Fitzcarraldo starring Klaus Kinski,

Claudia Cardinale, José Lewgoy,

Miguel Ángel Fuentes, Paul Hittscher

A True Classic Of World Cinema

Brian Sweeney Fitzgerald (Klaus Kinski), known as Fitzcarraldo to the
native Peruvians, is an avid opera lover and rubber baron who dreams of
building an opera house in the Peruvian jungle. To accomplish this, he
plans to reach an isolated patch of rubber trees and make his fortune. But
these trees are not directly accessible by river because of dangerous
rapids, so Fitzcarraldo runs his ship as close as possible via an alternate
river and then enlists the aid of the native Peruvians to drag his ship over a
mountain to the desired area. However, the natives seem to have their
own agenda in so mysteriously acceding to Fitzcarraldos wishes. The
results manage to both mock and affirm the dreams of determined figures
like Fitzcarraldo, making absurdity out of the stuff of human endeavor
without negating the beauty of that effort. There is hardly a more awe-
inspiring or arresting image than that of Fitzcarraldos ship pulling itself up
the mountain with cables and pulleys, or of the ship resting in mid-ascent

as seen through the thick morning fog of the jungle. The tortured
production history of Werner Herzogs Fitzcarraldo (ably recorded in Les
Blanks documentary Burden of Dreams) tends to take the spotlight away
from this deeply mesmerizing film. And thats unfortunate, because the film
itself is even more fascinating than the trials and tribulations, amazing
though they might be, that led to its being made. Part of the problem is the
films deliberate, some might say ponderous, pace, which invites the viewer
to experience the slow immersion into the jungle that Fitzcarraldo and
company experience. Herzog did something similar in Aguirre, the Wrath
of God, sometimes aiming his camera at the river rapids for extended
periods of time, with hypnotic results. This could never happen in a
Hollywood film, and it should be treasured. --Jim Gay

Herzog returns to the beautiful yet merciless Amazonian jungles and
creates a film of epic proportions. In this turn of the century tale the
Amazon beckons and Brian Sweeney Fitzacarraldo answers its call.
Fitzcarraldo has a dream to build a great opera house and his eccentric
nature will not allow that dream to go unfulfilled. After failed attempts to
build a Peruvian railroad line, he then directs his efforts to the production of
ice. Scoffed by the local rubber barons who tag Fitzcarraldo as the
conquistador of the useless, his beautiful girlfriend Molly convinces him the
only way he can gain the capital needed to bring his dream to fruition is to
harvest rubber himself. Despite the scarcity of available land, the lack of
reliable labor, and the threat of native indians, Fitzcarraldo accepts the
daunting challenge and our story begins.

Herzog painfully spared no expense to create authenticity and his results
are among the greatest of engineering feats ever achieved on filmed. The
viewer cant help but mar vel at his efforts and the suspense created. This
monumental epic boasts wonderful performances, amazing locations, and
a gripping storyline that stays with the audience long after viewing. A true
classic of world cinema.

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