Mein liebster Feind - Klaus Kinski (1999)

Director:

Werner Herzog

Writer:

Werner Herzog (writer)

Release Date:

7 October 1999 (Germany)

Genre:

Documentary | Biography

Plot:

In the 1950s, when Werner Herzog was 13, he was sharing an apartment with Klaus Kinski, an ego-maniacal live-wire...

Plot Keywords:

Actor | Friendship | Mountain | Claim In Title | Memory

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Werner Herzog	...	Himself - Narrator / Interviewer (also archive footage)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Isabelle Adjani	...	Lucy Harker (archive footage)
Claudia Cardinale	...	Herself (also archive footage)
Justo González	...	Himself (also archive footage)
Mick Jagger	...	Himself - Wilbur (archive footage)
Klaus Kinski	...	Himself (archive footage)
Eva Mattes	...	Herself (also archive footage)
Benino Moreno Placido	...	Himself (also archive footage)
Beat Presser	...	Himself (archive footage)
Guillermo Ríos	...	Himself (archive footage)
Jason Robards	...	Fitzcarraldo (archive footage)
Walter Saxer	...	Himself (archive footage)
Maximilian Schell	...	Himself - Deserteur (archive footage)
Andrés Vicente	...	Himself (archive footage)

Also Known As:

25. tunti: Klaus Kinski (Finland) (TV title)
Mein liebster Feind (Germany) (short title)
My Best Fiend (Europe: English title)

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

UK | Germany | Finland | USA

Language:

German | English | Spanish

Color:

Black and White (archive footage) | Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

Australia:PG | Finland:K-11 | France:U | Germany:12 (w) | Singapore:PG | Spain:T

Company:

Arte

Quotes:

Kinski: I am not the Jesus of the official church who the police, bankers, judges, hangmen, officers, church bosses and other powerful people tolerate. I am not your Superstar.

Movie Connections:

Features Burden of Dreams (1982)

Utterly fascinating documentary about the extraordinary Klaus Kinski. Absolutely essential viewing for all Kinski buffs!

'My Best Friend' is one of the most fascinating documentaries I've ever seen about movies and acting. Werner Herzog and Klaus Kinski only made five movies together, but what extraordinary movies they are! Kinski made many, many movies, many of them absolutely awful (though all worth watching even if only for him). In fact it's difficult to think of any other actor of his undoubted talent who slummed it quite as much as he did. Herzog is regarded as one of Germany's greatest ever directors and made many fine movies without Kinski, but the two together were really something special. Just watch the astonishing 'Aguirre: The Wrath Of God' if you want to be floored by total genius! Much of this documentary deals with the trials and tribulations of that movie's troubled shoot, but their other four collaborations are also discussed. Their relationship was a complex one and really hard to get your head around. At times they literally tried to kill each other, but then there's footage included that shows their obvious warmth and affection for each other. You could say that this documentary provokes more questions than answers, and if you are looking for a straightforward explanation of Kinski's behaviour and what Herzog REALLY thought about him then maybe you could regard this as a failure. Anyway, I was enthralled and I think any fan of Kinski must regard this as essential viewing. From the opening footage of a raving Kinski on stage proclaiming he was Christ to the final moments of a butterfly flitting around his face this is mesmerizing stuff, and not to be missed by anyone with every a remote interest in this unique actor. Highly recommended!