Paul Newman

You can’t put the words iconic and movie star in the same sentence without immediately thinking of the legendary Paul Newman. For nearly six decades, Newman came alive on screen as one of the world’s most recognizable personas. Responsible for many of the great movie characters of all time, Newman had an impeccable way of keeping our attention.

A ten time Oscar nominee, and winner for The Color of Money, Newman’s recent death prompts any film fan to ask: what was your favorite Newman?

While I am a great admirer of Newman’s, I haven’t nearly seen his entire body of work. So here I present you with the Newman roles that grabbed me. Here’s to the unprecedented Paul Newman.

The Hustler (1961)
Eddie Felson
A great introduction to stardom, Newman makes his presence known as an actor with a force to be reckoned with. Many critics consider this his best work.


Cool Hand Luke (1967)
Luke Jackson
One of my favorite films of all time, Newman’s timeless work as an imprisoned ex-war hero is one of the definitive film performances in the cinema’s history. I can watch this movie over and over, from the fated boxing match with George Kennedy, to the encouraging moment when he leads the other prisoners to pave the road all too quickly, to the egg eating contest; Newman’s Luke has never failed to communicate with audiences.

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
Butch Cassidy
Newman has a great time with his younger co-star Robert Redford in a rousing true story about the famous outlaws. Newman makes his role fun, searing and iconic.

The Sting (1973)
Henry Gondorff
Back with his Butch Cassidy director and co-star, Newman and Redford blaze up with screen in this best picture winner. Through all the double crosses, you may not know if you can trust Newman, but you’ll damn sure have a fun time trying.

The Verdict (1982)
Frank Galvin
Newman began to accept his aging features when he took the ballsy role of an alcoholic lawyer who finally grows a conscience. Newman uses David Mamet’s pulsating script to deliver one of his best performances.

The Color of Money (1986)
Fast Eddie Felson
Reprising his Hustler role in Martin Scorsese’s fun pool hall flick, Newman’s performance finally got Newman the Oscar, which most regard as an overdue gift. Regardless, the film is encouraging and entertaining.

The Hudsucker Proxy (1994)
Sidney J. Mussburger
Fitting surprising well into the Coen brothers’ zany comic family, Newman, as a high-powered industry mogul, showed us his funny side to amusing results.

Road to Perdition (2002)
John Rooney
Newman delivered some of his best work as an ailing mafia boss in Sam Mendes’ haunting film. His scenes with Tom Hanks, in particular his last one, proved that the old man still had it.

Elegy

Watching Ben Kingsley in Elegy is watching a master having a little fun. Kingsley dives head first into the role of David Kepesh, a successful writer who now teaches at Columbia. David has a habit of falling for his much younger students, so it’s no surprise when he becomes enraptured with the elegant Consuela (Penelope Cruz).

Soon, the two are engaged in a passionate romance that David (through his ironically cynical narration) feels is doomed. It’s simple: he’s too old… or she’s too young. But either way, it is going to have to end. Consuela feels differently, she’s in love and having fun, age is hardily a factor for her.

The beauty of Elegy is how director Isabel Coixet makes you feel for this immature, horny, old man. Because David is played by Ben Kingsley, it’s hard not to like him, even if he is a bit of a prick. For instance, David can’t seem to tell his frequent bedroom partner (a fiery Patricia Clarkson) about Consuela, he’s so afraid of the truth, afraid to be alone.

Dennis Hopper adds a nice touch as David’s best friend with a brutally “realistic” view on life. But it’s Cruz and Kingsley who bring everything to the table. As she did in Vicky Christina Barcelona, Cruz is proving that she can hold her own against some heavy acting players.

Elegy is a simple, yet delightfully crafted film. I wasn’t quite sure where the story was taking me, but I was glad when it got there. B+

Burn After Reading

For those that loved No Country for Old Men and are excited to see what those brilliant Coen brothers have in store for us, you may need to go rent instead.

Burn After Reading is the Coen’s returning to their familiar form. Much in the way of Raising Arizona, The Big Lebowski, O Brother, Where Art Thou? and Intolerable Cruelty, the Coen’s deliver yet another tall tale about stupid people doing stupid things.

