Perhaps Werner Herzog's magnum opus, Aguirre, the Wrath of God is an epic film inspired by the novella Heart of Darkness. Subsequently, this is the movie that inspired Francis Ford Coppola to make Apocalypse Now, and they all share a similar premise.
It's a story about obsession and madness because of an illusion called El Dorado. Aguirre's main character Don Lope de Aguirre played by Klaus Kinski acted well, and was the main reason for wanting to see this movie, because his face and infamous frenzy personality is intense to behold.
The opening scene is very powerful with it's epic grim yet inviting score towards Peru's paradise surrounding Machu Picchu, as the conquistadores led eventually by Lope are determined to find the City of Gold.
Although the plot is thin, it's really the scenery and the so called oneiric moments that make the Wrath of God memorable, alongside the fauna's background noise and that one little moment when one of the locals is ordered by Lope to play a flute tune.
Last but not least is that Klaus Kinski's mad performance bore similarities towards the real Aguirre's homicidal delusions of grandeur, and it easily sucks viewers into the whirlpool of despair as the dream of El Dorado degrades further.
It's a flawed experience, as the direction and the pacing could feel better, but the good outweighs the bad easily, as the cinematography is intense at times, the soundtrack is as quoted by the late Roger Ebert"haunting, ecclesiastical, human and more", and the ending is a beautiful wreck of insanity.
Some years ago, I shared my top 25 movies. At that time, this movie was arguably battling for the third spot alongside Apocalypse Now. If I were to do that again in the future, Aguirre, the Wrath of God would be listed, just for it's dreamlike state alone, as it can easily conjure upon your sense of imagination.
Rating: 8.0
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