Cobra Verde
A promotional film poster for Cobra Verde
Directed by	Werner Herzog
Produced by	Lucki Stipetic
Written by	Werner Herzog Bruce Chatwin (novel)
Starring	Klaus Kinski José Lewgoy
Music by	Popol Vuh
Cinematography	Viktor Ruzicka
Editing by	Maximiliane Mainka
Release date(s)	1987
Running time	111 min.
Country	West Germany
Language	German
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile

Cobra Verde (also known as Slave Coast) is a 1987 German drama film based upon Bruce Chatwin's 1980 novel, The Viceroy of Ouidah. The film depicts the life of a fictional slave trader named Francisco Manoel da Silva (known as 'Cobra Verde') who is played by the prolific German actor Klaus Kinski. Directed by Werner Herzog, Cobra Verde was an ambitious project, with filming locations in Brazil, Colombia and Ghana. The film's cast includes an enormous number of extras - most notably, an army of topless Ghanaian women - and also features His Royal Highness Nana Agyefi Kwame II of Nsein. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... 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. ... 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. ... Bruce Chatwin as he appears on the cover of Nicholas Shakespeares 2001 biography, Bruce Chatwin: a biography. ... Klaus Kinski. ... José Lewgoy was born in Veranópolis, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil in 1920, and died in 2003, in Rio de Janeiro. ... 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). ... Viktor Ruzicka (born 10 March 1943 in Prague, Czechoslovakia) is a Czechoslovakian cinematographer. ... // May 9 - Actor Tom Cruise marries actress Mimi Rogers. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Germany. ... Cobra Verde is a Cleveland, OH based rock band best known for being Robert Pollards band in Guided by Voices from 1996 to late 1997. ... // May 9 - Actor Tom Cruise marries actress Mimi Rogers. ... A drama film is a film that depends mostly on in-depth character development, interaction, and highly emotional themes. ... Film is a term that encompasses individual motion pictures, the field of film as an art form, and the motion picture industry. ... Bruce Chatwin as he appears on the cover of Nicholas Shakespeares 2001 biography, Bruce Chatwin: a biography. ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... A novel (from French nouvelle Italian novella, new) is an extended, generally fictional narrative, typically in prose. ... The Viceroy of Ouidah is a novel published in 1980 by Bruce Chatwin, about the life of a slave trader named Francisco Manoel da Silva, loosely based on the life of an historical Brazilian, Francisco Felix da Souza, who became a powerful personage in Wydah or Ouidah, the so-called... FicTioNaL is a Gaming Legend. ... The Buxton Memorial Fountain, celebrating the emancipation of slaves in the British Empire in 1834, London. ... Klaus Kinski. ... The film director, on the right, gives last minute direction to the cast and crew, whilst filming a costume drama on location in London. ... 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. ...

While Cobra Verde was probably the least well-received of the five collaborations between Herzog and Kinski,[1] it was still something of a critical success, with many reviewers hailing it as a masterful adaptation of Chatwin's novel, and despite its flaws, something of an artistic triumph.[2]

Most profoundly, Klaus Kinski died four years after the release of Cobra Verde, and the film would stand as the last of his acclaimed collaborations with director Werner Herzog.

Plot

Francisco Manoel da Silva (Klaus Kinski) is debauched Brazilian rancher who reluctantly goes to work at a gold mining company after his ranch is ruined by drought. When he discovers that he is being financially exploited, he murders his boss and goes on the lam to pursue a career as a outlaw. He becomes the notorious Cobra Verde (Green Snake), the most vicious bandit of the pampas.

In his travels, da Silva encounters and subdues an escaped slave, an act that impresses wealthy sugar baron Don Octavio Coutinho (José Lewgoy). Don Coutinho, unaware that he is dealing with the legendary bandit, hires da Silva to oversee the slaves on his sugar plantation. When da Silva subsequently impregnates all three of the Don's daughters, the sugar baron is furious, but the situation becomes even more complicated when he discovers that da Silva is none other than the infamous Cobra Verde. José Lewgoy was born in Veranópolis, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil in 1920, and died in 2003, in Rio de Janeiro. ...

As punishment, Don Coutinho decides to order da Silva to embark on the impossible mission of re-opening the slave trade in Africa, and the reluctant bandit has no choice but to accept. He travels by sea to West Africa, where he must negotiate with the fearsome King Bossa Ahadee of Dahomey (His Royal Highness Nana Agyefi Kwame II of Nsein). Dahomey was a kingdom in Africa, situated in what is now the nation of Benin. ...

da Silva held captive

Amazingly, da Silva succeeds, convincing the King to exchange slaves for new rifles. Narrowly escaping from the King's realm with his life, Cobra Verde allies himself with a rebellious prince who desires to overthrow and succeed the murderous King. The ambitious bandit trains an enormous army of native women, and leads them to successfully overthrow King Bossa. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...

Against all of Don Coutinho's expectations, the slave trade is successfully maintained under the new King, thanks to the resourceful talents of the bandit that he had intended to send to a certain death.

However, da Silva finds himself in trouble once again and is forced to escape. The exhausted bandit tries desperately to take a boat to water, but despite his best efforts, he is unable to accomplish the task. He collapses and dies next to the ship as the tide slowly laps in. The film ends with the hauntingly symbolic image of an African man stricken with polio walking along the shore. Poliomyelitis (polio), or infantile paralysis, is a viral paralytic disease. ...

Tension between Herzog and Kinski

Cobra Verde was the last film that Werner Herzog would make with Klaus Kinski. Their now-legendary personality conflict peaked during the film, and though the actor died four years after the film was released, it was unlikely that they would have worked together after the turmoil that surrounded the film's production.

Made at a time when the Kinski's infamous misanthropy had reached what many described as his all-time peak,[3] the film's production was especially affected by the fiery actor's relentless outbursts. The cast and crew were continually plagued by Kinski's wrath, most famously culminating in the film's original cinematographer Thomas Mauch walking out on the project after a perpetual torrent of verbal abuse from Kinski. Herzog was forced to replace Mauch with Viktor Ruzicka.[4] Misanthropy is a hatred or distrust of the human race, or a disposition to dislike and mistrust other people. ... A Cameraman-Reporter during a MINUSTAH mission in 2007 (Photo: Patrick-André Perron A cinematographer is one photographing with a motion picture camera (the art and science of which is known as cinematography). ... Thomas Mauch (born 4 April 1937 in Heidenheim, Germany) is a German cinematographer, who has had numerous collaborations with director Werner Herzog. ... Viktor Ruzicka (born 10 March 1943 in Prague, Czechoslovakia) is a Czechoslovakian cinematographer. ...

After the completion of Cobra Verde, the pair vowed never to work together again, with Kinski exclaiming, "We can not go further. I am no more.[5]"

It was clear that the animosity between actor and director had become irreparable, and that their 'love-hate' relationship had disintegrated to a devastating extent. Kinski described Herzog as ignorant, impossible to work with, and even tyrannical. He elaborated on his perspective by saying,

At the time, Werner Herzog reflected on Kinski's hatred, insisting that the actor had "become uncontrollable."[7] But the director's opinions of Kinski are more deeply explored in his 1999 documentary retrospective, My Best Fiend, where he examines their unique friendship, the associated hatred, and the legacy that both qualities were responsible for. 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... My Best Fiend (German: Mein liebster Feind - Klaus Kinski, literally My Dearest Enemy - Klaus Kinski) is a 1999 documentary by Werner Herzog about his tumultuous yet productive relationship with German actor Klaus Kinski. ...

External links

• Cobra Verde at the Internet Movie Database
• Cobra Verde at Rotten Tomatoes