This time we have a recently laid off CIA man (John Malkovich) whose snotty wife (Tilda Swinton) wants a divorce to be with her dimwitted lover (George Clooney). But somehow some of Malkovich’s secret CIA files are found by an over caffeinated gym worker (Brad Pitt) who shares his plot for blackmail with his BFF (Frances McDormand) and well, you get the idea.

Not to concern ourselves with plot, which lets admit, the Coen’s can get a little ahead of themselves with, lets instead focus on the performances. Brad Pitt, fresh off his miraculous performances in Babel and The Assassination of Jesse James, is a revelation. As Chad, Pitt jumps in head first, mocking his celebrity status and giving a completely balls-out performance as a moron with a plan. Chad wears his blonde hair high in the air, lip syncs to whatever is blasting on his iPod and comes up with idea after ludicrous idea.

From the first moment Pitt was onscreen, I was hysterical. He delivers every line with comic zeal, an incredible performance that could earn him a nomination.

Pitt is backed by the goofy Clooney who now completes his “idiot” trilogy with the Coen’s after O Brother and Intolerable Cruelty. McDormand (aka Mrs. Joel Coen) has a lot of fun filling Chad’s head with bad ideas. Swinton is devilishly good, using that same proper arrogance that got her in Oscar for Michael Clayton.

But if anyone can match Pitt, it’s the wacky Malkovich. This is his best work since he played himself in Being John Malkovich. Watch his first scene, as he slowly becomes more and more offended by the accusation that he has a drinking problem.

Burn After Reading is completely enjoyable, but those expecting No Country or Fargo should look elsewhere. The film may bite off a little more than it can chew and it wraps things up a little too neatly, but oh well, it’s fun. I’ll give anyone $10 if they don’t burst out laughing when they see what Clooney’s character has been making in his basement. B+

Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Most of Woody Allen’s characters talk in a mad-hysteria of banter. They speak fast and furious, conversing as though they have memorized the dictionary and the thesaurus. It’s common knowledge that you either love Woody Allen or you hate him. I used to be in the latter group, but I’m starting to come around.

Vicky Cristina Barcelona is Allen’s new European-set film. After Match Point and Cassandra’s Dream, Allen is making a wise decision to step away from his constant Manhattan setting. By getting out of the city, Allen presents wondrous landscapes of places and people that intrigue us.

Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson) are best friends spending the rest of their summer in the sexy hills of Barcelona. They stay with Vicky’s relative (Patricia Clarkson) and soon meet a dashing artist, Juan (Javier Bardem) who invites them for a weekend away for great wine, good food and passionate love making.

Vicky, the uptight, soon to be wed to a rich, pompous Wall Street guy, is repulsed by the offer. Cristina, on the other hand, is wildly turned on. They accept Juan’s proposal and soon a whimsical love triangle develops. But it isn’t until Juan’s semi-psychotic ex-wife (an incredible Penelope Cruz) comes in, that the film really takes off.

Bardem and Cruz (who are dating in real life) engage in fantastically believable arguments that send sparks flying. Watching Cruz break Bardem down by berated him in Spanish is great, delicious fun. Bardem, in a complete 180-transformation from his No Country for Old Men role, really sinks his teeth into this juicy role of a Spanish bravado.

Like other Allen characters, most of these have no idea what they want. They pretend that they don’t care, or that they care too much, but usually, they make bad decisions and start to question everything. No one does this better than Rebecca Hall. You may remember her from The Prestige as Christian Bale’s tortured wife, but as Vicky, she is incredible. I believed her guilt, passion, desire and angst more than anyone else. I’d give her a nomination hands down.

So, if you’re an Allen fan, then check this out. If not, go rent Hannah and Her Sisters, or Annie Hall, or hell, even Match Point. A-

Righteous Kill

It’s sad to say, but putting two of the greatest actors of all time together on screen does not necessarily give you a good film. Jon Avnet’s new movie is one of the most heartbreaking experiences I’ve had at the cinema this year. Not because Righteous Kill is emotionally complex, God no. It’s because about a third of the way into it, you know that names like Pacino and De Niro can’t save it.

