Herzog takes a film crew to the island of Guadeloupe when he hears that the volcano on the island is going to erupt. Everyone has left, except for one old man who refuses to leave. Herzog catches the eeriness of an abandoned city, with stop lights cycling over an empty intersection
they developed a model of observational filmmaking closely associated with photojournalism.
“The basic organizing principle behind a Drew film”, according to Stephen Mamber, “can usually be stated in the form of a success-or-failure question. Will John Kennedy win the election, or will Hubert Humphrey?”
As Drew himself described the project, “it would be a theater without actors; it would be plays without playwrights; it would be reporting without summary and opinion; it would be the ability to look in on people’s lives at crucial times from which you could deduce ertain things, and see a kind of truth, that can only be gotten from personal experience.”
To see how people react in real-life situations of intense physical pressure – that’s the distinguishing promise of the Drew films.
waiting for an inevitable catastrophe
A Report by Werner Herzog——suggests the context of eyewitness journalism and indicates that this is an authored film.
spoken in a tense and hushed voice, the commentary immediately establishes the success-or-failure question and thus provides the film’s governing logic of organization.
With the entire population having been evacuated, the empty spaces provide a physical setting for evoking the emotional experience of those who fled in haste.
In one passage, the camera is mounted on the front of an unseen car, driving unimpeded through deserted city streets. This is Herzog’s version of the ‘phantom ride’, what Tom Gunning has elsewhere described as ‘early cinema’s most powerful landscape form.’ Aerials further develop this form, extending it up into the sky.
Filming in a local history museum, the camera shows a selection of archival images and artifacts. Recorded as cinematic signifiers, they not only bear witness to past catastrophe but also become subjunctive images of anticipation.
‘It is an actual photo, not a painting.’ The comment obviously puts emphasis on the indexical relationship of image and reality. In effect, however, it suggests “not the immediacy of ‘reality’, but rather the distancing of art, the sense that the apocalyptic event can only be alluded to, legendized or figured as doomsday through the diffusion and mediation of images.”
Clear indication is about to erupt. Late August. 75 thousands inhabitants were evacuated. Excited.One peasant refused to leave.deserted. Traffic light, refrigerator, art condition, TV set. It was a comfort for us not having the law hanging around. Shops had been cleared. Scattered on the ground. Dogs...no more garbage to garvenge. A pier devoid of ships.
Seismic crisis. scientist fled in a boat. The disaster is inevitable within the next few hours. 25 miles camera. Flew the last hours of town and last pictures taken of it.
Tranquil and Serenity.
The quite and deserted atmosphere of the town was so intense that we became fascinated and eager to take a look at the source of the silence namely as the crater of the volcano itself. The greatest dangers came from toxic gas. For the first time became to get scared. Toxic gas Clouds. A few hours later, things look better because the wind turns. We decided to carry on. We are able to film for several hours without anxiety. The ground was hot and rather unsteady. Bottomless Fissures where the hot gas were pouring. Camera man left spectekies behind. pick up the next day.
People are aware of dangerous because there was a eruption on the neighboring island. Warnings were identical to those of LA. The population intended to flee. But since there are some elections that has already be postponed for other reasons that governor persuaded the people to stay. Only a few hundred had left, all others remained. The horrified rescue team found not a living soul. People had been chard to in cinder. No usual expulsion of larva. expelled a cloud of gas. The whole things could only have taken seconds.
It was a young thief. That he only survived because he was the baddest guy in town. In underground solitary confinement. Side show Attraction in circus.
The hours past, and the waiting began. Nobody knew the eruption is gonna happen the next minute or next day. Because no one can see a thing, the fear became anonymous.
MAN ONE with a cat.
I’m here because it’s god’s will. I’m waiting for my death. And I wouldn’t know where I’m gonna go anyway. I haven’t a cent. I am poor. Yes and no one knows when it will come. It’s as god as commanded. Like life, Death is forever. I haven’t the slightly fear. He is taken everyone to his “prison”. Death waits forever. It’s eternal. I am not the sli... why should I leave. I made peace with myself with what insides me. I have nothing at all and I am waiting for death. You see this is how I’m waiting. “Eyes closed and arms stretched, lying straight.” Talking became singing. I have lived through so many typhoons.
There is not a thing you can do.
