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Movies / On DVD / My Best Fiend
My Best Fiend

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My Best Fiend (1999)

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Reviews Counted:23

Fresh:18

Rotten:5

Average Rating:7/10

Runtime: 1 hr 40 mins

Genre: Foreign Films

Synopsis: Werner Herzog directed this documentary about the puzzling relationship between himself and actor Klaus Kinski. Beginning with their apocalyptic first meeting at age 13 and continuing through... Werner Herzog directed this documentary about the puzzling relationship between himself and actor Klaus Kinski. Beginning with their apocalyptic first meeting at age 13 and continuing through AGUIRRE, THE WRATH OF GOD and their subsequent films together, MY BEST FIEND reveals the deep trust involved in maintaining such a powerful love-hate relationship as the glue that keeps them from following up on their plans to murder each other. Candid and intimate interviews with Kinski's costars are interspersed with rare and compelling behind-the-scenes and behind-the-camera footage from such classic Kinski/Herzog collaborations as AGUIRRE, THE WRATH OF GOD and FITZCARRALDO. Herzog himself dryly narrates as the magnetic and destructive energy that resulted when Herzog and Kinski clashed is contrasted with footage depicting their, at times, gentle and brotherly love, in this portrait of two artistic visionaries feeding off each other. From his early days as an aspiring and intense young actor to stints as a ranting and raving performance artist taunting audiences with claims that he was Jesus, Kinski's extraordinary and extravagant persona comes across strongly in Herzog's double-edged love letter of a film. [More]

Starring: Claudia Cardinale, Eva Mattes

Starring: Claudia Cardinale, Eva Mattes

Director: Werner Herzog

Director: Werner Herzog
Composer: Popol Vuh

[See More Credits]

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Release:

Aug 15, 2000

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for My Best Fiend

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1 - 20 (sorted by rotten rating)
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N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer | comment Comment
09/08/07
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
N/R

Herzog offers some evidence of Kinski's great human warmth, somewhat more of his rage of unimaginable proportions, and a good demonstration of Kinski's uncanny capacity to corkscrew his way into the frame.

Full Review Source: Village Voice | comment Comment
01/01/00
J. Hoberman
J. Hoberman
Village Voice
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
06/19/08
Todd McCarthy
Todd McCarthy
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Even if the guy is the German Marlon Brando, it's hard to sit munching your popcorn as he continually berates his fellow actors.

Full Review Source: E! Online | comment Comment
01/01/00
E! Online

As documentaries go, this one is second-rate, consisting of almost nothing but Herzog sitting in locations at which he and Kinski once filmed and reminiscing.

Full Review Source: EricDSnider.com | comment Comment
02/14/01
Eric D. Snider
Eric D. Snider
EricDSnider.com

What’s the difference between artistry and bravado? This isn’t a question I generally feel inclined to ask, but I’m compelled by the work of Werner Herzog, who scrambles the two until it’s difficult to tell which is which.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
01/01/00
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

My Best Fiend is Herzog's contentious remembrance of the late actor but, while fascinating, it really doesn't add up to much.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
06/05/02
Shlomo Schwartzberg
Shlomo Schwartzberg
Boxoffice Magazine

It feels a lot more like a cheap shot than a tribute.

Full Review Source: Film Freak Central | comment Comment
06/28/05
Walter Chaw
Walter Chaw
Film Freak Central

No review available.

comment Comment
06/03/05
Andy Klein
Andy Klein
Los Angeles CityBeat

No review available.

comment Comment
10/09/05
Chuck O'Leary
Chuck O'Leary
Fantastica Daily

Herzog reveals the genius and madness of his best fiend Klaus Kinski.

comment Comment
12/05/05
Cole Smithey
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

Klaus Kinski was one helluva showman, and no filmmaker was better able to capture the explosive talent of his favourite fiend than the director of this fine documentary, Warner Herzog.

Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
02/14/01
Dan Jardine
Dan Jardine
Apollo Guide

A genuine love/hate portrait of Kinski that acknowledges his acting talent but doesn't hesitate to capture his notorious behavior.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
01/01/00
Ed Kelleher
Ed Kelleher
Film Journal International

No review available.

comment Comment
06/11/05
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

While My Best Fiend -- does a splendid job of chronicling the high drama and creative pinnacles of their work together, it emphasizes the most public and bleakly amusing aspects of their story.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
01/01/00
Janet Maslin
Janet Maslin
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The film does become a fascinating portrait of the talented but mercurial Kinski.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
01/01/00
Jeff Vice
Jeff Vice
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

Herzog's and Kinski's collaboration was one of the strongest in cinema, and the movie does justice to that energy.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
05/26/06
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

The pairing of the director and actor invariably resulted in extraordinary creative collaborations. These men -- arrogant, ambitious, sadistic, fanatical, and in Kinski's case, probably insane -- certainly deserved each other.

Full Review Source: Pitch.com | comment Comment
11/12/02
Jon Niccum
Jon Niccum
Pitch.com

A thoughtful and clever examination by the director of his longstanding friendship and creative partnership with the late Klaus Kinski.

Full Review Source: All Movie Guide | comment Comment
10/26/07
Josh Ralske
Josh Ralske
All Movie Guide

Herzog's portrait of his friend is as mad as his films, and as fascinating.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
01/01/00
Marc Savlov
Marc Savlov
Austin Chronicle
 
 
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