Woyzeck (1979)

Director:

Werner Herzog

Writers:

Georg Büchner (play) and
Werner Herzog (writer)

Release Date:

24 August 1979 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Franz Woyzeck (Kinski) is a hapless, hopeless soldier, alone and powerless in society, assaulted from all sides by forces he cannot control.

Plot Keywords:

Soldier | Despair | Adulterous Wife | Character Study | Brutality

Awards:

3 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Klaus Kinski	...	Friedrich Johann Franz Woyzeck
Eva Mattes	...	Marie
Wolfgang Reichmann	...	Captain
Willy Semmelrogge	...	Doctor
Josef Bierbichler	...	Drum Major
Paul Burian	...	Andres
Volker Prechtel	...	Handwerksbursche (as Volker Prechtl)
Dieter Augustin	...	Marktschreier
Irm Hermann	...	Margret
Wolfgang Bächler	...	Jew
Rosemarie Heinikel		(as Rosy-Rosy Heinikel)
Herbert Fux	...	Unteroffizier
Thomas Mettke
Maria Mettke

Also Known As:

Werner Herzog's Woyzeck

Runtime:

Colombia:74 min | Hong Kong:81 min | USA:82 min

Country:

West Germany

Language:

German

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:PG | Finland:K-16

Filming Locations:

Telc, Czech Republic

Company:

Werner Herzog Filmproduktion

Trivia:

Klaus Kinski began filming this after having only a week-long break after the completion of Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht (1979), also directed by Werner Herzog. Kinski exploited his exhaustion for his character in this film.

Goofs:

Continuity: As a barber, Woyzeck smears some foam on the Captain's forehead, but when the camera changes, the foam's gone.

Quotes:

Marie: [to her man during a fight] I'd rather have a knife in my body than your hand on me.

Movie Connections:

Version of Woyzeck (1968) (TV)

Intense, Powerful, Disturbing

One of Werner Herzog's most unrecognized films, Woyzeck is utterly brilliant.

Few films succeed at portraying frustration and madness as much as this. Among them are Scorsese's "Taxi Driver" and Lodge Kerrigan's "Clean Shaven"

Klaus Kinski's performance is so good that just watching him is tiring, and the viewer is left anticipating when he will finally snap. Few films stick with me as much as this one and the sped up opening sequence is one of the most memorable opening scenes of any film I've seen.