Heart of Glass (film)

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Heart of Glass
Heart of Glass DVD cover
Directed by	Werner Herzog
Produced by	Werner Herzog
Written by	Werner Herzog
Starring	Josef Bierbichler Stefan Güttler Clemens Scheitz Sonja Skiba
Music by	Popol Vuh
Cinematography	Jörg Schmidt-Reitwein
Editing by	Beate Mainka-Jellinghaus
Release date(s)	December 17, 1976 (West Germany)
Running time	94 min.
Country	West Germany
Language	German (Bavarian)
IMDb profile

Heart of Glass (German: Herz aus Glas) is a 1976 film written, directed, and produced by Werner Herzog, set in 18th century Bavaria. The main character is "Hias," based on the legendary Bavarian prophet Mühlhiasl.

Contents 1 Plot synopsis 2 Production 3 Importance of Film 4 References 5 External links

[edit] Plot synopsis

The setting is an 18th century Bavarian town with a glass blowing factory which produces a brilliant red "ruby glass." When the master glass blower dies, the secret to producing the ruby glass is lost, and the town gradually sinks into disorder and madness. The main character is Hias, a seer from the hills, who speaks prophecy to the townspeople.

[edit] Production

During shooting, almost all of the actors performed while under hypnosis. Every actor in every scene was hypnotized, with the exception of the character Hias, and the professional glassblowers who appear in the film. The hypnotized actors give very odd performances, giving a very uncommon stylization to the acting. Much of the mysterious dialog of the film was ad libbed by the actors while under hypnosis.^[1]

The majority of the film was shot in Bavaria, just miles from where Herzog was born and raised. Other brief shots (without any of the cast in them) were filmed in various locations around the world that Herzog scouted out, among the locations was Yellowstone National Park. The conclusion of the film was shot on the Skellig Islands.

Herzog, along with other members of the crew, has a cameo as one of the men carrying a load of ruby glass to the river.

[edit] Importance of Film

Werner Herzog is legitimately regarded as among the geniuses of the revival of German film in the 1970s. Since this period his work has continued to be highly regarded. [1]. Heart of Glass is among the best-known films from his formative period.

[edit] References

1. ^ Werner Herzog, DVD commentary for Heart of Glass

• "Heart of Glass" (Skellig Edition, 1976) by Alan Greenberg, including the screenplay by Werner Herzog. English adaptation by Alan Greenberg, with b&w photos by Alan Greenberg.

[edit] External links

• IMDB entry
• DVD review (dvdfile.com)

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v • d • e Films directed by Werner Herzog 1960s Herakles (1962) • Game in the Sand (1964) • The Unprecedented Defence of the Fortress Deutschkreuz (1967) • Last Words (1967) • Signs of Life (1968) • The Flying Doctors of East Africa (1969) Precautions Against Fanatics (1969) 1970s Even Dwarfs Started Small (1970) • Handicapped Future (1971) • Land of Silence and Darkness (1971) • Fata Morgana (1971) • Aguirre, the Wrath of God (1972) • The Great Ecstasy of Woodcarver Steiner (1974) • The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser (1974) • Heart of Glass (1976) • No One Will Play With Me (1976) • How Much Wood Would a Woodchuck Chuck (1976) • Stroszek (1977) • La Soufrière (1977) • Nosferatu the Vampyre (1978) • Woyzeck (1978) 1980s Huie's Sermon (1981) • God's Angry Man (1981) • Fitzcarraldo (1982) • Ballad of the Little Soldier (1984) • The Dark Glow of the Mountains (1984) • Where the Green Ants Dream (1984) • Portrait Werner Herzog (1986) • Cobra Verde (1987) • The French as seen by... (1988) • Wodaabe - Herdsmen of the Sun (1989) 1990s Film Lesson 1-4 (1990) • Echoes From a Somber Empire (1990) • Jag Mandir (1991) • Scream of Stone (1991) • Lessons of Darkness (1992) • Bells from the Deep (1993) • The Transformation of the World Into Music (1994) • Gesualdo: Death for Five Voices (1995) • Little Dieter Needs to Fly (1997) • The Lord and the Laden (1999) • My Best Fiend (1999) 2000s Wings of Hope (2000) • Invincible (2001) • Pilgrimage (2001) • Ten Minutes Older (2002) • Wheel of Time (2003) • The White Diamond (2004) • Grizzly Man (2005) • The Wild Blue Yonder (2005) • Rescue Dawn (2007) • Encounters at the End of the World (2007) • The Cheese and the Worms (2008)

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