Achieving a dream can often be daunting, difficult and littered with failure. The travails that a human can go through in order to achieve their dream can seem impossible or just plain awe inspiring. In the case of the film Fitzcarraldo, it is both. Werner Herzog set out to build a film around the concept of dragging a 340 ton ship over a mountain. It is about the strength of the human spirit and how even the craziest of dreams are within reach, no matter how far that reach may be.
The film is the tale of an eccentric man determined to build an opera house deep in the Peruvian jungle. His name is Brian Sweeney Fitzgerald or as the Peruvians call him, Fitzcarraldo(Klaus Kinski). You could label him a businessman, but he has no interest in business as anything other than a means to get enough money to achieve his real goal. He's surrounded by a sea of bourgeois naysayers and greedy men. They think of him as out of his mind, but they don't mind watching him fail either. Luckily he has the support of the lovely and supportive Molly(Claudia Cardinale), the owner of a brothel in which the rubber barons frivolously spend their money. Her belief in him materializes when she gives him money to buy land and a steam boat in order to reach the rubber trees in which he will make his fortune. The only problem is that the rubber trees on his land are inaccessible due to the streams and rapids of the rivers. Fitzcarraldo sets out on his boat along with his crew to somehow figure out a way to do what is thought of as impossible by many of the rubber tycoons in the area.
With his all-white suit and panama hat, Fitzcarraldo embarks on a great journey down the river. We see along the way his failed cross-continental railway, his stubborn vision and his love of opera music. In an incredibly poignant moment, Fitzcarraldo decides to take out his gramophone and play music from his favorite opera singer, Enrico Caruso, as a response to the ominous drumming by the dangerous natives lurking behind the trees onshore. These natives have been known to be extremely violent against outsiders. The natives along with the forces of nature are against him, but he is a man of endurance. The film instantly becomes unforgettable when he decides that he is going to attempt to drag his 340 ton boat across a mountain and into the river parallel to the one they're on.
Werner Herzog decided not to use special effects to achieve his goal of getting the boat over the mountain. He, like his character, decided to do it for real. This comes across as you're watching this unreal feat in the movie. You're never not aware of the making of the film when you're watching this unfold. You wonder just how it was done. This takes you out of the film, but also strengthens it and makes it an unforgettable experience. Werner Herzog is a director with a bold vision and the events of the movie directly mirror Herzog's production and his viewpoint towards the making of movies. In a way, it becomes essential to know at least some of Herzog's history and a little of his filmography. That's not hard as he's not only an essential filmmaker but a man you can read about for hours and never get bored. This is a man who ate his shoe on camera after losing a bet. A man that continued doing an interview despite being punctured and bleeding from an air rifle bullet lodged in his abdomen. His response, "It is not a significant bullet." A man who decided to do this movie 500 miles outside of civilization and then drag a 340 ton boat across a mountain!
The film has some great performances, especially Klaus Kinski. An actor that no one will ever claim lacked intensity on the screen. He gives Fitzcarraldo a depth that few actors could have. He's strength, passion, madness and eccentricity all gelling to make a compelling and empathetic character. The other performance of note is that of Claudia Cardinale, one of the greatest beauties to ever be committed to celluloid. She isn't given much screen time, but in the scenes she has, she is the picture of grace and understanding. Her nuanced performance lends so much to the relationship she shares with Fitzcarraldo. It's a character of compassion, independence, strength and support. She is the woman that every man only hopes to come along. One that supports and encourages your dreams while being her own woman. It is one of the many great roles that Claudia would play throughout her career. Despite her striking beauty, she was able to play progressive roles in great movies. The rest of the cast is fleshed out by great character actors and the natives of the area where the movie was shot.
Fitzcarraldo is a quintessential film and a classic. It is a movie of vision and heart. It's of the obstacles we face in life and our adversity over them. It is of love, of passion and of the human spirit. The human spirit which endures failure, doubt and the elements of nature and human nature. It's a film crafted with hard work and perseverance and especially with a labor of love. Take your inspiration and roll with it through the punches and through the hardships. In the end you'll come out better whether you've achieved your goals or not, for you will never be haunted by the...what if?
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