Werner Herzog is someone who definitely warrants a documentary. Just the very fact that he has been making really interesting films over a period of decades sets him apart from virtually every other filmmaker. His way of looking at the world is fantastic and his choice of subject matter always interesting. Just listening to him speak is in itself a joy. So, going into this one, it is hard to see how it can fail really. Having seen it, I would have to say that it is predictably a very good watch but it maybe skims over his work a bit more than is ideal. But then again, its hard to see how this could ever be entirely avoidable given the sheer volume of films Herzog has made over the years.

His relationship with Klaus Kinski is again covered, hardly surprising given the insanity of it. And consequently, the Kinski films are given a decent amount of screen time too. There are also nods in the direction of some of his more prominent documentaries, such as Grizzly Man. Its testament to how good a filmmaker Herzog is, that incredible works such as Land of Silence and Darkness, The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser and Into the Abyss aren't even mentioned at all. You do get some idea about how his mind ticks by watching this but I would recommend the excellent book Herzog On Herzog to those wanting to discover even more.

In this meticulously crafted documentary by Thomas von Steinaecker, Werner Herzog, an unparalleled figure in popular culture, is explored not just as a filmmaker but as an extraordinary auteur. Featuring insights from luminaries like Wim Wenders, Volker Schlöndorff, Nicole Kidman, and others, the film delves into Herzog's illustrious career, from early successes like "Even Dwarfs Started Small" to grandiose masterpieces such as "Aguirre, Wrath of God" and "Fitzcarraldo," with Klaus Kinski as his tempestuous alter ego. The narrative extends to his impactful documentary work, including "Grizzly Man." Released alongside Herzog's autobiography, the film joyfully navigates rich anecdotes, from Herzog's nonchalant response to being shot during an interview to his stoic determination in refusing medical attention. Zhao and others assert that Herzog's films orbit a singular theme: himself-the dissident, risk-taker, and existential disruptor challenging sanity's boundaries. Whether in the Amazon or documenting penguins, Herzog's presence remains an unwavering force, with a work ethic often described as "dreamer-like." This documentary encapsulates the brilliance of Herzog's cinematic journey and the indomitable spirit propelling it forward.

Kaja Popko.

What we are talking about today is the documentary movie "Werner Herzog - Radical Dreamer" and you can see from my rating already that I really adored it and am super glad I went to watch it. This is still relatively recent, not just a 2022 release, but also deep into the second half of the year when this had its premiere here. I know the film was shown not too long ago on another occasion with Werner Herzog and Thomas von Steinaecker, the writer and director of this film, present. I was not there that night sadly, but I got to see Herzog on two other occasions, one in my city and the other in another city and I am really grateful for that. It was one of my big goals because I am just fascinated by the man and artist and his approach to film and filmmaking. So I am definitely biased, not gonna lie. Probably most others will not give a perfect rating here the way I did and I am not sure if the film is one that will really get you highly curious about Herzog's work if you weren't familiar with it/him before, but this perception I will leave to others. From my really big fan perspective, watching this film that runs for slightly over 100 minutes was a big delight from beginning to end and I had a smile on my lips throughout the entire thing and sometimes even laughed at some fascinating moments that maybe others, also in my crowd, did not find particularly entertaining. But I did.

If we stay with the basics for a moment, then let me say that von Steinaecker is 45 now, so not a very young filmmaker, but his body of work on imdb dates back only to 2014 when he was already in his late 30s, my age now pretty much. So I guess there is stuff missing or he was really a late bloomer. If you take a closer look at his body of work, then you will see that major focus was on music, very different kinds of music and people celebrating said music. From Wagner over Bernstein to Lady Gaga. But he also worked on other areas, focused on art in the sense of paintings and sculptures and was in charge of a miniseries dealing with German history. Admittedly, the focus there was sometimes also on issues that were not entirely new to him, content linked to society rather and it was not a full-on political documentary. But film is something where I cannot find many references in the man's previous works, so even nicer to see him come up with such a great film on Herzog here, even if Herzog himself of course carries it nicely as he is always a factor from beginning to end. He always has so much to tell and it always feels so authentic. At the very start, he tells us that he does not dream or at least not as much as others. Of course, we (and he) cannot say 100% for sure if this is true or if he just does not remember, but interesting reference in terms of the name of the documentary. It is more meant anyway in terms of dreams in the sense of visions that he has and turns into movies. There was one very telling statement he made about Fitzcarraldo that there is no other option for him than to make the film, even with Robards gone for reasons of ailing health. But yeah, the statement about insects and butterflies during long car rides was also interesting. One thing I found really nice about this documentary too were the interviewees. They all have special connections to Herzog and there were A-listers like Cage, Bale and Kidman that gave us their thoughts about him and I especially liked Bale's comment about how Herzog is also one of the kindest people he has ever met and maybe some really mistake him a bit for Kinski.

