Lessons of Darkness / Fata Morgana
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Eugen Des Montagnes, James William Gledhill, Lotte Eisner, Wolfgang von Ungern-SternbergDVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Subtitled); German (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0
Format: Anamorphic, Color, DVD-Video, Full Screen, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.77:1
Running Time: 130 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2002-01-08
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Starz / Anchor Bay
Movie Reviews of Lessons of Darkness / Fata Morgana
Movie Review: Two Examples of "Post-Production Creation"
Summary: 3 Stars
Here are two examples of what I like to call "post-production creation"; i.e., shoot some intrinsically compelling footage and then subsequently "make something of it" in the editing suite and at the typewriter. The earlier film here, Fata Morgana, dates from the early '70s and features a barely coherent narrative built around some hauntingly surreal images shot in the southern Sahara/northern Sahel region of Africa. An off-camera narration tells of an Ancient American story of creation while we see images of desert ecology, eerie natural phenomena, and human dereliction. Along the way, we're "treated" to an interesting myriad of both native and European personages and creatures. The late appearance of an apparent husband & wife musical duo (and a quite bad one, at that!) is a most comical non sequitur in this piece of concocted "alien reportage". I have no idea what the opening sequence of repeated passenger jet landings represents other than perhaps a very far-fetched depiction of a supposed alien landing on this strange planet with its forbidding landscape -- work with me here, folks! Considering that much of the footage in Fata Morgana is roughly shot (jerky pans, static handheld shots, etc.), the film in totality leaves one mostly earthbound emotionally. The eerie images of desert mirages do linger in the mind, however. This film is an obvious indulgence by its creator and possibly a peculiar treat for the more open-minded viewer. Much like Herzog's very fine later masterpiece Fitzcarraldo, the story of its making may actually be more compelling to some.
The more technically accomplished film here, Lessons of Darkness, dates from the early '90s and is almost entirely comprised of incredible footage of the massive oil well calamity in Kuwait perpetrated by retreating Iraqi forces in the wake of Operation Desert Storm. Interestingly, it presents much the same otherworldly "apocalyptic" narrative as Fata Morgana; this one, however, is shorter, more compact, and is definitely more compelling from beginning to end. The dramatic images are not only beautifully shot (steadicam and/or tripod must've been used and the aerial shots are nothing short of spectacular!), but are juxtaposed in such a way, and in concurrence with the fatuous narrative and a poignantly moving "human" element, as to make for a most lasting visceral impression. This time, Herzog gets it right!
Summary of Lessons of Darkness / Fata Morgana
Lessons of Darkness shows the disaster of the Kuwaiti oil fields in flames after the Gulf War. This comes packaged with a special bonus DVD of Fata Morgana, which also takes a special non-linear look at the beauty of the Sahara Desert.Art House & International DVD Video
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