Unemployment does cause to spring forth catching up with some movies that normally would be relegated to the DVD selection marked "Things I watch when Moda's netflix queue isn't available and I need to put something on to help me sleep", such as barrelling through trilogies and whatnot. But we had a blessed Friday night/Saturday to catch up on things gathering dust on my bookshelf that rehearsal and time hadn't allowed us a chance to view.
And here is where I say "WTF, Werner Herzog".
So, we decide on the Oscar Nominated Herzogian documentary "Encounter's at the End of the World", a little ditty about his time filming Antarctica. The last great outpost. Moda thinks I hate documentaries. To be fair, they aren't my first choice when trolling new releases. But it doesn't mean I favor blow-em-up celluloid flicks. I tend to lean toward nature docs with celebrity VO's like Morgan Freeman. The guy could read sides for a documentary on the processing of Ritz Cracker's and you'd dig it. ("Monosodium triglyciride...Sodium...Partially Hydrogentated cornseed oil...all make for a tasty and popular cracker." Go on. Re-read it like it was Morgan doing the V.O. You would want. His. Cracker.)
I was a little apprehensive, but man...this was the guy that led that nut Klaus Kinski in such lauded performances as "Aguirre:The Wrath of God". I will give this a chance. Moreover, the opening filming with the undersea footage of divers caressing a frozen stalactite gripping the icy sea bed...well it was gorgeous. When the narration began, Moda's first words were "You're gonna make fun of his accent." (No. For some reason, as funny as German lilted English accents are I didn't think I'd rise to the occasion. Fast forward 30 mintues to Moda saying "Eef you think dat da frossen vasteland is barren...you haf not seen my fridGeraTor. Eet dossent haff any chondimundts"... or something like that)
No, we were given a documentary of sorts. It's just that his interview questions were borderline Borat ridiculous. In the interest of keeping this short, I'll paraphrase his questions to a shy scientest who has made it his career of studying a particular brand of penguin for over 20 years:
(VO: "Ve tried to mek dis qvuiet man answer some qvuestions.")
WH: "Zo. Haf you effer herd uf der gay penguins?"
Dr: (Uncomfortable silence. Wait, in movies, any movie, silence is death. This got uncomfortable for the viewer) "Um. No. We...uh, have viewed some situations of two men vying for one female"
WH: "Zo. Haf you seen any formz uf der prostitution?"
Dr: (More...reeeeally uncomfortable silence) "Um. Sometimes they, uh no...sometimes the go off by themselves for no reason"
WH: (V.O) "He vas qvuiet...and fer good reeason. He showed vun penguin by itself, valking avay from ze others. Gay. Alone"
(Source: I paraphrased the frack out of this. Get used to it. Rent it, if you really want to see what I mean.)
And it was funny when they would show the job titles of the interviewee's: "Forklift Driver/Philospher" or "Deep sea Marine Biologist/Rock Musician"...it was like freakin Buckaroo Bonzai. And the disdain he had when he found out this lone Antarctic outpost had a Yoga studio...A YOGA STUDIO!!! That is NOT pristine.
Wart. The. Fork.
In other news, we also watched "W". My take? No political bent meant? It was like a Will Ferrell sketch on SNL with a budget, with the script taken from those Bushy malapropism calendars that were so popular at Urban Outfitters. Uncomfortable. Weird. Funny. Sad. And now, dated. Rent if you want, otherwise...meh. You know this d-bag. Or rather...knew. Snark.
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