Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Cave of Forgotten Dreams

I don't know if this film is still playing in theatres where you are, but I highly recommend you watch in on the big screen in 3-D rather than on DVD. It is truly the only 3-D film I have watched that uses it effectively and not gratuitiously.



Filmmaker Werner Herzog managed to get access to some recently discovered cave paintings that are around 30,000 years old. He decided to film using 3-D. I think this was a smart choice, as the depth and contours of the cave do jump out at you, and it enhanced the experience rather than being just a gimmick like every other 3-D film.

Herzog and his very small team had to walk on a pre-set walkway, could not touch anything, and only could use "cold" lights. They only filmed a few days and only for a few hours a day. He interviewed mostly scientists about their work, but rather than a documentary talking about the history or speculation about the cave people who made these paintings (although there is some of that portrayed), Herzog treats this project more as an art piece. The way he pans over the paintings and uses music to enhance the mood adds to this.

Occasionally his oddball way of thinking comes out in a strange question or comment. For the most part he is unobtrusive in the film, allowing the paintings themselves to be the star. Some of the paintings are pretty sophisticated-looking to me, for so-called cavemen. I think "forgotten" is a good word to describe Herzog's work, not that he is forgotten, but he likes to explore forgotten, long-gone or overlooked arts in his documentary work.

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