Aguirre, the Wrath of God

So far, November 2006 has been the month of big let-downs for me, movie-wise. First there was Rebel Without a Cause, which even most critics would agree that, though iconic, was not a very good movie. Then there was L’Avventura, which all the discerning people love, and I pretty much hated. Now this. Not only beloved by critics, but placing #227 on the IMDb Top 250, with an 8.1 rating by the viewers. And I thought it was pretentious and pretty dull. Sure, there are arresting visuals, including hundreds of tiny monkeys on a raft at the very end, but it’s one of those movies where you know the ending, and it’s just a matter of slogging through all the moves until you get there. I am sure it is crammed full of metaphors about savagery vs. civilization, and the folly of colonialism, but I can only watch so much slogging through swamps carrying aristocratic women in sedan chairs, or drifting pointlessly down a river searching for a phantasmal El Dorado.