I am also talking about the other interviewees though. I mean you cannot get better folks than Schlöndorff (who I saw in person at the premiere by the way and also on other occasions in the past) and, above that, Wenders to comment on Herzog's craft here. Those two plus Herzog were among the best Germany had to offer in the 1970s especially, but also afterwards. You can add two other German filmmakers there from that era in terms of international perception, but sadly they are no longer with us. I am of course talking about Fassbinder and Petersen. But back to Herzog: He is by far not the only Stipetic/Herzog we see in this film. There are several interview sequences with Lucki, Werners brother, and that makes sense because he helped Werner a lot with his movies. Also on set with Kinski around. But we also have one short inclusion of another brother, so you can see how they do stick together as a family and nobody said they wanna be left out here. This also applies to Herzog's ex-wife. No bad blood at all and she was also part of the crew back in the day and shares some thoughts with us here. His current wife is included as well and her comment linked to enthusiasm and curiosity it was I think was one of the key factors from this film here that stayed in the mind for me the most from beginning to end. All this is combined with many great anecdotes from the master himself. Some of them were also a bit sad. We should not forget Herzog was born during the days of World War II and even when the war was over, times were really rough and there was not enough bread there for all the children every day and they were literally starving. We also find out he was brought up by his mother only and the father left quickly and the mother had a good reputation because of her professional background, so she was not ostracized as a woman left by her man or so. Society had progressed already. You will also find some anecdotes here about Herzog's work with Kinski. These are always included in projects like these because they are so entertaining, even if in retrospective it must be said that Kinski was probably as much of a great artist as he was a lost one.

But tonight is about Herzog: The film basically went through his body of work chronologically and I liked that. I am somebody who at least knows the names of all his films and has seen many of them, the short ones from early in his career too (like the shoe-eating one), but this made it easy for me to follow. There was a comment by somebody who said that Germans don't know what Herzog did when, after working with Kinski, he went to America and Americans don't know what he did before that. One film that apparently became extremely famous was "Grizzly Man" and it was a success with both critics and box office as we find out and back then he got invited to several talk shows to discuss the movie. But it is also a very tragic release for sure if you look at the fate(s) of the protagonist(s). The moment when we see Herzog listen to the audio of the crucial attack and the woman sitting opposite him crying and Herzog saying that she must never listen to this tape was very heartbreaking. One of many old-footage scenes from this documentary. Haunting to watch. I knew about the background that Herzog listened to the tape that included the moment when Treadwell was mauled, but I did not know he got recorded when doing so. Something new for me as well. I liked all the old moments in here really and could mention so many more. Herzog's ski-jumping fascination I second as well and it was interesting to find out that young Werner apparently liked to practice this too as a child. I mean he comes from Bavaria (south of Germany), so he has more of a connection with the Alps than many others, but I still did not know, even if I knew he made this film about Steiner. Also funny to see Herzog there at the little hill and how he reacts to these boys jumping down there when they go far. Or go not so far. Another favorite scene for me here was the one that brought Herzog back to a film he shot over half a century ago. He said that it was the first time for him to be there again after such a long time and I am of course talking about the scene in Spain there from "Even Dwarfs Started Small" with the laughing dwarf. Today he would get massive backlash for calling them dwarfs, but I will get to that later. It was really nice to watch how he recognizes the sound of the wind and leaves there again.

We also see a bit of a workshop in which Herzog was mentoring aspiring filmmakers, but that was not too memorable. I still liked his comment about how they need to emancipate themselves from him. Now, there is also some talk here about Herzog in Germany and I am glad this was included. Obviously, they could not be too explicit, but it is extremely obvious that Germany has never really treated Herzog the way it should have in terms of how they made it difficult for him to shoot films the way he wants and also to have them released the way he wants. So he went to America and there he got the praise and recognition he deserves. People just loved his voice too and we see how he is a voice actor on "The Simpsons", "Penguins of Madagascar" and I think it was "Futurama". Very cool. Wenders nailed it with his comment on what Herzog as a German brought to America. As for the lacking recognition, the best example I just came across the other day when one very confused woman made an introduction to Herzog's "Nosferatu" and talked about "Der ewige Jude" in the same context and also how Herzog's film discriminates against certain people. Absolutely embarrassing. The sad thing is this person even has a pretty prestigious position at the German Film Museum, so again a fairly prestigious house, but still they are not afraid to insult an icon like Herzog when at the same time they have an exhibition about him and also when at the same time he came from America literally to this place to give them the honors and talk a bit about his films. But the moment he is gone, the leeches don't care and just follow the c(o)urse of political correctness. The death of all art in the long run. That is another story though. This documentary here deserves a perfect rating. I have to dig deep for flaws. Maybe the music was too loud and boastful at times, which surprises me given the director's other works. Other than that, a 100% must-see. Don't miss out.