aguirre: the wrath of god (werner herzog)

whenever someone decides to write a list with 'the best movies of all time', or something of the like, 'aguirre' always makes at least the top 100, if not the top 10. well, no wonder. from the beginning you have the feeling of watching something 'big', a grand story, something deep and transcendental. the obvious highlight of the whole experience is kinski's performance, not many actors manage to achieve such a strong screen presence. you can't escape his insanity, his crazed look, his thirst. the rythm is slow and poetic, leaving the viewer in a sort of hypnotic trance... a trance enhanced by popol vuh's beautiful minimalistic krautrock music (for me the best part of the film). plus, a film that features a baby sloth creature and a raft full of monkeys can't be bad, can it?

Rating: 9/10

the cave of forgotten dreams (werner herzog)

really interesting, the notion of it all leaves you in awe, how these images were produced more than 30,000 years ago, the skill they show, the range of movement, the variety of fauna... simply amazing. and, as mr shanks said, they don't seem to be first drafts, they probably were rehearsed before, done several times before they decided to paint them on the rock... and the techniques were most likely passed on from generation to generation. still, i found i was feeling more mesmerised by the facts than by the actual images. good thing is, though, herzog doesn't talk as much as in 'encounters...', i always find him a bit annoying after a while. so that's a plus. and the music is incredible, probably my favourite part of the film! but, still, totally recommendable, just go and see it, you won't regret it.

Rating: 7/10

the enigma of kaspar hauser (werner herzog)

not really sure about this, i think the problem is (as usual) that the film is based on a real (even though almost unbelievable) story. yes, very interesting indeed from an anthropological and sociological point of view, but that't it. i felt a bit bored, and didn't like the acting that much, or even the direction. so, yeah, whatever.

Rating: 5/10