When Werner Herzog received an invitation from the National Science Foundation to visit its Antarctic headquarters, he made it clear that he was in no mood to make another film about "fuzzy penguins". The line is a funny, if unsurprising, way to begin Encounters at the End of the World. Despite the recurring theme of global warming as the coming apocalypse (the film’s title works on multiple levels), Herzog’s dry wit keeps the audience engaged, and even laughing at times.
Early in the documentary Herzog tells us that his questions about nature are different than those who made the "fuzzy penguin" documentary. In a review of Encounters for Paste Magazine, Sean Gandert complains that Herzog never makes it clear what those questions are. Although he goes on to praise the film for its Planet Earth-like beauty, Gandert wonders: how are we, the viewers, to know how he answers the questions that brought him to the South Pole in the first place?
It’s true that with Encounters Herzog has made a genuinely beautiful film, of Planet Earth quality. The tiny creatures are terrifying when viewed up close, and floating under the Antarctic ice they are mesmerizing. The sounds of seals calling from beneath the frigid sea are captivating for their almost electronic and mechanical sound. The real beauty, however, along with the nature of Herzog’s questions, is not found in the scenes of icy landscapes or surreal creatures.
Unlike Planet Earth, the nature scenes in Encounters are constantly being interrupted by the adventurers, vagabonds, and scientists who live and work at the South Pole. While many nature films attempt to portray a world without humanity’s footprint, Herzog will not allow his audience to selectively see. So we are told of the ATM machine, shown the ice-cream maker, and introduced to the linguist who now grows tomatoes in the greenhouse to feed the Foundation's many employees. Herzog makes it clear that filming a documentary about the end of the world means making a film about the people at the end of the world.
And herein lies the clue to Herzog’s unspoken questions. Is it possible for humanity to take in the grandeur of nature without abusing it? What are we to feel as we encounter the wonderful creatures of this film knowing that even its making damaged the landscape that sustains them? Not surprisingly, the veteran filmmaker does little to answer the questions his images provoke. For some, Encounters will frustrate with its beautiful ambiguity. Others though will accept the documentary as an invitation to a critical conversation from a director who has seen the end of the world. It’s an invitation well worth accepting.
Encounters at the End of the World (Trailer)
