Strange movie!!! Way stranger and duller than all the other Herzog movies I've seen. I find it hard to write about it because it's the epithome of a cold and distant movie. NO emotional connection with the characters whatosever takes place throughout the film, and I couldn't really understand much of what was going on.
A German soldier, last name Stroszek, is recuperating from war injuries on a Greek island, surrounded by group of peculiar characters... comrade soldiers, his wife, some traveling African prince, you know, the usual Herzog additions. Then, one day, he decides he's fed up with being imprisoned in the fortress he occupies and decides to go on a surveillance mission with permission from the head of the company. For some reason, he goes mad and decides to shoot all of his acquaitances and friends. They have to evacuate the fortress to save their lives and he is left inside, along with all the artillery and gunpowder. He threatens to blow up the island, combining fireworks and weaponry.
What doesn't work here is that there are too many voids. Stroszek isn't necessarily a likable character, why should we care about him? He isn't particularly interesting, charismatic, mysterious, passionate, he isn't even just normal, he's dull. Then, why does he go mad? Because of the injuries? What were the injuries, where? We don't know anything!!
I love Herzog, all of his movies I'd seen until I saw Signs of Life had become my favorites, they were all unique works of art. Unfortunately, I don't understand the point of Signs of Life. I'm really looking forward to seeing Woyzcek, Cobra Verde, Stroszek and Heart of Glass.
December 25, 2007
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