Plot? Umm. Pacino and De Niro are 30 year partnered cops who are trying to catch a vigilante that is killing off scum in New York. If you’ve seen the preview, you know that most clues point to De Niro as the culprit. And if you see 20 minutes of the movie, you’ll know how it is going to end. But of course, the filmmakers try to deliver a grand surprise that just falls completely flat.

The last (and only other movie) these two have shared screen time together was Michael Mann’s incomparable Heat. After Righteous Kill was finished I had already forgotten most of the film, but I got to thinking: what was their last great movie.

To define “great” along Pacino and De Niro is to put the word in a whole other category. Honestly, does acting getting any better than De Niro’s Travis Bickle or Jake La Motta? How about Pacino’s Michael Corleone or Sonny from Dog Day Afternoon? I think not.

In fact, many consider Heat to be both actors’ last great performance. But there are exceptions. Take De Niro in Sleepers or even Wag the Dog, Pacino in The Insider, Insomina and Angels in America for instance. But, for the most part, neither actor has delivered anything substantial within the last decade.

Maybe it’s unfair to compare their work now from their hey-day in the ‘70s. They were young and relentless. Their older now and time has weathered them both.

Little can be said for Righteous Kill, no excuses can make up for this, but I’m still waiting for that one shock performance that sends me back to the days when "Attica!" is yelled in the streets, or the words, "You talkin' to me?" send chills down my spine. D-

Disaster Movie

From the guys that wrote the Scary Movies and directed other spoofs like Date Movie, Epic Movie and Meet the Spartans comes their take on the disaster genre.

Who cares. These movies are a complete farce that bares not a thread of substantial content. But they are cheap to make and they usually turn a profit. So, as long as they keep making a buck, we’re going to be getting more of them.

Disaster Movie is currently rated as the worst movie of all time on IMDB, enough said. This movie is simply… disastrous. F

Hamlet 2

The faux-commercials that open Hamlet 2 are equally as funny as the fake trailers before Tropic Thunder, and that is saying a lot.

Steve Coogan, that zany Brit best known as the in-over-his-head director in Tropic Thunder plays Dana Marschz, a terrible actor and even worse drama teacher at a quaint Tucson high school. Dana has dreams of creating something more substantial than the boring, unoriginal plays he conducts with his only two actors. Trying to gain the approval of a little pip-squeak journalist, Dana comes up with his most far fetched idea yet: a sequel to Hamlet.

Doesn’t everyone die in Hamlet? No problem, he has a time machine. You want to bring Jesus into the mix? No biggie, songs like “Rock Me Sexy Jesus” help to add context.

Hamlet 2 may feel a little unbalanced at times, but the laughs, for the most part, are totally genuine. Catherine Keener, Amy Poehler and Elizabeth Shue (playing herself) are all consistent with their jokes. But it’s Coogan that steals the show. What we’re left with is a fast-moving, catchy-as-all-hell finale that will have you belting out, “rock me sexy Jesus.” Inappropriate or not, who cares, it’s all wicked fun. B

Man on Wire

Man on Wire, a beautiful, new documentary, is a film that examines the limitless passion that some men feel. Frenchman Philippe Petit was fascinated with wire walking since he was young. Stringing up a make-shift wire in a field, he practiced relentlessly to master his craft.

When he was young, he saw a picture of the World Trade Centers under construction. He realized that they were not going to be far apart, and so began his dream. Practicing on structures like the Notre Dame, Petit spent his life working up to the big payoff.

Like the films of Errol Morris, Man on Wire is told using interviews, old footage and reenactments. The funny, dynamic crew talks about how they were stupid enough to even consider stringing up a wire between the two towers. During the interviews, the film cuts between the actual job itself and the leading up to the job.

With a great deal of luck, Petit and his grew managed to get to the top of the towers. They spent the night dragging the wire between the two, so come morning, Petit could walk on top of the world.

