Totally Pretentious #19. Fitzcarraldo (1982): The Colonial German Man and His Opera of Wickedness

In today’s episode, David and Shaun take a good look at Werner Herzog’s Fitzcarraldo (1982). Before digging into the film, they discuss the controversy surrounding lead actor, Klaus Kinski, including relatively recent revelations about his abuse of his daughters and his relationship with other actors and Werner Herzog. From there, they look into the film’s themes of colonialism and indigenous betrayal, the role of opera in the narrative, the film’s portrayal of relationships and masculinity, and much more. Warning: This episode includes discussion of sexual assault and other abuse committed by Kinski. Prepare yourselves for another foray into cinematic greatness. Enjoy the episode! Show Notes: Today’s Movie: Fitzcarraldo (1982; dir. Werner Herzog) Resources: Fitzcarraldo (Wikipedia) Klaus Kinski (Wikipedia) Conquest of the Useless: Reflections from the Making of Fitzcarraldo by Werner Herzog Werner Herzog: Interviews by Eric Ames A Companion to Werner Herzog edited by Brad Prager The Cinema of Werner Herzog: Aesthetic Ecstasy and Truth by Brad Prager Our Next Movie: Hausu (a.k.a. House. 1977; dir. Nobuhiko Ôbayashi). The film is available at these locations: Amazon Prime ($3.99 to rent / $14.99 to buy) Vudu ($2.99 to rent / $14.99 to buy) iTunes ($3.99 to rent / $14.99 to buy) Feel free to shoot us an email at skiffyandfanty [at] gmail [dot] com! You can also leave a comment on our website. Our intro/outro music comes from “Sundancer” by Wild Shores. Licensed under Creative Commons: Attribution 4.0