"Jeder Für Sich und Gott Gegen Alle" or "The Enigma of Kasper Hauser" is a West German 110-minute movie from over 40 years ago. The writer and director is Werner Herzog (he was roughly 30 when he made this) and this is one of his 2 critically acclaimed films with Bruno S., who was (just like Kinski) Herzog's muse in the 1970s. Bruno S. was a man with the most uncommon and interesting vita. I will not go into detail here, but you can check this out for yourself. Other famous cast members here are Walter Ladengast, Brigitte Mira and Willy Semmelrogge (father of Martin). Kaspar Hauser is still a fairly famous name here in Germany and all we know is that he was a teenager apparently without any human contact in the first 16 years of his life when he appeared in Nuremberg in the 19th century. The exact details will probably always stay a mystery. But it was not Herzog's challenge here to shed light into that mystery, just to make audiences aware and give us his take on the tale.
The movie that won big at Cannes, but managed to get an Oscar nomination despite being Germany's official submission, is a quite extraordinary piece. Bruno S. was so interesting to watch from start to finish and he is definitely the heart and should of the film. It is packed with symbolisms and metaphors, so I was a bit disappointed that I did not like the film as much as I hoped. This was already the second or third time I watched it and even if I would say 1974 was more Fassbinder's than Herzog's, this was still a pretty good watch. It is interesting how Hauser perceives things so differently and basically in a 100% factual manner that often seems much more correct than the way the other characters see these things, because their approaches are so clouded by their education, their experience and most of all their bias. Church and religion is a crucial aspect in here. Overall, this film is worth a watch for everybody who likes Werner Herzog's films, especially his earlier works. However, it may not be the best choice to start with Herzog's work. It really it a more distinguished, more challenging film of his. Thumbs up.
The movie that won big at Cannes, but managed to get an Oscar nomination despite being Germany's official submission, is a quite extraordinary piece. Bruno S. was so interesting to watch from start to finish and he is definitely the heart and should of the film. It is packed with symbolisms and metaphors, so I was a bit disappointed that I did not like the film as much as I hoped. This was already the second or third time I watched it and even if I would say 1974 was more Fassbinder's than Herzog's, this was still a pretty good watch. It is interesting how Hauser perceives things so differently and basically in a 100% factual manner that often seems much more correct than the way the other characters see these things, because their approaches are so clouded by their education, their experience and most of all their bias. Church and religion is a crucial aspect in here. Overall, this film is worth a watch for everybody who likes Werner Herzog's films, especially his earlier works. However, it may not be the best choice to start with Herzog's work. It really it a more distinguished, more challenging film of his. Thumbs up.