What to make of a travelogue on a nearly empty landscape filled in by one of the most eclectic artists of our time. One certainly should take no expectations entering the theatre before viewing this. But when early on Werner Herzog makes the fatalistic pronouncement, 'We will be regulated,' watch out.
And be assured that a film done by a provocative auteur along with effectively his crew of one bankrolled by interesting sources of money is not going to be something for Travel Channel aficionados. It is far, far more.
Though science is at the center of most quests on the continent, Herzog focuses much of the film on the interesting souls who have fallen to the bottom of the world to help out. Passing by their purpose in the enterprise, the director concentrates on a series of humorous poems on who they are and how they got there. Interspersing this with some of the startling imagery NSF and the Discover Channel sent him down there to get leads to this being one of the most engaging documentaries you will ever see.
But that is what you get when you send a guy like Herzog on a mission. This is best shown in a hilarious moment when he asks questions of the penguin researcher who would rather watch penguins than talk to people. While prying answers from this shy soul, Herzog gets a lead on observable madness in penguins. This segues to a wonderful sequence on the phenomena of some of the birds suddenly running off to the inner nothingness of the continent and their demise, the reasons likely left to the understanding of the lemmings.
Science catches up at the end, however, with discourses on active super volcano researchers and those in the quest to capture neutrino activity. On the one hand you have guys contemplating the inevitable eruption of a monster three times the size of the one under Yellowstone that might end our time on Earth. On the other you have those trying to understand a particulate that may represent the echo of the Big Bang and offer the key component in our understanding of time and other prescient things.
At closure the film offers that our next great race may be to discover a far deeper understanding of the universe before our species implodes to the relics we have left in those endless Antarctic ice caves, deferring to future intelligence, if any, to determine whether our quest was worthwhile.
The images of a last stand for humanity trying to understand itself before the Regulator steps in should put everyone that sees this majestic film into a place of provocative speculation. Only an adventurous, risk taking filmmaker like Herzog would even attempt this let alone pull it off with such verve.
And be assured that a film done by a provocative auteur along with effectively his crew of one bankrolled by interesting sources of money is not going to be something for Travel Channel aficionados. It is far, far more.
Though science is at the center of most quests on the continent, Herzog focuses much of the film on the interesting souls who have fallen to the bottom of the world to help out. Passing by their purpose in the enterprise, the director concentrates on a series of humorous poems on who they are and how they got there. Interspersing this with some of the startling imagery NSF and the Discover Channel sent him down there to get leads to this being one of the most engaging documentaries you will ever see.
But that is what you get when you send a guy like Herzog on a mission. This is best shown in a hilarious moment when he asks questions of the penguin researcher who would rather watch penguins than talk to people. While prying answers from this shy soul, Herzog gets a lead on observable madness in penguins. This segues to a wonderful sequence on the phenomena of some of the birds suddenly running off to the inner nothingness of the continent and their demise, the reasons likely left to the understanding of the lemmings.
Science catches up at the end, however, with discourses on active super volcano researchers and those in the quest to capture neutrino activity. On the one hand you have guys contemplating the inevitable eruption of a monster three times the size of the one under Yellowstone that might end our time on Earth. On the other you have those trying to understand a particulate that may represent the echo of the Big Bang and offer the key component in our understanding of time and other prescient things.
At closure the film offers that our next great race may be to discover a far deeper understanding of the universe before our species implodes to the relics we have left in those endless Antarctic ice caves, deferring to future intelligence, if any, to determine whether our quest was worthwhile.
The images of a last stand for humanity trying to understand itself before the Regulator steps in should put everyone that sees this majestic film into a place of provocative speculation. Only an adventurous, risk taking filmmaker like Herzog would even attempt this let alone pull it off with such verve.