I am not afraid of death. Here I am and I look after the ani all the times. They are kept behind. So I am looking after them I am saving them. And if gets much worse and really bad, maybe I will clear out today. I want to see my children. But I am not afraid of dying. I am fifty five now. I am not afraid. I have fifteen children. Waiving hands. I’m here and I am poor. I only have myself to look after. I can also walk to LA. But if you are gonna take me to XX, I will go along.
After some weeks, population drifted back in town. Never before in the history of volcanology where signals of such magnitude measured, and yet nothing happened. The volcano would pro be soon forgotten, in my memory it is not the volcano that remains, but the neglected oblivion in which those black people live.
There were something pathetic for us in the shooting of this picture and therefore it ended a little bit embarrassing.
Now It has become a report of an inevitable catastrophe that did not take place.
【答】这是一个你第二天一早醒来，可能就已不复存在的小岛，飞去那儿拍摄《苏弗雷火山》，我不否认，这是一次盲目的赌博，同时也是对老婆孩子热炕头那种生活的逾矩。如果你家有娇妻，有小孩，那就不应该做这种事。我们当初之所以决定要去，那是因为就在不久之前，在全世界范围内，有一连串强烈地震爆发，力度惊人。危地马拉死了数千人，中国死了二十五万，菲律宾也经历了一次大地震。那些专家信誓旦旦地表示，瓜德鲁普岛上，几乎百分百会火山爆发。那座火山本身所释放出的信号，也和与之相邻的马提尼克岛培雷火山（Mount Pelée）1902年那次令三万人丧生的大爆发之前，所表现出的特征一模一样。所有人都相信，这一次，苏弗雷火山的爆发，肯定不只是四处喷溅一些岩浆那么简单。它的力度，应该会相当于数颗广岛原子弹那么厉害。因此，要是它当初真爆发了，而我们又处在距其七八公里的半径范围内，那我们肯定也只能听天由命了。而对我来说，情况就更复杂了。我当时行动不怎么灵敏，因为数周之前我踢球时受了伤，就在去瓜德鲁普的不久之前，才刚自行动摘除石膏。影片的完整片名：《苏弗雷火山：等待一场无法避免的大灾难》（La Soufrière:Waiting for an Unavoidable Catastrophe），本身就能说明，我们那次拍摄任务，本质上就是荒唐的。
科长发布了他《江湖儿女〉的一段视频，有关火山。我突然想起了赫尔佐格<苏弗雷火山>，大师在这电影里继续他的诗意。首先展示了该山柔和的一面，青翠的山坡上流动着几条小溪。接着摄影机（手提）立刻带观众穿过弃置的村镇，首先进入画面的是一只女人的白鞋掉落在一栋百花围绕的别墅前。然后两只笨驴和一只饿了好些天的小猪在街上闲逛。一家弃置了的医院门窗都是开着的。码头依旧映照着温煦的阳光，几只海鸟懒洋洋地列队在船坞前的木桩上。整个画面看不到一艘船，看不到一个人，一切空的可怕。再加上不时传来的火山怒吼，给人一种恐惧的压迫感。n这些只是大环境的写照而已。接着摄影机沿着山坡逐渐推进，最后来到一个身穿白衫的老头跟前。他很自在的躺在山坡。身边什么东西也没有，只有一只黑白相间的肥猫，这时候导演本人弯着腰走了过去，并和他打了招呼。这老头回了一笑，但并没有起身。导演说他似乎是这方圆百里唯一仅存的人。老头说：‘这就是人生，也是上帝安排好的，我没有什么可怕的，因为上帝马上要把这里整顿一下，这对我来说反倒是永生“导演提醒他可是坐在火药库上“不错，可是我哪天不是这样来着？我都躺了一辈子了”n导演问他是否可以唱支歌，随便什么曲子都行，老头润了润喉咙，露出仅存的两颗牙，开始唱一首老掉牙的法国情歌《悲伤的奴隶》。他低沉沙哑的声音，与地震地的火山，构成一幅很奇特的世界末日的景观。
cinémavérité
Robert Drew
they developed a model of observational filmmaking closely associated with photojournalism.
“The basic organizing principle behind a Drew film”, according to Stephen Mamber, “can usually be stated in the form of a success-or-failure question. Will John Kennedy win the election, or will Hubert Humphrey?”