Some of the most breathtaking shots I have ever seen are the pictures of Petit, slowly making his way across the wire. His face one of blankless determination. It is awe inspiring to see a man live out his life goal right before your eyes. Director James Marsh does a very smart thing by letting these images speak for themselves. No zany narration from Petit needed. We know his passion, we feel his desire.

The images in this film represent so much more than what they appear. It’s impossible not to shed a tear in nostalgia, watching this loony man walk where it is no longer possible. In fact, Man on Wire ranks with Antwone Fisher as being one of the most inspirational films I’ve ever seen. When the credits began and the lights came up, not a single person in the audience moved or spoke. We were all holding onto the magic of the film. If you’re lucky, that infectious magic will stay with you long after you leave. A+

Transsiberian

Transsiberian is on of those great hole-in-the-wall thrillers. It’s a movie you likely haven’t heard of, but when sought out, it delivers way beyond your expectations.

The film explores one of our great American fears: a vacation gone wrong. Co-writer/director Brad Anderson takes the used plot of an innocent couple in danger and puts several refreshing twists on it.

The couple in question is Woody Harrelson (getting a career resurge after North Country and No Country for Old Men) and Emily Mortimer (one of the best working actresses right now), who have just finished up a volunteering project for their church in China and decide to take the Trans-Siberian railroad to Russia, then fly home. They’re roomed with a creepy couple, who we soon start to be weary about.

Needless to say, our heroes are thrown into some pretty dramatic circumstances, which include a shifty police officer played with steely remorse by an excellent Ben Kingsley.

Transsiberian is a thriller that delivers one thrill after another. It kept me on edge and guessing the entire time. Mortimer, so good in Match Point, Lars and the Real Girl and Redbelt, deserves an Oscar nomination for playing this character so well. Her Jessie goes through one arch after another, testing herself in ways a human being should never have to. Keep your eye on her; this British beauty is destined to be a star. A

Tropic Thunder

At first, you may not understand what the hell is going on, but pay close attention, the opening scenes to Tropic Thunder are some of the funniest screen moments you’ve seen in a while.

After our main characters are brilliantly introduced, we are thrown into an over the top action sequence being filmed for a huge Hollywood film (called Tropic Thunder). Co-writer and director Ben Stiller stars as chauvinistic, not so good actor Tugg Speedman. He’s supported by funny man Jeff Portnoy (Jack Black), and super-talented, five time Oscar winner Kirk Lazarus (a side-splitting Robert Downey Jr.).

The three are adapting the true story of Four Leaf Tayback (Nick Nolte), a Vietnam veteran who wrote a bestseller based on his time in the war. Before long, their in-over-his-head director (Steve Coogan) enlists his actors to go off in the jungle by themselves and film the movie “gorilla” style, with dozens of hidden cameras.

The actors are too dimwitted to realize that after a few minutes, they aren’t being filmed, but rather being chased by an army of heroin drug lords, who mistake the actors for the DEA. But enough with plot, lets get to the good stuff.

Tropic Thunder has been hit with a lot of controversy, mainly because of the “profane” way it talks about mentally handicapped people. The main conversation in question is when Downey Jr. explains to Stiller how you can never go “full retard” for a film role and expect to win an Oscar. The conversation is funny in and of itself, but made more so due to Downey’s hilarious antics. His character is an Australian who has dyed his skin black to portray an African American soldier, (more controversy).

The thing to keep in mind is that these offensive words are being spoken from complete morons. These are people who care only for themselves and have no hesitation to speak poorly about others. The screenplay, by Stiller, Justin Theroux and Etan Cohen, doesn’t make these speeches hip. They are making the point that if you talk this way, you really aren’t that intelligent.

In terms of content and plot, Tropic Thunder is a ridiculous film, but the beauty of it is that it knows it’s absurd. And while Downey Jr. proves that he is at the top of his game with yet another hit this summer, there is a scene stealing performance in this film from an actor who has been down and out recently. If you don’t know, then don’t ask. Just look out for that fat, bald, dancing man. You’ll be stunned. B+

The Edge of Heaven

What a hidden little wonder. Here is a movie you likely haven’t heard of, and you’re likely not to see. But it’s my job to convince you to drive ridiculous distances to an independent theatre, or remember the name when the DVD comes out, because The Edge of Heaven is the best film I’ve seen so far this year.

