Kael, Pauline. "The Current Cinema." The New Yorker, 18 October 1982, 173-178.

This extremely critical review of Fitzcarraldo offers an insight into the production of the film, historical context, and mindset of Herzog. After praising Aguirre the Wrath of God, Pauline Kael gives the historical inspiration for the film. An Irishman, Fitzcarrald, who made a fortune in the Peruvian rubber trade made hundreds of natives disassemble a small boat and carry it from one river to another. In contrast to the film character, the real life he had already made a fortune and had no desire to build an opera house. Herzog then took this story, multiplied the size of the ship by ten, used a mountain twice as steep, and decided to not disassemble his ship. He did elect to use several hundred native Amazonians. Additionally, Kael mentions the inspiration of the ruins at Carnac on Herzog’s decision to move the ship. She then argues that film relies on illusions, which Herzog ignored in the production of Fitzcarraldo. To Herzog, using sets and models would have made the picture look fake, but Kael argues special effects can create a convincing picture without endangering the lives of everyone involved. She also notes that Herzog sees the making of a film as a challenge for all involved, seeing it as a curse. He views the fatalities that occurred on the set as a setback, all in the name of filmmaking and great art.

This review helps one to understand the mindset of Herzog going into Fitzcarraldo and the creative liberties he took in using historical facts. By contrasting the actual rubber baron with Kinski’s character, one sees how Herzog made the character more interesting. Whereas the actual person sought only financial gain, the film character seeks to build an opera house modeled after that of Manaus. The moving of the ship over the mountain gives the character a new dimension of determination, with the ultimate goal of creating great art, an opera house. Herzog’s characters often have desires to accomplish incredible feats, not unlike himself. His fanaticism in risking peoples’ lives to make a movie poses a great moral question, particularly given his disgust at the exploitation of Amazonian Natives over the years. While Kael sees the ordeal of Fitzcarraldo’s production as unnecessary, it still remains a remarkable feat.