I haven’t seen enough of them but of those I have seen, it would be “Stroszek.”
1. Aguirre: The Wrath of God
2. Fitzcarraldo
3. Nosferatu
4. My Best Friend <3
To those of you who read French:
Herzog has a great, long interview in this month’s issue of Cahiers du Cinéma (in connection with the lifetime retrospective of his work over the next 2 months at the Pompidou Center in Paris).
In it he deals with his up-coming Hollywood film with Nick Cage, and many other topics.
To all you Cage loathers: be grateful to him, he is the one who demanded that Herzog be given the director’s chair on this one.
At the very least the man has taste!
I am rather suspicious of ‘best of’ lists, since I’m not quite sure what such statements intend. What I can say is that Herzog is one of the directors who made me love film, also that I was dissapointed with ‘Fitzcarraldo’. It might have been a better film had Jason Robards played the lead role – who can say? Anyway in my view it compares poorly with the other films that Herzog and Kinski made together.
Has to be Aguirre: The Wrath Of God. It’s something else altogether!
It’s always been a toss up for me between Stroszek and Fata Morgana. I don’t think I could ever make a definitive choice, I love them both so much…
I’ve seen only Fata Morgana, Aguirre, Enigma of Hauser, and Fitzcaraldo, (albeit the final three several times each). I’ve tried to get through my DVD copy of Nosferatu a couple of times, but to no avail, and I’m saving Woyzeck and Stroszek for when I learn how to pronounce them.
Of those I’ve seen, I just have to go with Aguirre; it has the mesmeric qualities of Fata, and similar narrative qualities to Fitz, so in my mind combines what I love about them both. Plus, while I love the films which came afterwards, I find a certain feeling of discovery on Herzog’s part that comes through in the filming of Aguirre. And that closing tracking shot—visually and thematically—is one of my favorite images in all of color cinema.
Of course, all that said, only a fool could fail to love My Best Fiend—whether a single word he says is true or not.
aguirre NO DOUBT
mmmm I still need to watch some other Herzog movies. I wouldn’t dare choose just one Herzog movie. So these are my favorites (in no order)
Fata Morgana
Aguirre
Even Dwarfes Started small
How much Wood Would a Woodchuck Chuck
Stroszek
Cobra Verde
No need for me to mention the obvious favorites – AGUIRRE and all, they’re masterpieces. My personal picks include NOSFERATU, WOYZECK, LITTLE DIETER WANTS TO FLY, his work with Les Blank and above all, the visually stunning COBRA VERDE, esp. with that unforgettable scene on the beach in the final minutes of the film. ( Hey, guys, is this on DVD? I have a pricey Japanese import, decent widescreen but the sound quality is poor. Help me out…)
For me Herzog is a cinematic polymath and I find his films, “documentaries” and operatic excursions mesmerising. Herzog’s deadpan personality and eclectic tastes are evoked in much of his work and there are many films etc that I incorporate in my movie canon. For instance THE WILD BLUE YONDER is an awesome creation that pitches a washed out alien in a western society plagued by rampant consumerism, social isolation and intellectual mediocrity. The poetic imagery is awesome, particularly the images of NASA astronauts and the underwater world of a frozen "alien’ planet. GESUALDO is another tour de force and brings to life an obscure sixteenth-century composer who did not always have just music on his mind! Where does Herzog find this superb material.
Nosferatu – a transcendent, poetic masterpiece. Next: Aguirre
THE GREAT ECSTASY OF THE WOODCARVER STEINER is right up there with AGUIRRE and out on the first volume of shorts from New Yorker Video.
It is hard to pick a favourite Herzog film, for he puts his entire being into each yet Strozek, Aguirre and Wings of Hope stand as favourites of Herzog’s films. I have to agree with others also, Herzog’s audio commentary is not to be missed.
“Every Man for himself and God against all” is his greatest film
For me it’s got to be “Fitzcarraldo”
I love Strozek for its spontaneity. Herzog wrote it in 3 days and captured the spirit of North-Midwestern as if he had studied it for years.
Runners up: “Aguirre” and “Encounters at the End of the World” (the penguins will teach you the great truths of humanity)
Stroszek and Fitzcarraldo
… aka The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser -
Nosferatu the Vampyre
Fitzcarraldo
All unforgettable and brilliantly executed. Did NOT care fo Even Dwarves…
‘Heart of Glass’ (1976)
I love him, but I have not yet seen all his films.
‘Aguirre’ and ‘Fitzcarraldo’ are masterpieces by any stretch; madness in front of, and behind the camera. No one else could have done them.
I don’t think of his ‘documentaries’ as such; more I think of them as springboards for his views and philosophies. Having just seen ‘Encounters at the End of the World’, yes there is a ‘straight story’ but there is also his ‘riffing’ like a musician on top of the material with his narration. Gorgeous stuff, once seen, not to be forgotten.
Stroszek and The Great Ecstasy of the Sculptor Steiner. Of course Fitzcarraldo and Aguirre.
Someone asked if #2 Cobra Verde was on DVD… its on one of the Anchor Bay boxed sets – the Herzog/Kinski one.
I can’t wait for Bad Lieutenant!!!
Grizzly Man is the only one by him I’ve seen. Most intriguing subject in a documentary I have seen.
I sort of envy you, Jim W. You get to experience Herzog’s work completely fresh. I’m not sure which I’d suggest you beign with. Grizzly Man almost doesn’t count; you have to go back to his German New Wave days.
Stroszek
Little Dieter needs to fly
Lessons of darkness
El Enigma de Gaspar Hauser, y Aguirre
STROSZEK (most depressing film ever)
LITTLE DIETER NEEDS TO FLY
FITZCARRALDO
WOYCZEK
Woyzeck
Stroszek
Aguirre
Fitzcarraldo
Herz aus Glas
Evan
“Little Dieter Needs to Fly” and “Lessons of Darkness” make a nice pair of favorites. One Gives me faith in man and the other takes it away.