Another awe inspiring movie about dreamers from the veritably insane Werner Herzog.

Once again, Kinski is obsessed in the jungle, and--once again--we're glad Herzog was there to take us on this strange journey with both of them. Drags a bit toward the end, though.

Herzog knows how to document, and Kinski knows how to portray. That's all that needs to be said.

I honestly don't have the words to describe what I felt while watching this. One thing is true, I'll never ever forget it.

Massively ambitious film (the production of the film being even more so than the story it's actually based on!), but in the end it all feels like it was just to please a narcissist. At least the narcissist was Klau Kinski.

The ending is so fucked. He didn't give a shit about the rubber. He's happy.

It's not quite as good as Aguirre, but not much of anything is.

Besides being an incredible feat of engineering, organisation and man-management, Herzog's film captures something profound about the human condition and the futility of man's endeavours. It is packed with romantic notions but shoots them in the face; it celebrates art but embeds it within squalor. It's like an opera in itself, with every emotion to the max. Kinski's performance is spellbinding. This film is quite simply over the top - in more ways than one! How on earth did Herzog do it?

Ambitiously awesome with a great story and character. The cinematography is gorgeous and the epic level is through the roof.

Comparisons with 'Aguirre' are unavoidable here, and it falls short, but what it does is still etched in the mind. The difference here is that Herzog, whilst embodying the bizarre and the illusions of grandeur of mankind, adds some optimism and bombast (that is, if you believe that the ending was 'real' and not a death-bed dream state). In doing so, he loses some of his poignancy, but only just... the scenes here are still as beautiful and full of vision as ever.

I'm still trying to figure out if this was really about the semi-fictional Fitzcarraldo getting a boat up a mountain, or if it was about HERZOG getting that boat up the mountain. I suspect the latter. This was a bizarre viewing experience, blending reality and fiction.

Herzog is the creative mind behind this film, but not only does he have the ambition and balls to achieve the impossible, he actually makes it work. By far the perfect embodiment of Herzog himself, "Fitzcarraldo" is as shocking as it is bewitching. Haunting images of the Peruvian jungle and Kinski's performance deserve some praise aswell. Some parts were a bit slow and unnecessary but I still highly recommend the film.

I'll admit, I found the stories of the making of the film more fascinating than the film itself, which feels like a lesser remake of Aguirre. That said, it's still potent and often dream-like. I think it's just the opening that feels a bit dull. I laughed a lot at Kinski pulling the bell manically, though.

Although the first half drags just a bit, the second half is some of the most amazing stuff ever put on film. The boat-over-mountain section is unlike anything I've ever seen, and really exemplifies Herzog's unflinching commitment to the medium and to his own visions. Quite interesting.

The best boat-moving over mountain movie ever.

My favorite Herzog and Kinski movie.

600

Kinski's character is fantastic and overly ambitious yet somewhat modest on screen. It's beautifully shot and some of the images of the boat going over the mountain will stick with me forever. I don't really think the start is as slow as people say. It's ambitious, thrilling and a great film - never have I felt so depressed for not having the desire to push a boat over a mountain.

I just cannot relate to that picture. I enjoyed Aguirre, but this movie is boring as hell. Maybe I need to review it some time. You clearly notice that this picture has no intention as Herzog himself admitted.

It demands a lot of patience, but the latter segment is terrific and often suspenseful.

Splendid film, the backdrop of the Amazon is incredibly distracting but it adds to the beauty of the cinematography and Herzog's film as a whole. Once again, Kinski delivers a brilliant performance. Great film, even though I was expecting something a little better. The final sequence though, the opera on the boat - will forever be in my mind. The music, beautiful. The imagery, spectacular. The smile on Kinski's face, priceless.

The final scene of Fitzcarraldo deserves a place among the great final scenes, and its protagonist, among the great characters. Fitzcarraldo is ambitious, enthralling, and strangely uplifting, offering perspectives on art and passions that few other filmmakers have explored.