As Drew himself described the project, “it would be a theater without actors; it would be plays without playwrights; it would be reporting without summary and opinion; it would be the ability to look in on people’s lives at crucial times from which you could deduce ertain things, and see a kind of truth, that can only be gotten from personal experience.”
To see how people react in real-life situations of intense physical pressure – that’s the distinguishing promise of the Drew films.
waiting for an inevitable catastrophe
A Report by Werner Herzog——suggests the context of eyewitness journalism and indicates that this is an authored film.
spoken in a tense and hushed voice, the commentary immediately establishes the success-or-failure question and thus provides the film’s governing logic of organization.
With the entire population having been evacuated, the empty spaces provide a physical setting for evoking the emotional experience of those who fled in haste.
In one passage, the camera is mounted on the front of an unseen car, driving unimpeded through deserted city streets. This is Herzog’s version of the ‘phantom ride’, what Tom Gunning has elsewhere described as ‘early cinema’s most powerful landscape form.’ Aerials further develop this form, extending it up into the sky.
Filming in a local history museum, the camera shows a selection of archival images and artifacts. Recorded as cinematic signifiers, they not only bear witness to past catastrophe but also become subjunctive images of anticipation.
‘It is an actual photo, not a painting.’ The comment obviously puts emphasis on the indexical relationship of image and reality. In effect, however, it suggests “not the immediacy of ‘reality’, but rather the distancing of art, the sense that the apocalyptic event can only be alluded to, legendized or figured as doomsday through the diffusion and mediation of images.”
Late August. 75 thousands inhabitants were evacuated.
Excited.One peasant refused to leave.deserted.
Traffic light, refrigerator, art condition, TV set.
It was a comfort for us not having the law hanging around.
Shops had been cleared. Scattered on the ground.
Dogs...no more garbage to garvenge.
A pier devoid of ships.
Seismic crisis. scientist fled in a boat.
The disaster is inevitable within the next few hours. 25 miles camera.
Flew the last hours of town and last pictures taken of it.
Tranquil and Serenity.
The quite and deserted atmosphere of the town was so intense that we became fascinated and eager to take a look at the source of the silence namely as the crater of the volcano itself.
The greatest dangers came from toxic gas.
For the first time became to get scared.
Toxic gas Clouds.
A few hours later, things look better because the wind turns. We decided to carry on.
We are able to film for several hours without anxiety.
The ground was hot and rather unsteady.
Bottomless Fissures where the hot gas were pouring.
Camera man left spectekies behind. pick up the next day.
People are aware of dangerous because there was a eruption on the neighboring island. Warnings were identical to those of LA.
The population intended to flee. But since there are some elections that has already be postponed for other reasons that governor persuaded the people to stay. Only a few hundred had left, all others remained.
The horrified rescue team found not a living soul. People had been chard to in cinder.
No usual expulsion of larva. expelled a cloud of gas. The whole things could only have taken seconds.
It was a young thief. That he only survived because he was the baddest guy in town.
In underground solitary confinement. Side show Attraction in circus.
The hours past, and the waiting began. Nobody knew the eruption is gonna happen the next minute or next day. Because no one can see a thing, the fear became anonymous.
MAN ONE with a cat.
I’m here because it’s god’s will. I’m waiting for my death. And I wouldn’t know where I’m gonna go anyway. I haven’t a cent. I am poor. Yes and no one knows when it will come.
It’s as god as commanded. Like life, Death is forever. I haven’t the slightly fear. He is taken everyone to his “prison”. Death waits forever. It’s eternal. I am not the sli...
why should I leave. I made peace with myself with what insides me. I have nothing at all and I am waiting for death. You see this is how I’m waiting. “Eyes closed and arms stretched, lying straight.” Talking became singing. I have lived through so many typhoons.
There is not a thing you can do.
I am not afraid of death. Here I am and I look after the ani all the times. They are kept behind. So I am looking after them I am saving them. And if gets much worse and really bad, maybe I will clear out today. I want to see my children. But I am not afraid of dying. I am fifty five now. I am not afraid.
I have fifteen children. Waiving hands.
I’m here and I am poor. I only have myself to look after.
I can also walk to LA. But if you are gonna take me to XX, I will go along.
After some weeks, population drifted back in town.
Never before in the history of volcanology where signals of such magnitude measured, and yet nothing happened.
