Aguirre, the Wrath of God
U.S. Theatrical Release film poster
Directed by	Werner Herzog
Produced by	Werner Herzog
Written by	Werner Herzog
Starring	Klaus Kinski Helena Rojo Del Negro
Music by	Popol Vuh
Cinematography	Thomas Mauch
Editing by	Beate Mainka-Jellinghaus
Release date(s)	December 29, 1972 (West Germany)
Running time	100 min.
Country	West Germany
Language	German
Budget	$370,000.[1]
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile

Aguirre, the Wrath of God (German: Aguirre, der Zorn Gottes) is an independent 1972 German film written and directed by Werner Herzog. Klaus Kinski stars in the title role. The soundtrack was composed and performed by Popol Vuh, a German progressive/ethno band that also contributed to other Herzog films. Arguably the director's most famous film, it was given an extensive arthouse theatrical release in the United States in 1977. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 377 × 599 pixel Image in higher resolution (550 × 874 pixel, file size: 155 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) US Theatrical Release poster for Aguirre, the Wrath of God This image is of a film poster, and the copyright for it is... German Three sheet Movie poster for Metropolis. ... Werner Herzog passionately singing a traditional Croatian ode of love to beautiful Serbian girls who he wants to take to Germany to have German babies with. ... Klaus Kinski. ... Helena Rojo is a leading Mexican film, theater and television actress, known for her enigmatic beauty, talent and elegant persona. ... Popol Vuh is a German cosmic music band founded by pianist and keyboardist Florian Fricke in 1970 together with Holger Trulzsch (percussion) and Frank Fiedler (electronics). ... Thomas Mauch (born 4 April 1937 in Heidenheim, Germany) is a German cinematographer, who has had numerous collaborations with director Werner Herzog. ... Beate Mainka-Jellinghaus is a German film editor, who has had numerous collaborations with director Werner Herzog. ... December 29 is the 363rd day of the year (364th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 2 days remaining. ... 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Germany. ... Aguirre is a surname, and may refer to: Carl and Clarence Aguirre Celso Aguirre Bernal Daniel Aguirre Oteiza Eduardo Aguirre, current U.S. ambassador to Spain Elfego Hernán Monzón Aguirre Esperanza Aguirre Forrest Aguirre Francisco de Aguirre Francisco de Paula Aguirre Gaizka Garitano Aguirre Gonzalo Aguirre Gonzalo Aguirre... // Top grossing films The Godfather Fiddler on the Roof Diamonds Are Forever Whats Up, Doc?, starring Barbra Streisand and Ryan ONeal Dirty Harry The Last Picture Show A Clockwork Orange Cabaret, starring Liza Minnelli The Hospital Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex Academy Awards Best Picture... Film is a term that encompasses individual motion pictures, the field of film as an art form, and the motion picture industry. ... Werner Herzog passionately singing a traditional Croatian ode of love to beautiful Serbian girls who he wants to take to Germany to have German babies with. ... Klaus Kinski. ... // In film formats, the sound track is the physical area of the film which records the synchronized sound. ... Popol Vuh is a German cosmic music band founded by pianist and keyboardist Florian Fricke in 1970 together with Holger Trulzsch (percussion) and Frank Fiedler (electronics). ... For the Swedish political music movement, see progg. ... The film director, on the right, gives last minute direction to the cast and crew, whilst filming a costume drama on location in London. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ...

The story follows the travels of Lope de Aguirre, who leads a group of conquistadores down the Amazon River in South America in search of a lost city of gold (El Dorado). The film is in some ways similar to Joseph Conrad's 1902 novella Heart of Darkness, particularly in its basic narrative structure (a river voyage into the jungle), its association of the depths of the jungle with insanity, and its emphasis on the absurdity of colonialism.^{[citation needed]} Lope de Agguire Lope de Aguirre ( c. ... Conquistador (Spanish: []) (meaning Conqueror in the Spanish language) is the term used to refer to the soldiers, explorers and adventurers who brought much of the Americas and Asia Pacific under Spanish colonial rule between the 15th and 17th centuries, starting with the 1492 settlement established in the modern-day Bahamas... The Amazon River or River Amazon (Portuguese: ; Spanish: ) of South America is the largest river in the world by volume, with greater total river flow than the next eight largest rivers combined, and the largest drainage basin in the world. ... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... El Dorado (Spanish for the gilded one) is a legend that began with the story of a South American tribal chief who covered himself with gold dust. ... Joseph Conrad. ... 1902 (MCMII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... A novella is a narrative work of prose fiction somewhat longer than a short story but shorter than a novel. ... Heart of Darkness is a novella by Joseph Conrad. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

