32 Essential Documentaries by Werner Herzog

This short documentary explores the unique language and performance of auctioneering, captured during the World Livestock Auctioneer Championship in Pennsylvania.

This journey across Earth and beyond examines how meteorites, shooting stars, and cosmic impacts have sparked our curiosity about the universe and challenged our understanding of our place in it.

This film is about an extraordinary person who excels at ski-flying while also working as a carpenter. It looks beyond the excitement of ski-flying to explore the character's reasons and how he balances these two demanding passions. The story combines…

Former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev speaks with filmmaker Werner Herzog about his significant accomplishments. They cover his efforts to limit nuclear weapons, the reunification of Germany, and the eventual collapse of the Soviet Union.

Director Werner Herzog and cinematographer Peter Zeitlinger travel to Antarctica to document the lives of those who live and work there, and to film the continent's distinctive environments. Herzog’s narration states the film will deviate from conventional Antarctic documentaries focused…

Werner Herzog's *Jag Mandir* is a rarely seen film, based on 20 hours of footage, of which only a fraction is presented. A viewer unfamiliar with India might not immediately recognize the country and its mythology depicted within. The film…

Herzog’s film focuses on the Wodaabe people of the Sahara and Sahel. It highlights their elaborate courtship displays, often resembling beauty pageants. Young men compete for mates through impressive displays of makeup, posing, and facial expressions.

Werner Herzog's 2004 documentary chronicles the efforts of a dedicated British inventor as he strives to build and test an unusual airship on its first flight over the rainforest.

A group of pilgrims venture onto the fragile ice of Lake Svetloyar in search of the lost city of Kitesh. Legend says God protected Kitesh from the invading Mongolian army by causing it to sink beneath the lake's surface. Those…

Werner Herzog chronicles the perilous expedition of mountaineers Hans Kammerlander and Reinhold Messner as they attempt to summit the challenging peaks of the Gasherbrum mountains, a feat undertaken without supplemental oxygen. The film also explores the climbers' histories with other…

The life, music, and violent crimes of Carlo Gesualdo, a famed 16th-century Italian composer and notorious murderer.

We don't know when or how we will die. Death Row inmates do. Werner Herzog engages in conversations with people serving life sentences, exploring their perspectives on life, death, and the events that led them to prison. He delves into…

Werner Herzog's documentary examines how Germany and the United States approach the lives of people with disabilities, highlighting the contrasting ways they are cared for and integrated into society.

As Bruce Chatwin was dying from AIDS, his friend Werner Herzog visited him one last time. Chatwin gave Herzog his rucksack as a farewell gift. Thirty years later, Herzog embarks on a journey of his own, inspired by Chatwin's love…

This visually stunning film explores how we see the world, using Mayan creation stories as a framework. Shot in difficult conditions to reflect the challenges of ancient cultures, it takes us to a place where reality and illusion merge. With…

Werner Herzog journeys back to the Amazon with Juliane Koepcke, the sole survivor of a 1971 plane crash. The film follows their search for the plane wreckage and their attempt to reconstruct her harrowing escape from the jungle.

Following the Gulf War, Kuwait is a devastated landscape scarred by oil fires. Werner Herzog's film documents this apocalyptic environment, capturing the eerie atmosphere of murky skies, burned earth, and unpredictable flames. The documentary explores the war's destruction and humanity's…

Werner Herzog films volcanoes, showcasing breathtaking eruptions and lava flows, exploring the intense force of these natural events and their connection to traditional beliefs.

Werner Herzog examines the Internet and our increasingly interconnected lives.

Werner Herzog's 1969 documentary, *The Flying Doctors of East Africa*, chronicles the work of the African Medical and Research Foundation's "flying doctors" service. The film follows their efforts in Tanzania, Kenya, and Nairobi.

This documentary explores the intense and complicated relationship between legendary director Werner Herzog and actor Klaus Kinski. Though they often expressed a desire to harm one another, the film reveals a surprising level of trust that developed during their work…

Filmmaker Werner Herzog receives rare permission to film within the Chauvet caves of southern France. His camera documents the world's oldest known cave paintings, offering a breathtaking look at early human artistry in their original environment.

A group of Miskito Indians fight against the Sandinistas, utilizing child soldiers from Nicaragua as part of their resistance.

This film intimately follows Fini Straubinger, who has been deaf and blind since her teens, showing how she lives and fights for others with similar disabilities. We witness her remarkable strength and resolve as she navigates the world, challenging how…

Reverend Huie Rogers, a preacher at the Bible Way Church in Brooklyn, is the focus of this short film. He delivers a lengthy, call-and-response sermon criticizing human arrogance, greed, corruption, and failure. The film employs extended shots, creating a performance-like…

The film centers on the lives of the indigenous people of Bakhtia, a village on the Yenisei River in the Siberian Taiga. Over the course of a year, the camera follows the villagers as they navigate their daily routines. Their…

Werner Herzog's *Wheel of Time* documents the extensive photographic study of the most significant Buddhist ceremony held in Bodh Gaya, India.

This documentary explores the reign of Jean-Bédel Bokassa in the Central African Republic, drawing on firsthand accounts from those who lived under his rule and visits to significant locations from that period.

This documentary chronicles Gene Scott, the well-known televangelist who frequently clashed with the FCC during the 1970s and '80s over his television program. It also features his arguments with viewers, where he expresses dissatisfaction with their financial support for the…

This film chronicles the story of Timothy Treadwell, known as "Grizzly Man," and his thirteen summers spent living in a National Park in Alaska, dedicated to protecting grizzly bears. Through distinctive footage, the documentary offers an intimate look at a…

Werner Herzog explores the life of German-American pilot Dieter Dengler, shot down over Laos during the Vietnam War. Thirty years later, Dengler returns to the sites of his captivity, reflecting on the bonds he formed with fellow prisoners. The film…

This film introduces a series of opera broadcasts on German television, showing the preparations made behind the scenes for the annual opera festival in Bayreuth.