Made in 1977, ‘Stroszek‘ is one of the most special films of Werner Herzog, one of the few very special directors who were part of that unique generation of filmmakers who made German (West German) films into some of the more interesting productions of the 70s and early 80s. When I think about this generation of directors, I cannot ignore the fact that they grew up in the years after the Second World War and were formed in a Germany that had lived through two decades of reconstruction but also of historical amnesia. It fell to them to bridge the lost decades and generations with the artists (including filmmakers) of the formidable decadent and expressionist period of the Weimar Republic, also embodying the war traumas and conflicts that had left many scars and open wounds. ‘Stroszek‘, a film unlike any other, is one of the proofs of the creativity of these artists, but it is also a film born out of pain and suffering, depicting the impossibility of adaptation of the less privileged.
The story begins in Germany. Bruno gets out of prison. We don’t know exactly why he was convicted. He seems like a nice guy, with some mental problems, he takes life as it is, helps those around him as best as he can. He meets and shelters Eva, a prostitute pursued by violent pimps, whom he brings to the home of his older friend, Scheitz. When criminals make their lives impossible, the three decide to try their luck in America, where Scheitz has a nephew. They land in Wisconsin, in deep America, and begin to face the realities there. People are, at least in appearance, less violent, but life has other harsh rules of its own. They are each trying to work, they take out a mortgage for a caravan which they think is great at first, but paying the mortgage payments becomes a problem. Life again overwhelms the three heroes, each in-adapted in his own way there, in America,
It is very difficult to characterize Werner Herzog‘s style. If we were to look for its roots, we would find them in Italian neo-realism rather than in German expressionist cinema. Except for Eva Mattes, all the other actors are non-professionals. Some of them play out their own lives on the screen. Bruno S., the actor who plays Bruno, had been cast by Herzog in a previous film, but the character borrows a lot from his real-life story and personality. ‘Stroszek‘ is a kind of road movie that takes its heroes from Germany to the United States, the locations filmed are authentic and the style is almost documentary. This does not mitigate, but on the contrary, accentuates the drama which sometimes has grotesque overtones, but very rarely we laugh. The ending is powerful and metaphorical. It caused controversy even among members of the film crew, and it is said that Herzog had to hand-hold the camera for the final scene. It is a pessimistic film, with no chance or hope for its heroes. We, the viewers who see the film almost half a century after it was made, enjoy a unique and impressive work.