Herz aus Glas (1976)

Herz aus Glas: Directed by Werner Herzog. With Josef Bierbichler, Stefan Güttler, Clemens Scheitz, Volker Prechtel. The foreman of a small village glassworks dies without revealing the secret to the famous “Ruby Glass”.

“Each of Herzogu0026#39;s films is an experiment in one way or another. Heart of Glass is one of the most overtly experimental of the lot. Like almost all of Herzogu0026#39;s films, Heart of Glass makes the most of spectacular landscapes and visual context – every scene is, in its own way, a beautiful still-life. However, in Heart of Glass, the effect of the visual context is compounded by the fact that almost every member of the cast – throughout the entire film – is in a state of hypnosis. Predictably, the acting is, to say the least, avant-garde. Nevertheless, characterization is strong, and more importantly, this bizarre, somewhat jarring method of execution creates the filmu0026#39;s time and place just as much as the gorgeous landscape shots.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eHeart of Glass takes place in 19th century Bavaria. The Directoru0026#39;s comments (always worth hearing after viewing a Herzog film) indicate that Herzog grew up in a place very much like this. This doesnu0026#39;t stop Herzog from turning his keen analysis of the human condition and modal personalities to attack the central problems of life in this time and place. The story involves a small town in crisis. The one person who holds the secret that is the key to the townu0026#39;s prosperity has taken that secret to his grave, and the master of the glass factory in which he worked is losing his mind looking for a solution. Meanwhile, one of the filmu0026#39;s more sympathetic characteru0026#39;s, a deeply insightful prophet/lunatic shepherd (with no sheep), Hias, predicts an even greater crisis.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eHerzogu0026#39;s most consistent theme – his view of human nature – is powerfully illustrated in Heart of Glass. As the great director has often done, Herzog universalizes his view by giving us an essentially alien, dream-like setting and atmosphere. The effect of the castu0026#39;s hypnotic state is even more jarring than the sheer intensity of Klaus Kinskiu0026#39;s performances in many of Herzogu0026#39;s films from this period, and Heart of Glass is as avant-garde as some of his later efforts (such as The Great Blue Yonder). In other words, the average cinema-goer will have a difficult time with this one.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eRecommended for Herzog, avant-garde and art-film fans. Not recommended for anybody else.”