First released at last year’s Cannes Film Festival (it won best screenplay) and considered for Best Foreign Film at last year’s Oscars (why it wasn’t nominated, I have no idea) this Turkish-German film is a fascinating character study of inter-looping characters who may or may not ever meet.

The beauty is in the characters. A Turkish man living in Germany, teaches German studies at a college. His widowed father offers a prostitute to live with him and keep him company. The prostitute, who is fleeing from thugs, is tempted by the old man’s offer. Her daughter, a political rebel in Turkey, longs to find her mother. The daughter’s lover, a female German student, meet by chance. The lover’s mother that disproves of the radical, new Turkish girl, and round and round.

All of these characters get their moments to shine, some of them share the screen, several of them never meet, but they are all connected. The film has a narrative similar to Amores perros or Babel; three distinct stories told in order. The first story plays out, then we go back to the second story and so on. I won’t even dare reveal the titles of two of the stories, because they tell you that two different characters will die. At first, this turned me off, but then I realized the significance of it. Writer-director Fatih Akin is giving us something before the characters know it, this way, we sympathize even more.

The plot is complicated, yet elegantly executed. One character accidently kills another. Then one of them goes and tries to find another character, while that character is trying to find another. Confused? You won’t be, I’m only being vague to keep the surprises fresh.

There are several moments when the characters come within seconds or feet from one another, yet never make contact. They’ve been looking for each other for months, and never knew that they had just missed them. The Edge of Heaven is a magical masterpiece, like nothing I’ve ever seen. I’m curious to know why it has such a small release, and why it wasn’t nominated for any Oscars.

There is a scene in this film that stands out among every other poignant one. Two characters speak to one another, one of them apologizes then the other looks confused and simply says that there is nothing to be sorry about and then explains how she is going to help the other one. By this point in the film, both characters have suffered insurmountable loss, they have not gotten along for the entire film, but in this moment, there is forgiveness, there is a longing to move forward. This 30 second scene is one of the most moving moments I’ve ever seen captured on film. It is heartbreaking, hopeful and completely real. Remember this film, seeing The Edge of Heaven will do you good, it will refresh your positive motives, and affirm that there is decency in human contact. A+

Tell No One

Tell No One, a new French thriller from actor turned director Guilaume Canet, is some kind of phenomenon. The film is a perfect blend of drama, suspense, thrill, humor, action, wits, twists and turns. You’ll feel like it is too much, you’ll look desperately to expose plot holes that don’t exist, you’ll be mad that you can’t figure it out, although you aren’t supposed to right away. And then slowly, but surely, you’ll fall madly in love with how well you’ve been deceived.

It’d be a sin to reveal too much of the plot, so I’ll briefly set it up. Alex (Francois Cluzet) is a successful doctor who is steadily recovering after his wife’s murder eight years ago. Soon enough he is the main suspect in the murder of two people and someone is e-mailing him, hinting that his wife is still alive. There’s the first ten minutes, and that’s plenty.

What’s brilliant about Tell No One is how it manages to successfully fuse several genres by using a vivid screenplay, sharp direction and pitch-perfect acting. Every single performance in this film is genuine, fierce and completely absorbing. Characters are thrown at you in rapid succession, some of them not only look alike, the have the same occupation, all in the fun of throwing you off. Cluzet has a scowl that is remarkably convincing; he looks like a ‘70s Dustin Hoffman, fearless yet terrified. His wife, seen mostly is flashbacks, is played by Marie-Josee Croze (the head nurse in The Diving Bell and the Butterfly) who does a great job of imprinting her face in our heads for days.

