10 Contemporary Films That Improve Greatly With A Second Viewing

3. Into The Abyss

Werner Herzog is a man who has had something of a second wind in recent years, with his current label as a great documentarian. Grizzly Man was, and still is, an absolutely enthralling and bitterly comical glance into the world of activist Timothy Treadwell. It set the bar for Herzog, and has since been a touchstone in his filmmaking career. When Into The Abyss did the rounds on the festival circuit, there was a lot of buzz, and expectations were high, pending its limited release. People where expecting the next Grizzly Man. Sadly, short sighted viewers such as myself, failed to see the merit in watching two deeply misguided, doomed men for 107 minutes. Where Grizzly Man had moments of intrigue and Cave Of Forgotten Dreams had ethereal beauty, Into The Abyss just felt grim and depressing. For a first time viewing, it left a disheartening and fleeting after taste. But give it another whirl, and oh boy, you are in for something tragically poignant and profoundly insightful. What Herzog achieves with Into The Abyss is a balanced glance into not just murder and the prison experience, but rather into death itself. The story of Burkett, Perry and Sandra Stotler is merely a catalyst for Herzog to explore the morbid and yet surprisingly purposeful industry of death: more specifically, death row. Herzog shows how in the current climate of death sentences - sadness and bereavement just leads to further anguish and suffering. We get a window into all of those affected, including the man responsible for flicking the switch in the execution chamber. It is all still a tad gloomy, but what stands out on a second viewing is Herzog€™s brazen ability to guide his subjects toward any topic of his choosing. The most rewarding moments of Into The Abyss come when we see how despite his own intentions to stay distant, even Herzog himself draws close to those he films. There is no cynicism, no typecasting - Into The Abyss is pure and meaningful. Herzog wants us to be refined by the experience, not disheartened. Into The Abyss is not a message of regret and melancholy, it is a beacon of perspective, intended to give us a reason for improving the world and relationships around us.