Welcome to the Jungle: The Perfect Shots of ‘Fitzcarraldo’

By H. Perry Horton

A man, a plan, a boat, and a mountain.

This week’s episode of Shot by Shot, the official cinematography podcast of One Perfect Shot and Film School Rejects, is dedicated to one of the most insane films of all-time, and not just for its content but for its production as well, which involves pulling, by hand, a very, very large boat over a very, very significant hump of land. I am, of course, talking about Werner Herzog’s Fitzcarraldo, which was shot by Thomas Mauch, a seven-time collaborator of the director’s. Given the difficulties of the Fitzcarraldo shoot, it’s no surprise that this was Mauch’s final time working with Herzog.

But our aim, as always, is to highlight the significance of the film’s guerrilla-style cinematography. If this is your first listen to our show, the format’s simple: each week Geoff and I each pick a few shots from a certain film and discuss their effect and significance. Check out our previous episodes:

• 2001: A Space Odyssey
• Mad Max: Fury Road
• Silence
• Drive
• Shaun of the Dead
• Vertigo
• Fargo
• The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly
• Mulholland Drive  
• Raiders of the Lost Ark 
• Road to Perdition 
• Do the Right Thing  
• Suspiria
• Batman Returns 
• Get Out 
• John Wick
• Dawn of the Dead 

Be sure to give us a follow so you can be kept up to date on new episodes. We’re on Twitter and Facebook, and you can find your two hosts on Twitter as well: @TheGeoffTodd and @HPerryHorton.

And if you like what you hear — spoiler alert: you’re going to — be sure to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Tune In, or wherever you get your podcasts so you don’t miss a single episode of us or any of the other shows.

Dig the ‘cast below:

And the shots:

The article Welcome to the Jungle: The Perfect Shots of ‘Fitzcarraldo’ appeared first on Film School Rejects.