The supporting cast delivers as well. There’s Alex’s sister, his sister’s lover (a fiery Kristen Scott Thomas), a street-thug who owes Alex, hitmen, creepily skinny female torturers, good cops, bad cops, good lawyers, bad lawyers, rich people, poor people and on and on. You may trust someone in one scene, then despise them the next.

Tell No One has suspenseful moments that rival Hitchcock, chase scenes that match the Bourne films, humor that makes you laugh out loud and a soundtrack that is uncontested. I’m a big fan of music in film, I think the right song can not only make a scene, but make a movie classic. Tell No One has its perfect song moment, when a breathtaking scene is scored to U2’s With or Without You. I’ve rarely seen a song used so expertly in a film, it’s simply stunning.

I’ve made this movie sound like a school project, like you have to devote too much attention to it, which is somewhat true. Although it is passionately entertaining, you do have to engage yourself more than most films. (But believe me, the payoff is worth it.) If you see that as a flaw, then go waste your time with Transformers. But if you want to venture out a little bit, then buy a ticket, read the subtitles and be completely blown away. This is one of the best films of the year, folks, impossible to forget. A+

American Teen

American Teen is one of the realist experiences you’ll have at the movies this year. That’s fitting for a number of reasons. One: it’s a documentary, so it should be real. Two: the five “characters” in the film are real people with real emotions and no censored expressions (i.e. The Hills, The Real World). This is far from “reality” TV. This is real life.

The film follows five teenagers through their senior year of high school in Warsaw, Indiana, a white, podunk town in middle America. The clichés are all there. There’s the popular, bitchy, backstabbing mean girl, Megan. The nice-guy, Jay Leno chinned jock, Colin. The good-looking, kind-hearted, Mitch. The self-described, nerdy band geek, Jake. And the rebellious daring, Hannah. Each character is presented acutely and fairly.

American Teen will expose your best and worst moments from high school. It’s effective because it’s accurate. I personally lived through some of the issues and experiences that the characters go through. The bad skin, the polarizing fear of being ridiculed, the lashing out to hide your real feelings, the breakups, the falling in love, the day to day battle that takes in the hellish hallways. Each character has down and out moments, and each character faces moments of extreme happiness.

The standout of the group is the dynamic Hannah Bailey, who cannot wait to escape Warsaw and explore a west coast life as a filmmaker. Even though her screen time is equal to the rest of the cast, Hannah’s buoyant personality is remarkably refreshing in a place where conservative ideals seem so etched in everyone’s head. I related to Hannah more than the other characters, I felt her pain because I experienced high school similar to how she did. But that isn’t to say you will too. Everyone who sees the film will compare themselves to one of the characters. And that’s part of American Teen’s fun… which one were you?

Director Nanette Burnstien (The Kid Stays in the Picture) shot over 1,000 hours of footage of the five teens, scrapping it down to two hours of narrative bliss. The film is fast, fierce and fun. You'll hate (or at least be frustrated with) each character at least once. You may be repulsed by Megan but sympathize with a story from her past. You may adore Mitch but despise him for what he writes in a text message.

The characters in American Teen each have an arch that most Hollywood films get wrong. It’s high school at it’s most honest. Brutally real. Inexplicably painful. Yet, at times, overwhelmingly joyful. I dare you not to ask yourself… which one were you? A

Pineapple Express

Here comes another one from Judd Apatow and company, I swear, the man must never sleep. For an Apatow film you can always count on articulate losers who get high and waste time by telling numerous dick jokes. Pineapple Express delivers up to those standards.

Directed by indie-God David Gordon Green (Snow Angels, Undertow), Pineapple Express is an action-comedy romp about process server Dale Denton (Seth Rogen, the same in every movie) and his drug dealer Saul Silver (James Franco, simply genius). Saul gets a hold of a new strand of weed, pineapple express, that he lets Dale sample. Before long, Dale has witnessed a murder by Ted Jones (Gary Cole) who also happens to be Saul’s boss. And before long Dale and Saul are being chased by Ted’s goons, all while a drug war between Ted and “the Asians” begins.