The volcano would pro be soon forgotten, in my memory it is not the volcano that remains, but the neglected oblivion in which those black people live.
There were something pathetic for us in the shooting of this picture and therefore it ended a little bit embarrassing.
Now It has become a report of an inevitable catastrophe that did not take place.
赫尔佐格并不是一位只对自然环境感兴趣的导演，他的电影造成了这种错觉：亚马逊河和热带丛林（《阿基尔，上帝的愤怒》和《陆上行舟》），俄罗斯西伯利亚针叶林（《快乐的人们》），南极的冰原（《在世界尽头相遇 》），喀喇昆仑山脉（《发光的山》），阿拉斯加州卡特迈国家公园及自然保护区（《灰熊人》），活火山（《苏弗雷火山》和《进入地狱》），巴塔哥尼亚的“瑟拉托里”山（《石头的呐喊》）……当然，还能在赫尔佐格的电影中找到更多的例子，即便那些未曾出现自然景观的纪录片或历史题材的剧情片，也会象征性地在片头设置自然景观的镜头（比如《沉默与黑暗的世界》《卡斯帕尔·豪泽尔之谜 》），并配上极富宗教感的音乐或歌声。
赫尔佐格的自然主义企图挖掘出那个原初世界，但赫尔佐格不是单为了表现自然的野性与神秘，才去拍电影的，这样他的作品只能沦为带有猎奇和科教色彩的风光纪录片。相反，他是为了表现极端环境下人内在的情感和精神状态，才拍摄了数量如此众多的作品。自然环境越为极端（雪山、巨峰、丛林、湍流……），越具有一种强加于角色上的外在力量，触动他们的感知，迫使他们做出回应，而从这些回应中展示出了人内在的复杂心理。《阿基尔，上帝的愤怒》中，金斯基饰演的阿基尔面对神秘热带丛林不是莫名陷入了可怕的幻觉？
在《苏弗雷火山》这部纪录片中那样，赫尔佐格并不是为了拍摄火山喷发的场景，而是观察那位在所有人都撤离后悠闲躺在树下的人。他感兴趣的是面对极端环境做出异常举动的人，而不是环境本身。环境与其说是赫尔佐格想表现的对象（有时候确实如此），不如将其看成是激发角色情动、并进而引致其反应的背景装置。电影中的环境还未曾发挥过如此重大的作用，即便在安东尼奥尼的电影里，环境也只是用来显示角色情感状态的外在症象。如此似乎能理解赫尔佐格为何总是标志性地在电影一开始放上一些对自然景观的纪录片段。
赫尔佐格拒绝摄影棚，将摄影机直接搬入大自然和在真实的场景中拍摄，其原因也在于此：唯有在最自然的环境中，角色才会像在现实生活中那般做出直接又自然的反映。这种高度的真实性反映在了赫尔佐格制作的虚构剧情片中，我想到了《卡斯帕尔·豪泽尔之谜 》这部电影中对自然声响和环境音效的真实还原，剧情片于是变得像纪录片一样让人感觉“真实”如在目前。而在纪录片中，赫尔佐格极富个人色彩的画外音则将客观的纪录变成主观的影像建构。最明显的例子是《灰熊人》，大部分影像是蒂莫西·崔德威尔拍摄的日常纪录，但在赫尔佐格手上却变换为一部慢慢揭开“剧情”的作品，这种极富观赏性的特色指向了剧情片的界定范围。
作者|赫尔佐格n译者|黄渊n转载自《赫尔佐格谈电影》第202-205页
《苏弗雷火山》是在一座加勒比海小岛上拍摄的，当时你正在等待一场“无法避免的大灾难”。
【答】这电影里确实有种自我嘲讽的元素存在。一切看似危险、命中注定必有一劫的事情，弄到最后却总是以极度的平庸来作为收场。事后回头再看，我必须要双膝跪地，感谢上帝，感激当初我们没遇上相反的结果。我们没能等到那场片中本可能会有的强力高潮戏，那是我们运气好。如果电影拍着拍着，我和两位同事真被轰到了半空中，那就可笑了。
