=Century Gothic]This brings me to "Encounters at the End of the World" wherein Werner Herzog travels to Antarctica lured by some spectacular underwater footage, vowing not to make just another penguin movie.(Relax, there are penguins here. And seals!) After a few days of civilization at McMurdo Station, he is restless and sets off to various base camps to visit with research scientists.(The research represents the four classical elements of earth, fire, air and water.) Even as this research looks back to the origins of the earth, the cosmos and human life, there is also theorizing about the future wherein Herzog is particularly pessimistic about humanity's chances for the long term. While expressing more interest in the human inhabitants than the natural setting(which is photographed wonderfully, by the way), it is ironic that he also makes a great case for humanity surviving. The human race has always shown itself to be very adaptable to any challenges it encounters, so it should comes as no surprise that we have set up shop on a continent that a hundred years previously was thought to be unreachable. And if we can do that, imagine what else we are capable of. [/font].