Caves of Forgotten Dreams

OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE

Release date:  April 29, 2011.   Documentary.  History. 95 minutes.
Werner Herzog gains exclusive access to film inside the Chauvet caves of Southern France, capturing the oldest known pictorial creations of humankind in their astonishing natural setting.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1664894/

STORYLINE

Chauvet Cave is exceptional – despite being recently discovered in 1994, it contains the world’s oldest rock art ever found. The Chauvet Cave is located near Vallon-Pont-d'Arc in the Ardèche region of southern France, its chance discovery by a trio of speleologists revealed not only the fossilized remains of many animals, including some that are now extinct, but one of the most extensive Palaeolithic rock art galleries ever recorded.
http://www.bradshawfoundation.com/chauvet/

TRAILER

ABOVE THE LINE

Stars:   Werner Herzog
             Dominique Baffier
             Jean Clottes

Director:  Werner Herzog

Writers:  Werner Herzog
               Judith Thurman

BUZZ

Filmmaker Werner Herzog is well known for his ambitious movies. His latest project, "Cave of Forgotten Dreams," may be his wildest film yet. The documentary, which hits theaters this spring, focuses on the Chauvet-Pont-d'Arc Cave in France. The cave is tens of thousands of years old, and for many thousands of those years no human being knew about it. Three French explorers discovered the cave in 1994. So, what makes this cave worthy of a 3D documentary from one of the world's great filmmakers? For one, the cave contains amazing detailed drawings that defy explanation. Gizmodo explains: "The walls contain hundreds of animals—like the typical Paleolithic horses and bisons—but some of them are not supposed to be there, like lions, panthers, rhinos, and hyenas." Apparently, some of the paintings are of creatures that don't exist. For example, an animal that looks like a half-woman, half-bison.

 Gizmodo speculates that these artistic liberties may have something to do with the copious amounts of carbon dioxide and other gases in the cave. The theory is that hallucinations in the cave were common. To secure permission to film in what is inarguably a French national treasure, Herzog had to agree to bring just a few crew members with him and make sure everyone wore special suits and shoes the entire time so as not to disturb the find. Also, due to the high levels of carbon dioxide, Herzog and company could stay in the cave for only a few hours at a time. Safety first. The film was inspired by a 2008 New yorker article by Judith Thurman. Even though it's a documentary about a cave few people could pronounce let alone find on a map, the Web searches are soaring. Online lookups for the movie have spiked over 400% during the past week. Clearly, moviegoers are excited to join Herzog on his latest adventure. No special suit or shoes required.

http://buzz.yahoo.com/buzzlog/94235/rising-interest-on-the-cave-of-forgotten-dreams

INFORAMA COMMENT

The earth provided prehistoric man with a womb of sorts. Womb in the sense that caves provide warmth, shelter and protection as a mother does.  Archaeological investigation at numerous prehistoric cave sites have provided us with insight into ancient man's struggle for survival.

A significant number of these caves also show that man, at his earliest stages of development, enjoyed art in the form of cave paintings.  So it is ironic and fitting that one of the newest modern art forms, film, is capable of meticulously displaying perhaps one of man's oldest art forms.

Film director, writer, producer, actor and opera director Werner Herzog is considered by many to be the father of the New German Cinema. Francois Truffaut, himself a film legend, once remarked that Herzog was "the most important film director alive."

Werner Herzog has produced documentaries in scope, scale and diversity that is staggering. On location in the Amazon Rainforests of Peru, he unfolded a tragic and true story of a large, well equipped expeditionary force of conquistadors that literally disappeared searching for the fabled El Dorado in the film Aguirre, The Wrath of God.

And there is Encounters at the End of the World, where Herzog examines Antarctica. He gives us breathtaking views of the fauna and flora of the frozen continent. He also gets close and personal with the many scientists who are often imprisoned by the climate, but free to work on the cutting edge of science in that formidable land.

His Heart of Glass was about 18th Century Bavaria shot on location, of course. The oddity of this film is that all of the actors, save the antagonist, performed while under hypnosis. So most of the acting is quirky except for the antagonist's smooth performance. 

Documentaries do not have to be dull.  The "Earth" series, produced by BBC in two versions, one narrated by Sir Richard Attenborough and a twin narrated by Sigourney Weaver proved immensely popular, successful and quite educational. And the film The Madness of King George, a period piece from 18th Century England and the Regency Crisis of 1788, was not the usual cardboard stiff caricatures of the Royal Family. The film breathed life into the characters long since dead.

So Herzog, a Babe Ruth of filmdom, has made his newest project Cave of Forgotten Dreams. He captures artwork in the Chauvet-Pont-d'arc  Cave in southern France. The many paintings are estimated to be 30,000 to 32,000 years old. The cave and it's paintings were discovered in late December, 1994 less than two decades ago! This discovery will have significant applications in the study of art as well as in archaeology. How this treasure remained hidden and unspoiled for all these millennia is a mystery that hopefully will be revealed in what should be another jewel in Herzog's film crown.