A wanderlust documentarian, Werner Herzog has found his film subjects in remotest Alaska (Grizzly Man) and Antarctica (Encounters at the End of the World) and on Texas' Death Row (Into the Abyss). For his first experiment in 3-D cinematography, this pioneer won permission to film our planet's earliest known artworks: wall drawings some 30,000 years old in the Chauvet cave in the South of France. Preserved by an avalanche that sealed the cave's opening 20 millennia ago, the sketches reveal visions of a time when Neanderthals still trudged across Europe and the English Channel was a dry bed. Someone daubed glorious images of wild animals lions, wolves, bison, bears with a sophistication that reveals the beasts' contours and propulsive power. The bison, for example, is shown with eight legs, "suggesting movement," Herzog says; "sort of a proto-cinema." In the paintings, he finds analogies to Picasso, Fred Astaire and Baywatch. At 69, Herzog has entered his 50th year of moviemaking. This is one of his most revealing and appealing journeys into the cave of the human soul.
The Top 10 Everything of 2011
- Top 10 Albums
- Top 10 Animal Stories
- Top 10 Apologies
- Top 10 Business Blunders
- Top 10 Buzzwords
- Top 10 Comebacks
- Top 10 Consumer-Spending Trends
- Top 10 Crime Stories
- Top 10 Campaign-Debate Moments
- Top 10 Best Fashion Moments
- Top 10 Worst Fashion Moments
- Top 10 Feuds
- Top 10 Fiction Books
- Top 10 Fleeting Celebrities
- Top 10 Food Trends
- Top 10 Gadgets
- Top 10 Green Trends
- Top 10 Marriage Stories
- Top 10 Medical Breakthroughs
- Top 10 Memes
- Top 10 Movie Performances
- Top 10 Worst Movies
- Top 10 Best Movies
- Top 10 New Findings in Parenting
- Top 10 New Species
- Top 10 Nonfiction Books
- Top 10 Numbers
- Top 10 Oddball-News Stories
- Top 10 Overreported Stories
- Top 10 People Not Running for President
- Top 10 Plays and Musicals
- Top 10 Political Gaffes
- Top 10 Protest Signs
- Top 10 Quotes
- Top 10 Religion Stories
- Top 10 Ridiculously Obvious Study Findings
- Top 10 Scandals
- Top 10 Smart-Phone Apps
- Top 10 Songs
- Top 10 Space Moments
- Top 10 Sports Moments
- Top 10 Toys
- Top 10 TV Ads
- Top 10 TV Episodes
- Top 10 TV Series
- Top 10 Best Tweets
- Top 10 Worst Tweets
- Top 10 U.S.-News Stories
- Top 10 Underreported Stories
- Top 10 Video Games
- Top 10 Creative Videos
- Top 10 Viral Videos
- Top 10 World-News Stories
- Top 10 Photos of the Year
In 54 wide-ranging lists, TIME surveys the highs and lows, the good and the bad, of the past 12 months