Lektionen in Finsternis (1992)

Director:

Werner Herzog

Writer:

Werner Herzog (writer)

Release Date:

26 October 2002 (Hong Kong)

Genre:

Documentary | Sci-Fi | War

Plot:

This film shows the disaster of the Kuwaitian oil fields in flames. In contrast to the common documentary...

Plot Keywords:

Interview | Flame | Oil Field | Oil | Inferno

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Werner Herzog

...

Narrator (voice)

Also Known As:

Lessons of Darkness (USA) (video title)

Runtime:

50 min

Country:

France | UK | Germany

Language:

German | English | Arabic

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Filming Locations:

Kuwait

Company:

Canal+

Trivia:

Director Werner Herzog says he prefers to think of this as a science fiction film, not a documentary.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: In an aerial shot, the shadow of the camera's helicopter is visible (about 10 minutes, 8 seconds into the film).

Quotes:

Narrator: This was once a forest before it was covered with oil. Everything that looks like water is in actuality oil. Ponds and lakes are spread out all over the land. The oil is treacherous because it reflects the sky. The oil is trying to disguise itself as water.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Last Winter (2006)

of another world

There is a sense with this documentary, that the middle east is part of another world altogether. It opens with a fly over of Kuwait pre-war, looking like a place far removed from this world, with its quasi-religious skyscrapers welcoming the camera as it comes over the port. Satellites are shown post-war, blown apart in a tangled mass resembling a fallen space station. Echoing a sci-fi, but with a ghostlike feeling only reality can achieve. The images are reinforced by some of the most moving music ever composed. Herzog struggles with a large lump in his throat, to clarify the situation with infrequent narration. The situation speaks for itself, no words are necessary, the images and the music combine to get as close to representing the unrepresentable as possible. I recommend Godfrey Reggio's Koyaanisqatsi (1983) to fellow admires of this film, and it's message.