Heart of Glass (film)
| Heart of Glass | |
|---|---|
 Heart of Glass DVD cover |
|
| Directed by | Werner Herzog |
| Produced by | Werner Herzog |
| Written by | Werner Herzog Herbert Achternbusch |
| Starring | Josef Bierbichler Stefan Güttler Clemens Scheitz Sonja Skiba |
| Music by | Popol Vuh |
| Cinematography | Jörg Schmidt-Reitwein |
| Editing by | Beate Mainka-Jellinghaus |
| Studio | Werner Herzog Filmproduktion |
| Distributed by | New Yorker Films (USA) |
| Release date(s) | December 17, 1976 (West Germany) |
| Running time | 94 min. |
| Country | West Germany |
| Language | German (Bavarian) |
Heart of Glass (German: Herz aus Glas) is a 1976 film directed and produced by Werner Herzog, set in 18th century Bavaria. The film was written by Herzog, based partly on a story by Herbert Achternbusch. The main character is "Hias," based on the legendary Bavarian prophet Mühlhiasl.
Contents |
[edit] Plot synopsis
The setting is an 18th century Bavarian town with a glassblowing factory which produces a brilliant red ruby glass. When the master glass blower dies, the secret to producing the ruby glass is lost. The local Baron and factory owner is obsessed with the ruby glass and believes it to have magical properties. With the loss of the secret, he soon descends into madness along with the rest of the townspeople. The main character is Hias, a seer from the hills, who predicts the destruction of the factory in a fire.
[edit] Production
During shooting, almost all of the actors performed while under hypnosis. Every actor in every scene was hypnotized, with the exception of the character Hias and the professional glassblowers who appear in the film. The hypnotized actors give very strange performances, which Herzog intended to suggest the trance-like state of the townspeople in the story. Herzog provided the actors with most of their dialogue, memorised during hypnosis. However, many of the hypnotised actors' gestures and movements occurred spontaneously during filming. [1]
The majority of the film was shot in Bavaria, just a few miles from where Herzog was born and raised, and also at a nearby village in Switzerland. Other brief shots of landscape scenes were filmed in various locations around the world that Herzog scouted out, including Yellowstone National Park. The conclusion of the film was shot on the Skellig Islands.
Herzog, along with other members of the crew, has a cameo as one of the men carrying a load of ruby glass to the river.
[edit] References
- ^ Werner Herzog, DVD commentary for Heart of Glass
- "Heart of Glass" (Skellig Edition, 1976) by Alan Greenberg, including the screenplay by Werner Herzog. English adaptation by Alan Greenberg, with b&w photos by Alan Greenberg.
[edit] External links
|
||||||||||
