Unquestionably one of the world’s best and most respected documentary filmmakers, Werner Herzog is known for work like Grizzly Man, Into The Abyss and Encounters At The End Of The World. In Nomad: In The Footsteps Of Bruce Chatwin, Herzog pays tribute to the life of adventurer and writer and friend Bruce Chatwin, with whom he collaborated in the 1980s. In this film, Herzog travels to many of the places that were important in the life and work of Bruce Chatwin, seemingly accompanied by the very spirit of the man, who died in 1989. In part, that is accomplished by the use of some audio recordings of Bruce Chatwin reading from his first book, In Patagonia, and in part through interviews with people who knew him, but mainly it is done by Herzog’s passion and affinity for the same ideas of Truth that Chatwin pursued.
The film is divided up into chapters, the first of which is titled “The Skin of the Brontosaurus,” which gets into Chatwin’s interest in pre-history. Herzog, who narrates the film and appears in it himself, tells us: “Chatwin was a writer like no other. He would craft mythical tales into voyages of the mind. In this respect, we found out we were kindred spirits, he as a writer, I as a filmmaker.” And he announces his intention to follow a similarly erratic path in this film in a quest for “big ideas about the nature of human existence.” The film provides bits of Chatwin’s biography, the elements that shaped his interests, his journeys, his writing and his sense of truth. Herzog interviews Nicholas Shakespeare (Chatwin’s biographer) and Elizabeth Chatwin (his widow), among others. In Wales, Elizabeth Chatwin tells us, “Bruce was a nomad, but he was always drawn back to this place.” She adds, “This is a dreaming place.” As you might expect, there is some beautiful footage in this film.
This film also contains some beautiful music. And that is related to Chatwin’s life and work as well. The third chapter of this film, “Songs And Songlines,” deals with Chatwin’s trip to Australia and his interest in the Aborigines and the idea of the land being covered by song. This is one of the most fascinating sections of the films. The film is a personal work, and seems to get more personal as it goes on. In the fifth chapter, Herzog recalls fondly the way Chatwin would tell stories, and the film’s seventh chapter deals with Cobra Verde, Herzog’s 1987 film adaptation of Chatwin’s novel The Viceroy Of Ouidah. There is a touching moment when Herzog is presented with Chatwin’s notes on the screenplay, notes he had never seen before. There are also some wild anecdotes regarding the making of that film. The film’s final chapter is about some of Bruce Chatwin’s personal relationships, and his death from AIDS at the age of 49.
Special Features
The DVD contains a Q&A with Werner Herzog, conducted by Patrick Holland. Herzog talks about how this film project came about, and about trying to refrain from becoming sentimental in the film. He mentions that he hopes people will, after seeing the film, want to read Chatwin’s books. (Seeing the film certainly had that effect on me.) He also gives some of his thoughts on Truth and on our current reality. He fields some questions from the audience, and at one point says, “I don’t like introspection that much,” which is interesting.
The DVD also contains the film’s trailer.
Nomad: In The Footsteps Of Bruce Chatwin was released on DVD on November 17, 2020 through Music Box Films.
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