当时我正在剪《史楚锡流浪记》，听说有座火山即将爆发，发现原本有着八万人口的瓜德鲁普岛，此时已被疏散一空，只剩下一个人拒绝离开，我立刻便有了个念头，我要和他谈谈，了解一下他面对死亡，究竞抱有什么态度。我们之所以会去岛上，会拍这部电影，全是因为他。我可以向你保证，我们去岛上，不是因为我觉得坐在一座要爆炸的火山上，那是件好玩的事。我从事的行业是电影，不是自杀。当时，我给经常合作的那位电视台高管打了电话，包括《木雕家斯泰纳的彻底忘我》在内，我们一起做过不少项目。那时候他正巧在开会，于是我让他助手把他从会议室里拉出来。我不管他人在哪儿，在做什么，在会见多重要的大人物，我只需要占用他一分钟时间。“告诉他，赫尔佐格必须要跟他讲话，只要一分钟就够了。”各种准备工作，必须立即就要开始着手做。如果我们不能在几小时内就动身，或许就赶不上了。火山随时会爆发，到晚了也就拍不成这电影了。一分钟不到的时间里，我把整个情况给他解释了一遍。“立刻动身去拍。”他对我说。“那合同怎么办？”我问。“只要你能活着回来，”他说，“合同不是问题。”这种信任，让我很爱这个男人。请允许我报上他的名字：曼弗雷德·康策尔曼（Manfred Konzelmann），一个信念坚定的人。
艾德·拉赫曼由纽约启程，我和约格·施密特-赖特怀恩则从德国出发。我们在瓜德鲁普的皮特角（Pointe-à-Pitre）会合。瓜德鲁普其实由两座岛屿构成，南北两岛之间，是一条狭窄的地峡。我们到的时候，整个南岛上，所有人都已疏散。照理说，进入丛林后，你会注意到的第一件事，就是各种鸟鸣声。但此时此刻，它们也都已四散逃走。整个岛上，一片死寂。海边都是蛇的尸体，它们由火山上一路下来，爬入海中，被淹死之后又被海浪冲刷回岸边。岛上的交通信号灯仍在工作，由红转绿，再由绿转红，
但路上已看不到任何人影。直到我们途经路障，沿山路向火山顶峰前进时，我还不断地反复询问拉赫曼和施密特-赖特怀恩，是否真愿意继续。我把话说得很清楚，每个人都必须为自己负责。我，毫无疑问肯定是要上去的，一直上到山顶。“我必去无疑，但你们得自己想清楚了。”我告诉他俩，“我只需要一台机器，有必要的话，我可以自己掌镜。”施密特-赖特怀恩当即做了肯定的回复，他的态度由始至终一直非常坚定。拉赫曼则一开始有些犹豫，但那本就是常人都会有的反应。他思考了几分钟，然后语气温柔地问我，“如果岛爆炸了，我们会怎么样？”我回答他，“艾德，我们会飞到空中。”这话反而给他打了气，拉赫曼拿起了自己的摄影机。这就是我喜欢的拍摄团队，有足够勇气去做超越规矩的事。我们远远地留下了一台机器，做延时拍摄。这样，即便真发生了不幸，至少还能留下我们被轰上天的画面。
我们原本从背风的一侧上山，没想到风向发生了变化，着实把我们吓得不轻。刹那之间，有毒的雾气朝着我们的方向飘过来。最终，我们来到山顶一处深邃的裂缝边，整座火山冒着热气，那道裂缝显然也是才刚出现不久。第二天，拉赫曼发现他把眼镜忘在了山上，于是我们又回过去拿，结果发现在大量冲击波的作用下，相比一天之前，山顶已被整个撕裂开来，地貌变得完全不同了。拉赫曼的眼镜，此时已被埋在八九米的岩石与泥浆之下。事实上，我和施密特-赖特怀恩对于火山还挺不敬的，我们爬到了火山口，往里面撒了一泡尿。
还是挺冒险的，这你不会否认吧？
