Werner Herzog

CHICAGO – No matter which side of the capital punishment debate you fall on, Werner Herzog’s “Into the Abyss” is a masterful documentary, one you simply must see. It brilliantly reflects the complexities of one of the most divisive issues of our time. Herzog is vocally against the death penalty but he doesn’t present a case that would help solidify his arguments. He could have made a film about someone wrongly convicted. Instead, he dares to tell the story of someone who arguably deserves to die and then makes the emotionally difficult case that he still should not.

CHICAGO – Werner Herzog’s “Cave of Forgotten Dreams” is, in many ways, the ultimate documentary from one of our best living filmmakers in that it perfectly captures something notable about the man himself. The film, recently released on Blu-ray and DVD, is a document of the oldest existing cave paintings, stunning artwork that dates back thousands of years. In many ways, what the prehistoric men did in those caves is not unlike what Herzog himself has been doing — recording the natural world for future generations. It makes one wonder if people will watch this work in 10,000 years.

Rating: 5.0/5.0

CHICAGO – Through both his fictional and documentary work, Werner Herzog has long been interested in the workings of the natural world and our place in it. His new film, “Into the Abyss,” may at first seem like a departure from those themes but it centers on a subject that defies the natural world and order – the taking of another life. Easily one of the best documentaries of the year, this riveting, haunting piece of work fits perfectly into Herzog’s resume as one of our most important living filmmakers.

CHICAGO – In our latest documentary edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 50 admit-two movie passes up for grabs to the advance Chicago screening of IFC Films’ “Into the Abyss” from Werner Herzog about why people kill – and why a state kills!

CHICAGO – Where are the vital connections between our ancient ancestors and our creative, technological selves? Prehistoric cave drawings, the oldest ever discovered, are showcased in Werner Herzog’s new documentary, “Cave of Forgotten Dreams.” The link between who they are and who are we becomes the theme of this remarkable exposition.

Rating: 2.5/5.0

CHICAGO – When David Lynch came to Chicago for an “Inland Empire” screening back in 2007, he offered memorable advice to a moviegoer baffled by his work. He said that his audience should meditate not on the “intellectual experience” provided by his films, but the emotional ideas that they conjure. Meditating on anything else would prove useless because, as Lynch put it, “If you meditate on buttermilk, you’ll end up going to the dairy.”

CHICAGO – 2010 is clearly the year of New Orleans with a Saints Superbowl victory, HBO’s highly acclaimed “Treme” debuting this Sunday and the highly underrated and somewhat excellent “Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans,” starring Nicolas Cage and Eva Mendes, debuting on Blu-ray and DVD tomorrow, April 6th, 2010.

CHICAGO – The wonder of a filmmaker’s art and perspective is the ability to challenge and reflect the absurdity of our own nature back to us. Few filmmakers have done more to add provocation to that sensibility than Harmony Korine.

CHICAGO – Haunted by the non-fictional ghost he was portraying, Steve Zahn – who previously had been typecast by Hollywood as a comic reliever – lost 40 dead-serious pounds for “Rescue Dawn” to walk the same footsteps of a POW four decades earlier.