The White Diamond (2004)

THE WHITE DIAMOND is a film about the daring adventure of exploring rainforest canopy with a novel flying device-the Jungle Airship. Airship engineer Dr.Graham Dorrington embarks on a trip ... See full summary »

Director:

Werner Herzog

Writers:

Werner Herzog (commentary), Rudolph Herzog (original screenplay),

Stars:

Werner Herzog, Graham Dorrington, Dieter Plage

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview:
Werner Herzog	...	Himself / narrator
Graham Dorrington	...	Himself (as Dr. Graham Dorrington)
Dieter Plage	...	Himself (archive footage) (as Götz Dieter Plage)
Adrian de Schryver	...	Himself (archive footage)
Annette Scheurich	...	Herself
Marc Anthony Yhap	...	Himself
Michael Wilk	...	Himself (as Dr. Michael Wilk)
Anthony Melville	...	Himself
Jan-Peter Meewes	...	Himself
Jason Gibson	...	Himself

Storyline

THE WHITE DIAMOND is a film about the daring adventure of exploring rainforest canopy with a novel flying device-the Jungle Airship. Airship engineer Dr.Graham Dorrington embarks on a trip to the giant Kaieteur Falls in the heart of Guyana, hoping to fly his helium-filled invention above the tree-tops. But this logistic effort will not be without risk. Twelve years ago, a similar expedition into the unique habitat of the canopy ended in disaster when Dorrington's friend Dieter Plage fell to his death. With the expedition is Werner Herzog, setting out now with a new prototype of the airship into the Lost World of the pristine rain forest of this little explored area of the world, to record and tell this unique story in an extraordinary, feature-documentary film.

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Plot Keywords:

airship | expedition | canopy | rain forest | jungle | 

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Genres:

Documentary | Biography

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Details

Country:

Germany Japan UK

Language:

English German

Release Date:

10 March 2005 (Germany)

Also Known As:

A fehér gyémánt

Filming Locations:

Cardington Airship Hangars, Bedfordshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

€1,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Marco Polo Film AG, NDR Naturfilm, NHK

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Marc Anthony Yhap: On this pleasant morning I'm about to fly, and surely I would like to take my rooster with me, but he's somewhere around. I would like to take him on this flight.
Werner Herzog: Why your rooster?
Marc Anthony Yhap: Oh, my rooster means so much to me. Early in the morning at 5:30 he crows and then he crows again when there is some change in weather patterns. He's such a lovely guy, my rooster. I would like to take him with me on this voyage. First flight, me in this lovely balloon, this creation.

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Connections

References Cobra Verde (1987)

User Reviews

The landscape of the soul

Herzog loves to explore the nature within. He has been doing this ever since he started out as a filmmaker. Aguirre, Wrath of God is a good example. There nature mirrors what is happening with in the persons. He does that same thing here.

A lesser filmmaker would only have concentrated on the technical marvel and the landscape. He/she would have overlooked the dreams and life of Marc Anthony Yhap (a hired hand) and Graham Dorrington's bleeding heart because of mistakes in the past. Inner landscape which are just as fascinating as the thousands of birds diving under the waterfall or the reflection in the raindrop.

I thought this film was like a meditation on life, past, present, dreams, failures, cultures and harmony with nature. I loved how Herzog would keep the shots longer than most directors would have, like when Graham Dorrington puts on his jet suit and pretend to fly like superman. And the landscape pictures where just breathtaking.

This is one of Herzog's best film, and that's saying a lot.