Using a minimalist story and dialogue and the powerful acting of Kinski, the film creates a compelling vision of madness and folly, counterpointed by the lush but unforgiving Amazonian jungle. Although based loosely on what is known of the historical figure of Aguirre, the film's story line is, as Herzog acknowledged years after the film's release, a work of imagination. Some of the persons and situations may have been inspired by Gaspar de Carvajal's account of an earlier Amazonian expedition, but Carvajal was not present on the historical voyage represented in the film. Box Log Falls, Lamington National Park, Queensland, Australia Jungle usually refers to a dense forest in a hot climate, such as a tropical rainforest. ... Gaspar de Carvajal (Extremadura, Spain, c. ...

Synopsis

In 1560, a thousand Spanish conquerors, and a score of captured Indians, march down from Quito in the Andes mountains into the jungle below. Under the command of Gonzalo Pizarro (Alejandro Repulles), the party's mission is to find El Dorado. The men, clad in full armor, pull cannons through narrow mountainous paths and hot, thickly humid jungle. After much difficulty, Pizarro orders a small expeditionary group of forty men to continue ahead by rafting a river. If they do not return to the main party within one week with news of what lies beyond, they will be considered lost. Pizarro chooses Don Pedro de Ursúa (Ruy Guerra) as the leader of the exploratory team. Don Lope de Aguirre (Klaus Kinski) is among the soldiers. He is accompanied by his young daughter, Florés (Cecilia Rivera). Nickname: Luz de América Map of Ecuador showing location of Quito Coordinates: Country Ecuador Province Pichincha Canton Quito  - Mayor Paco Moncayo Area approx    - City 290 km²  - Land 290 km²  - Water 0 km² Elevation 2,800 m Population (2005, estimation)  - City 1,865,541 (canton)  - Density ~4,800/km² Time... The Andes between Chile and Argentina Planes view of the Andes, Peru. ... Gonzalo Pizarro (b. ... For other uses, see Armour (disambiguation). ... Pedro de Ursúa (1526–1561) was a Spanish conquistador in the 16th century. ...

One of the four rafts becomes separated from the others and gets caught in a violent whirlpool . A rescue team is unable to approach the raft until the following day. All of the men on board are discovered dead, murdered by Indians hiding in the forest. Ursúa insists the men be carried back to camp and given proper burials. Knowing this will slow down the expedition, Aguirre orders one of his men to shoot a cannon at the raft. The corpses are blown apart. Saltstraumen whirlpool A whirlpool in a glass of water A whirlpool is a large, swirling body of water produced by ocean tides. ...

The remaining rafts drift slowly down the river. The explorers suffer under the intense heat. The still hidden Indians routinely attack them with hails of arrows from the jungle. The food begins to run out. As things get progressively more dangerous, Ursúa decides that their mission is hopeless and orders them to return to the main group. Desirous of power, Aguirre takes the opportunity to lead a rebellion against Ursúa, telling the men that untold riches await them ahead. Ursúa is shot. He is cared for by his mistress, Inez (Helena Rojo). Unsure of the loyalty of the soldiers, Aguirre sarcastically suggests the fat, lazy Don Fernando de Guzman (Peter Berling) as the token leader of the expedition. Aguirre proclaims Guzman the King of the New World, “dethroning” Philip II. A farcical trial of Ursúa results in his being sentenced to death, but Guzman surprises Aguirre by refusing to allow this to happen. Instead, Guzman grants Ursúa a pardon. Look up rebellion in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Philip II (Spanish: Felipe II de Habsburgo; Portuguese: Filipe I) (May 21, 1527 – September 13, 1598) was the first official King of Spain from 1556 until 1598, King of Naples and Sicily from 1554 until 1598, King of England (as King-consort of Mary I) from 1554 to 1558, King... A pardon is the forgiveness of a crime and the penalty associated with it. ...

