Tuesday, October 06, 2009
Fata Morgana
I just saw the DVD of Fata Morgana, and on the commentary track Herzog explains that the man and woman playing the drums and piano are in fact a pimp and a madam. Far from expressing Spartan joy, they were generally glum and occasionally brutal. The bass drum with the windmill doesn't say "Rejoice" (as the Spartan's toy drum kit did); it says "Rojo", because the brothel was named El Molino Rojo.
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2 comments:
We're kind of a divided household on Herzog. All appreciate his work, but... Jai likes him but tends to fall asleep to his DVDs, which is definitely not a negative commentary to my mind. Indi finds something unhumane and antipathetic about his sensibility. Mira gets kind of creeped out.
I just recently re-watched Cobra Verde. Much better than I remember it. I was inspired to see it after going to a lecture/presentation here by a guy who's name I forget who was still photographer for Herzog for Aguirre, Fitzcarraldo, Cobra Verde, and the Tim Roth one shot in Berlin or Vienna.
I think I agree with all of you. I'm not sure I've ever seen "Fitzcaraldo" all the way through in one viewing; like Jai, I always nod out. And the animal cruelty in "Even Dwarves Started Small" is pretty unforgivable, especially given that it's in the service of--what? Dwarves driving trucks around and laughing for an hour and a half? However I can't forget viewing "Fata Morgana" the first time from the catwalk. Remarkable how many of the images stayed with me for so long.
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