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A Scientist at the Movies Reviews by Greg Paris |
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Title: The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser
Date of original theatrical release: 1974
Details:
- Bruno S. (Kaspar Hauser)
- Written, directed & produced by: Werner Herzog
Score: -
The Review: Stilted, dry, glacially-paced cinematic version of a nineteenth-century European sociological puzzle: the 1828 appearance, in the town square of Nuremburg, of a young boy barely able to walk, totally unfamiliar with other humans and the artifacts of civilization, with no linguistic skills other than a single, apparently memorized phrase. There's not much back-story, and the cinematic development offers little in the way of personality. It's rich in B&W cinematography, however, so while you might want to watch it, you might also want to turn off the sound and subtitles.
This was a disappointment. The sociology and psychology studies of this event are rather interesting, and offer significant insight into what makes us human. I saw nothing in this film that addressed this issue, let alone any insight.
The alternate, original German title is curious: "Jeder fŸr sich und Gott gegen alle", which roughly translates as "Each man for himself, and God for all." I'm sure there's a message here, but will leave it up to you to tell me.
The DVD release has an interesting commentary track including the director, and we find that the starring role was cast with an unknown actor with a bizarre personal background that echoed some of that presumed to be Kaspar Hauser's.
(22-Jul-07)
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