Sunday, May 14, 2006
Grizzly Man (2005)
There are two sorts of documentaries: those that serve to lecture on historical events in an objective manner, and those that serve to document the lives of specific peoples, who may not have had an impact on the history of the world, but who made an impact on the filmmaker who wanted to share such a story with the world. Werner Herzog’s Grizzly Man is not a tale of what is right or wrong, a guide of “what not to do”, nor is it one of a man who serves as an exemplary human being. Instead, this documentary serves as glimpse of Timothy Treadwell’s final summers living among the grizzlies in Alaska; this is a man who lived alone with some of nature’s most predatory beasts, and who managed to live among them for thirteen years before being slain by one in 2003. Edited down from hours of tape filmed by Treadwell himself (and for the last two years, his ‘girlfriend’ Amie Huguenard, who was also killed), Werner Herzog has managed to create a masterpiece in documentary film-making, skimming the fine line between devotion and insanity.There is a dualistic nature to this film: not only does it document the daily life of the grizzly bear, but it also serves as a study on the character of naturalist Timothy Treadwell. The result has been heated discussion amongst those who believed him to be completely out of touch with reality and those who respected him for the love he showed to the animals ‘he swore to protect’. My stance is somewhere in the middle, which is what Werner Herzog seems to have wanted by the end of his film: Timothy Treadwell was completely out of touch with reality, ignoring the obvious dangers of living in extreme proximity to the grizzly population; but one cannot help but admire his love and devotion for the animals, not to mention the fact that he was able to survive close encounters with them for thirteen years. There is a truly a streak of madness in the character of Timothy Treadwell, a trait that immediately related him to children at schools he would attend. His idiosyncrasies only act as a magnet to viewers. I, for one, could not help but admire his passions, despite acknowledging his delusions.
While the character of Timothy Treadwell acts as an immediate draw to the documentary, the editing skills of Werner Herzog and the original music by Richard Thompson craft a hauntingly beautiful portrait of the Alaskan wilderness. The footage caught on tape by Treadwell and Huguenard is some of the finest to be found of the grizzly population, and some scenes are simply astounding. Be it footage of bears fighting for a mate, playful foxes, or Timothy rambling his thoughts on life and love,
Grizzly Man never bores. While a few of the interviews conducted by Herzog for the purposes of this film could have been cut, the core footage leading up to the gruesome demise of Treadwell and Huguenard leaves never a dull moment. # posted by Andres Canella : 6:15 PM