【答】这是一个你第二天一早醒来，可能就已不复存在的小岛，飞去那儿拍摄《苏弗雷火山》，我不否认，这是一次盲目的赌博，同时也是对老婆孩子热炕头那种生活的逾矩。如果你家有娇妻，有小孩，那就不应该做这种事。我们当初之所以决定要去，那是因为就在不久之前，在全世界范围内，有一连串强烈地震爆发，力度惊人。危地马拉死了数千人，中国死了二十五万，菲律宾也经历了一次大地震。那些专家信誓旦旦地表示，瓜德鲁普岛上，几乎百分百会火山爆发。那座火山本身所释放出的信号，也和与之相邻的马提尼克岛培雷火山（Mount Pelée）1902年那次令三万人丧生的大爆发之前，所表现出的特征一模一样。所有人都相信，这一次，苏弗雷火山的爆发，肯定不只是四处喷溅一些岩浆那么简单。它的力度，应该会相当于数颗广岛原子弹那么厉害。因此，要是它当初真爆发了，而我们又处在距其七八公里的半径范围内，那我们肯定也只能听天由命了。而对我来说，情况就更复杂了。我当时行动不怎么灵敏，因为数周之前我踢球时受了伤，就在去瓜德鲁普的不久之前，才刚自行动摘除石膏。影片的完整片名：《苏弗雷火山：等待一场无法避免的大灾难》（La Soufrière:Waiting for an Unavoidable Catastrophe），本身就能说明，我们那次拍摄任务，本质上就是荒唐的。
现在我当然可以对此付诸一笑，但当初我们的全部想法就是，一定要把片子拍成。虽说当时完全没想过是为了要逞英雄，但我也知道，如果能活着回来，事后我一定能说笑着，拿这段经历来做谈资。我当时就觉得，自己很像是那个笑话里，第一次世界大战时，战壕里那队意大利士兵的队长。他们被人连续轰炸了数周，日复一日，终于，队长忍不住了，抓起步枪高声喊道：“冲啊，伙计们！进攻！”还没跑出两步，他就被敌军击中，一命呜呼地栽倒在战壕里。那些士兵压根就没响应他的冲锋号令，只是安静地围坐着一起抽烟。此时他们反倒鼓掌喝彩起来：“队长，干得漂亮！”幸好，拍《苏弗雷火山》的时候，我们没像他那样，倒在炮火底下。总之，当时我就是内心有种强烈的感觉，一定想要拍成这部电影。但如今回头再看，我不敢说我还那么想。我得承认，拍这部电影，我们确实是在撞大运。我们把最后一卷胶片拍完之后，便立即跳上了汽车，远走高飞。有的时候，只要手里拿着摄影机，就会觉得心里多了些勇气；仿佛那是一面能保护自己的盾牌。我还记得，当时我就有种感觉，觉得那火山并不像是真的，它不过是投射在赛璐珞胶片上的一道光束而已。
但拍完这部电影的数年之后，你曾在接受采访时说过，“我真是不喜欢人寿保险那一套东西；一切都要保证安全，这种做法正一步步摧毁我们的文明。”
【答】我说的没错。现在的人，对于风险的规避，已经到了一种让人难以想象的地步；可到头了却发现，几乎永远都是大惊小怪、庸人自扰。多年前闹疯牛病那阵子，我就看得很清楚，每天在去肉店路上出事故死掉的人，肯定要多于吃了有毒牛肉死掉的人。现如今，六岁的孩子就有五顶不同种类的头盔：轮滑一顶、打棒球一顶、骑自行车一顶、在花园里走路也要一顶，剩下一顶，天知道是派什么用场的。现在的家长，即便孩子是去沙坑玩，也会让他戴上头盔。这真是叫人受不了。如果一个人到了五岁还拥有好几顶头盔，这样的人，我永远都不会信任他。这种全方位的保护带有毁灭性，培养出来的孩子习性不敢冒险，长大后也绝不可能成为有本事突破界限，进入未知领域的科学家。还有，每次我看到消毒洗手液的时候——就是美国现在到处都有的那种装在墙上的塑料瓶——我都想把它给拆下来。那真是让我深恶痛绝。我这一辈子，从没用过抗生素，就连阿司匹林，估计总共也就吃过十片。人类最终都会死在这种东西手里。动辄就吃止痛片的文明，注定难逃灭亡结局，只有经历了一定程度的不适与身体上的挑战，我们才能了解到，什么是真正的人。翻开有些旅游指南书，作者会提醒你在进热带丛林的时候，要记得带好防毒蛇咬的全套装备。看到这里，你可以直接把它当柴火扔篝火堆里了。人有旦夕祸福。人生在世，唯一能确定的事就是：我们终有一死，戴再多头盔，买再多保险，全都没用。现在的人，手指割破了，膝盖擦破了一点皮，都说那是一种人生体验。