Based on Bruce Chatwin's 1980 historical novel
The Viceroy of Ouidah, which was inspired by the life of Brazilian slave trader Francisco Manoel da Silva, this legendarily troubled film, all-but-unreleased in the U.S. for 20 years after its completion, was the last of five collaborations between volatile German director Werner Herzog and even more volatile actor Klaus Kinski. It's also the least, but not for lack of stunning visuals and larger-than-life ambition.
Like so many of Herzog's films, from AGUIRRE, WRATH OF GOD (1972) to GRIZZLY MAN (2005), its theme is the struggle between hubristic man and implacable nature, here played out in 19th-century Br...
Released:
1987
Rated:
NR
Length:
110 mins