Toronto 2011 Review: Werner Herzog's Into The Abyss, A Story of Life, A Story of Death

rating: 5

Werner Herzog is an incredibly prolific filmmaker. This man makes inspiring documentaries faster than I cook meals (seriously, an hour and a half to cook a Spanish Omelette. I only wish I were joking). Into The Abyss: A Story Of Life, A Story Of Death, is yet another in a long line of compelling films about less than ordinary subjects, given what I like to refer to as €œThe Herzog Flare€. Herzog joked before the film started that technically €œInto The Abyss€ could have been the title of any of his documentaries, and he€™s certainly right there. His documentaries have a way of transcending the surface of the issue and always come out as rather profound, something many filmmakers wish they were capable of. Now, I must admit, when it comes to seeing Herzog documentaries in special screenings, it seems I am cursed, I always end up arriving a little later than I probably should and end up sitting at the very front, with the theatre packed out. This was a nuisance in Cave Of Forgotten Dreams, and it had occurred to me again for Into The Abyss but anyway, my grumbling was swiftly obliterated by the amazing presence of one Mr Werner Herzog ambling onto the stage. I had no idea he was going to be there. I, along with many of the patrons was flung out of my seat by instinct and greeted the Bavarian master with a long standing ovation. Into The Abyss originally started as part of Herzog€™s television miniseries of documentaries where he interviews death row inmates and opens a discussion about the moral ethics of Capital Punishment. Herzog stated before the film that he is entirely against taking another life under any circumstances. He admitted that he has no salient argument, only a story, and he recounted the well trodden history of the Nazi€™s genocide in brief. It is arguable that there is a marked difference between putting to death a convicted killer and mass genocide, but the debate, at least from my perspective is less of €œWe shouldn€™t kill each other€, but more crucially €œWhat gives us the right to decide whether another person lives or dies?€ Into The Abyss focuses on Michael Perry and Jason Burkett, two youths who killed three people in cold blooded murder, all so they could gain possession of a red camaro that they ended up only keeping for less than 72 hours. The pair were tried separately, Michael Perry was given the death penalty and Jason Burkett got off with a life sentence, thanks largely to do with the testimony provided in court by Burkett€™s incarcerated father, which he recounts in agonising detail in the film. As we have come to expect from a Herzog documentary we encounter a myriad of weird and wonderful interviewees who are surprisingly candid despite the nature of what they are being asked about. Herzog only had one interview with most of the people in this film, so it€™s amazing that he managed to procure such a wealth of personal information and intensely private thoughts and feelings. This is most likely a product of Herzog€™s inquisitive outside looking in nature and the way he conducts his €œconversations€ asking seemingly asinine questions that slowly pick away at the hard shell of a person, until he exposes their very core and leaves them vulnerable. The perfect example of this is the opening conversation which is between Herzog and a priest, who is at first spouting off cornball TV preacher lines and seemingly, out of nowhere, Herzog asks him a question about squirrels, that seems utterly directionless, and yet, suddenly, right before our very eyes the man cracks and all of his emotions pour out in something that is chillingly effective. Herzog joked after the screening €œThey don€™t teach you that in Film School.€ On the topic of interview subjects, special mention must be given to Fred Allen, a captain at the death house in Huntsville Texas. In his career he had personally overseen over 125 executions. His account is incredibly moving and his reasons for retiring, even more so. His anecdote about €œlive your dash to the full€ is a stirring moment so I won€™t spoil that here. Ultimately, what Herzog has crafted here is yet another profoundly fantastic documentary that will stay with you long after the credits have rolled. It depicts the absurdities, the atrocities and the weaknesses of men, whilst also raising some very interesting questions. Though he states openly and honestly at the opening of the film that he is against Capital Punishment he actually forsakes his own opinion to the goal of creating a portrait of a complex issue that is incredibly balanced and one could easily argue on either side of the debate that he has effectively argued your point. When someone can take fact and display it in an uncompromising, raw way and yet still maintain a balanced argument... well then that€™s just confirmation of his Herzog€™s genius. The Master strikes again. Remember folks, live your dash to the full.