Pineapple Express is funny, don’t get me wrong. But quite frankly, I’m tired of movies with the same brand of humor. Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Apatow’s earlier summer release, was a refreshing comedy, one that made me laugh out loud. For the most part, Pineapple Express just feels old and drawn out. That being said, there are a few positives to touch on.

James Franco (who based his character on Brad Pitt’s hilariously dumbfounded stoner in True Romance), is a revelation. There have always been rumors to Franco’s comic wit (hinted at briefly in his cameo in Knocked Up), but here, he really gets to flex his funny bone. As Saul, he makes the most out of a familiar story by giving his character amusing quirks. Watch how, when in a rush, Franco runs with little-kid strides, his feet barely getting off the ground. Look at the headband he sports for most of the movie, where did he get that anyway? And in the film’s best scene, watch how he manages to escape from a cop with his foot stuck through the windshield.

The film moves from comedy to a violent action-thriller that isn’t all too thrilling. The final showdown scene is long, contrite and aimless. I understand that that was the point of the filmmakers, an over-the-top parody of action, but it’s just simply too much.

I’ll recommend Pineapples Express for its seldom funny moments, and Franco’s refreshing performance, but not for any other reason. C+

Encounters at the End of the World

Werner Herzog, the great, visionary, German director is like a poet with a movie camera. He’s responsible for such classics as Aguirre the Wrath of God, Fitzcarraldo, and Grizzly Man. He directs just as many feature films as documentaries, and he never lets a studio influence his vision. He is a true auteur.

Herzog is a filmmaker who continually looks for a challenge. He isn’t a thrill seeker, he is just a man who enjoys testing his limits, regardless of his age. He’s moved a 300 ton boat over a mountain, climbed into an active volcano, swam in the ferocious waters of Thailand, walked from Berlin to Paris barefoot, eaten his own shoe and so on. He has no problem fusing fiction in his documentaries and bringing truth to his features. When he had finished his 1997 documentary Little Dieter Needs to Fly he told his star, Dieter Dengler, that the story wasn’t over. Ten years later Herzog revisited the story with the fictional film, Rescue Dawn. Rescue Dawn is a better film that Little Dieter, even though it’s considered fiction, it’s the Herzog vision that propels it to a classic.

His latest venture into the unknown is the miraculous Encounters at the End of the World. Herzog was fascinated with the people who live in Antarctica, so he flew down, with only his cameraman, to get these people’s stories. While there, he comes across a village that looks like a small, mid-Western town with a lot of snow. They have a bowling alley, a grocery store, and an ice-cream machine. Herzog, no fan of commercialized intervention, is repulsed by this place, so he quickly makes the effort to travel farther, to find the real eccentrics.

The stories in this documentary film are heartbreaking. In one scene, Herzog talks with a man who cannot describe his past or why he left his country. He tries to speak, but he gets too choked up, tears flush from his eyes, “You don’t have to talk about it,” Herzog says with this tender voice, “Thank you,” the man says, and the scene ends.

There is a general theme from the people we meet in the film. Most of them were tired of the busy life, they are escaping to find themselves. These are people with Ph.D’s and very specific, academic skills that they now rarely use. Herzog fits right in.

The film is scored with Herzog passionate narration, and hauntingly fitting music that sounds like a grand German opera. When we go underwater to explore the vast glaciers and hidden sea creatures, Herzog lets the images speak for themselves. And believe me, these fluid images speak volumes (can a documentary be nominated for best cinematography?).

Encounters at the End of the World may be Herzog’s most poetic film yet, a bold statement seeing as how I am such an admired fan of his. Let this scene prove my point. Because this is Antarctica, Herzog dedicates a few moments to a flock of penguins. At one point, some of the flock decides to head in a new direction to gather food. One of them branches off and heads directly for a mountain, miles away. Herzog explains that he was told to never interfere with the life of a penguin. Although he has no idea, this lone penguin is walking to certain death,. He is just curious, wandering into the unknown. At one point, the penguin looks back at us, ready to turn. Instead he turns right back around and heads toward the mountain. The image is haunting, visceral and heartbreaking. I’d expect nothing less from one of cinema’s great creators. A