Klaus Kinski as Aguirre, at the end of his journey

Aguirre is an oppressive ruler, so terrifying that few protest his leadership. Those that do complain are killed. Only Inez has the courage to speak out against him. Knowing that some of the soldiers are still loyal to Ursúa, Aguirre simply ignores her comments. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...

The expedition continues. An Indian is captured by the explorers, but when he expresses confusion at the sight of a bible, he and his wife are murdered at the insistence of the expedition's priest, Brother Gaspar de Carvajal (Del Negro). The group gapes in awe at a full-masted wooden ship perched in the highest branches of one of the tall trees. Guzman is found dead by the outhouse of one of the rafts. Taking advantage of Guzman's death, Aguirre proclaims himself leader. Ursúa is then taken ashore and hanged in the jungle. The group attacks an Indian village and many of the explorers are killed by spears. The distraught Inez walks into the jungle and disappears. mizzen mast, mainmast and foremast Grand Turk The mast of a sailing ship is a tall vertical pole which supports the sails. ... Traditional wooden cutter under sail. ... Outhouse near Crabapple Lake, USA, with chipboard walls, and a fiberglass ceiling This article refers to an outhouse, privy or kybo that is an old type of toilet in a small structure separate from the main building which does not have a flush or sewer attached. ...

Aguirre is now the ruler of a group of slowly starving, hallucinating men. In an Indian attack, Aguirre’s daughter is killed with an arrow in her chest. The rest of Aguirre's soldiers die. Alone, he stands on a directionless, slowly circling raft. The raft becomes overrun by monkeys. The crazed Aguirre tells them that he plans to conquer all of the country that lies ahead, marry his dead daughter, and found a pure dynasty. He proclaims himself as “The Wrath of God”.

Production

The film was made for $370,000, and filmed on location in the Peruvian rainforest, on the Amazon River tributaries of the Ucayali region. On one occasion, irritated by the noise from a hut where cast and crew were playing cards, the explosive Klaus Kinski fired three shots at it, blowing the top joint off one extra's finger. Subsequently, Kinski started leaving the jungle location (over Herzog's refusal to fire a sound assistant), only changing his mind after Herzog threatened to shoot first Kinski and then himself. The latter incident has given rise to the legend that Herzog made Kinski act for him at gunpoint. However, Herzog has repeatedly debunked the claim during interviews, explaining he only verbally threatened Kinski in the heat of the moment, in a desperate attempt to keep him from leaving the set. The famous incident is parodied in Incident at Loch Ness, which Herzog co-wrote. The Daintree Rainforest in Queensland, Australia. ... The Amazon River or River Amazon (Portuguese: ; Spanish: ) of South America is the largest river in the world by volume, with greater total river flow than the next eight largest rivers combined, and the largest drainage basin in the world. ... Look up tributary in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Categories: Stub | Departments of Peru ... Incident at Loch Ness is a mockumentary starring Werner Herzog and Zak Penn. ...

According to the director's audio commentary provided on the film's U.S. R1 DVD, the camera used to shoot the film was stolen by Herzog from a school he attended. In the commentary, Herzog also revealed how he obtained the monkeys utilized in the climactic sequence. He paid several locals to trap 400 monkeys -- he paid them half in advance and was to pay the other half on receipt. The trappers sold the monkeys to someone in Los Angeles or Miami, and Herzog came to the airport just as the monkeys were being loaded to be shipped out of the country. He pretended to be a veterinarian and claimed that the monkeys needed vaccinations before leaving the country. Abashedly, the handlers unloaded the monkeys, and Herzog loaded them into his jeep and drove away, used them in the shot they were required for, and released them afterwards into the jungle.

