The Wild Blue Yonder (2005)
Really spellbinding film, I've seen it before and I enjoyed catching it on Veoh again. It's certainly not one of Herzog's more famous or acclaimed films, and the poster is misleading - the entire film comprises of pre-recorded footage edited and scored by Herzog (similar to
Grizzly Man, which I've yet to see).
WBY takes the form of a documentary of sorts where footage of, say, a surreal diving expedition under polar ice, is purported to be a groups of astronauts surveying an alien world for potential terraforming. Throughout, the director encourages audience input and imagination to complete the illusion and draw the parallels; and if you don't go along with it the film can seem tongue-in-cheek.
The score crucially contributes to the film's atmosphere but it all hinges on the persuasive power of it's narrator and 'star', Brad Dourif, who can do no wrong as far as I'm aware. In all likeliness his presence here biased me, but the film has more to offer if you are in the mood.
Fans of Herzog, good ol' sci-fi storytelling and general weirdness combined with an ethereal soundtrack and bizarrely beautiful footage will appreciate. I'm sure some pillock would have issues with the budget, but then how the hell did you end up watching an obscure Werner Herzog docu-fantasy in the first place?