Salt And Fire

I am a big fan of documentary films, especially films that tell a story on true stories, or real personalities. I think it all started for me when i saw Michael Moore´s really well made documentay film Bowling For Columbine, back in 2002. This film had some very interesting topics, especially about why ammunition is so easy to get in stores, and why America have so much more murders than in Canada, and many other subjects within the gun issues. Of course the film also focused on the Columbine massacre, a shootout no one will forget. Michael Moore continued to deliver very strong documentary films. But in 2005, i discovered a documentary film that basically changed my life. I watched director Werner Herzog´s documentary film Grizzly Man, about an odd american man named Timothy Treadwell. He was a bear enthusiast who lived in Alaska, to document the lives of grizzly bears. Unfortunately, he was found eaten by one bear. A man who spend so many years, trying to live with bears and understand them, could not escape the fact that they are animals. They have animal instincts, and attack no matter how nice you are. The documentary film Grizzly Man is a very strong and emotional film. You found out so much interesting facts about the life if Timothy Treadwell, and why he was so passioned about living in nature close to grizzly bears. Director Werner Herzog really digged deep into this story and gave us a film that is unforgettable. If you have not seen it, try and find it online to watch, or buy the dvd. Director Werner Herzog have directed many documentary films over the years, and he have also made feature films with big Hollywood stars. One example of his work, is of course his classic vampire film Nosferatu The Vampire from 1979. This was of course long before he made Grizzly Man, and his first big step into a Hollywood film was the film Rescue Dawn with actor Christian Bale. A good film in my opinion, and he decided to do his next film with Nicolas Cage called Bad Lieutenant: Port Of Call New Orleans. I actually thought this was a remake of the classic 1992 film with Harvey Keitel, but according to director Werner Herzog, his film is more of a re-imagining of the original film from the 90´s. I have not seen his film Queen Of The Desert with Nicole Kidman from 2015, but i read it was supposed to be ok. So here we are, with the latest film from director Werner Herzog, a film called Salt And Fire. I have not seen a trailer, or barely read about this film before i decided to see it, just to make it more fun. Is the legendary director back with a powerful film, or is this a film you might as well avoid ?

Three ecologists , Dr. Laura Sommerfeld ( Veronica Ferres ), Dr. Fabio Cavani ( Gael Garcia Bernal ) and Dr. Arnold Meier ( Volker Michalowski ) are sent to South America as part of a U.N. investigation into an ecological disaster of Salar de Uyni. As they arrive at the airport, they are kidnapped by CEO Matt Riley ( Michael Shannon ) and his armed men. Matt´s company is responsible for the ecological disaster. As a volcano nearby begin to show signs of erupting, Matt needs the ecologists help, to try and take control in this difficult situation.

Every director can make films, where some films are really good, and other choices may not turn out in a positive way. And this is where we find Salt And Fire. Considering that this film is directed by legendary documentary film maker Werner Herzog, you would expect him to deliver a strong story. You would also expect him to deliver a strong cast, giving us solid acting. Unfortunately, Salt And Fire feels very weak compared to his previous work. It is as if Werner just decided to get a good cast, but don´t really give them any interesting characters. Just look at some of the names in this cast, such as Michael Shannon, Veronica Ferres, Gael Garcia Bernal and Volker Michalowski. All of them have been in some really good films, and we know they are great actors. So why don´t they seem to care about their characters ? This might actually be one of the few times where i see Michael Shannon make a bad performance, and i love him as an actor. Take Shelter, Midnight Special, Mud, Before The Devil Knows You´re Dead, a list of really good films that he have been a part of. My only guess why these actors agreed to do this film, is because of their respect for director Werner Herzog. They might have been passionate about the story, but on screen you can´t really feel any connections between their characters. It is like they just say their lines, and walk around. Even if the kidnapping is supposed to be the intensive part of the film, is delivered without any passion. The story could have been interesting, since it is a story of a ecological disaster in Bolivia. But somehow, director Werner Herzog decides to go very light on this subject, and tell a story that you don´t really care about. Werner and Michael Shannon have worked together before, in the thriller My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done. This is actually a good film, with a very nice cast. I honestly don´t know what went wrong with Salt And Fire, there must be an explanation. Maybe the project did not turn out the way Werner thought it would do, or maybe he just wanted to make a film just to get cash. I have no idea what happened. All i know is that Salt And Fire is not a film worthy such a great cast, and a great director. A few scenes give a glimpse of what could have developed into something interesting, but eventually you don´t really care. Not an awful film all the way, but still a big disappointment. I really hope director Werner Herzog come back with his next film, with a much more structured film. Well all make mistakes sometimes, hopefully Werner regret this film and can look into the future instead.

Rating: DD