Critical response

Original German theatrical release poster

The film received mostly positive critical notices upon release. Vincent Canby, writing in The New York Times, called it, "[A]bsolutely stunning...Mr. Herzog views all the proceedings with fixed detachment. He remains cool. He takes no sides. He may even be slightly amused. Mainly he is a poet who constantly surprises us with unexpected juxtapositions...This is a splendid and haunting work."^[2] In Time, Richard Schickel opined that "[Herzog] does the audience the honor of allowing it to discover the blindnesses and obsessions, the sober lunacies he quietly lays out on the screen. Well acted, most notably by Klaus Kinski in the title role, gloriously photographed by Thomas Mauch, Aguirre is, not to put too fine a point on it, a movie that makes a convincing claim to greatness."^[3] Time Out's Tony Rayns noted, "...each scene and each detail is honed down to its salient features. On this level, the film effectively pre-empts analysis by analysing itself as it proceeds, admitting no ambiguity. Yet at the same time, Herzog's flair for charged explosive imagery has never had freer rein, and the film is rich in oneiric moments."^[4] Image File history File links Size of this preview: 432 × 599 pixel Image in higher resolution (463 × 642 pixel, file size: 106 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Original German film poster for Aguirre, the Wrath of God This image is of a film poster, and the copyright for it is... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 432 × 599 pixel Image in higher resolution (463 × 642 pixel, file size: 106 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Original German film poster for Aguirre, the Wrath of God This image is of a film poster, and the copyright for it is... Vincent Canby (July 27, 1924 – September 15, 2000) was an American film critic. ... The New York Times is a newspaper published in New York City by Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr. ... Time (whose trademark is capitalized TIME) is a weekly American newsmagazine, similar to Newsweek and U.S. News & World Report. ... Richard Warren Schickel (b. ... Time-out can mean: sport time-out, a break in play that may be called by a side to formulate strategy or respond to an players injury. ... Tony Rayns is a British writer, film critic, commentator, film festival programmer and screenwriter. ... A dream is the experience of envisioned images, sounds, or other sensations during sleep. ...

The film's reputation through the years has continued to grow. J. Hoberman has written that Aguirre "is not just a great movie but an essential one...Herzog's third feature...is both a landmark film and a magnificent social metaphor."^[5] James Monaco's The Movie Guide described the film as "A stunning, terrifying exploration of human obsession descending into madness...a staggering experience that assaults the senses."^[6] Danny Peary wrote, "To see Aguirre for the first time is to discover a genuine masterpiece. It is overwhelming, spellbinding; at first dreamlike, and then hallucinatory."^[7] It has a 97% "Fresh" rating with only one negative review out of the 29 critics included on Rotten Tomatoes.^[8] Roger Ebert has added it to his list of "Great Movies",^[9] and in a 2002 Sight & Sound poll of critics and filmmakers on the best films ever made, Ebert listed it in his top ten.^[10] Aguirre was included in Time Magazine's "All Time 100 Best Films", compiled by Richard Schickel and Richard Corliss.^[11] J. Hoberman (Jim Hoberman) is the lead film critic for The Village Voice. ... How To Read A Film, 2000 edition. ... Danny Peary (born 1949) is an American film critic and sports writer. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Russ Meyer (left) and Roger Ebert, (1970) Roger Joseph Ebert (June 18, 1942 - ) is an Emmy Award-nominated American television personality, author, and film critic who began writing for the Chicago Sun-Times in 1967. ... Sight & Sound is a British monthly magazine about film. ... Richard Corliss is a writer for Time magazine who focuses on movies, with the occasional article on music or sports, and has distinguished himself for his clever way with words. ...

References

The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) is an online database of information about motion pictures, actors, movie stars, TV shows, TV stars, production crew personnel, movie pictures, cast, crew as well as video games. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... March 19 is the 78th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (79th in leap years). ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... For the Lebanese political coalition, see March 14 Alliance. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... For the Lebanese political coalition, see March 14 Alliance. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... For the Lebanese political coalition, see March 14 Alliance. ... The Village Voice is a New York City-based weekly newspaper featuring investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts reviews and events listings for New York City. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... For the Lebanese political coalition, see March 14 Alliance. ... Danny Peary (born 1949) is an American film critic and sports writer. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... For the Lebanese political coalition, see March 14 Alliance. ... The Chicago Sun-Times is an American daily newspaper published in Chicago. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... For the Lebanese political coalition, see March 14 Alliance. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... For the Lebanese political coalition, see March 14 Alliance. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... For the Lebanese political coalition, see March 14 Alliance. ...

External links

• Aguirre, der Zorn Gottes at the Internet Movie Database

Cinema of Germany

Actors • Directors • Films A-Z • Film chronology • Cinematographers • Festivals • Producers • Score composers • Screenwriters • Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Cinema in Germany can be traced back to the very beginnings of the medium at the end of the 19th Century and German cinema has made major technical and artistic contributions to film. ... Cinema of Germany This is an A-Z list of films produced in Germany and in the German language after 1989 in alphabetical order. ... One of the A festivals in Europe. ...