Herzog has been making great documentaries for years now, so it’s no wonder that Grizzly Man is excellent. It is, however, one of his very best non-fiction films, and not simply because it is one of his most accessible. Indeed, it is among the most generous documentaries I have ever seen — to its subject and its audience. It allows for both the comedy and pathos to emerge from Timothy Treadwell’s bizarre, hypnotic soliloquies, as it balances both the brutality and cuteness of nature.
And almost offhandedly, it is also very much a filmmaker’s film, with its close attention to the minute ontology of the image and the histrionics of everyday life. At a time when one is inclined to question the future and worth of cinema, it is nothing short of thrilling to witness Herzog’s passionate empathy for his subject’s desire to change the world (and himself) through film.
by Leo Goldsmith | Source: Lion’s Gate 35mm print
18 Aug 2005 10:56 PM | Submit Comment
