Cobra Verde Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.5

Cobra Verde Blu-ray Movie Review

12 Years a Slave Trader.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman July 20, 2014

Note: This title is currently available as part of Herzog: The Collection.

Has there ever been a more fascinating figure in film than Werner Herzog? This much debated individual, one who elicits both hyperbolic accolades and equally exaggerated derision, has been a seeming force of nature in film for decades, helping to define the New German Cinema (a somewhat later analog to the French New Wave). Herzog’s filmography is rather breathtakingly diverse, traversing both traditional fiction, quasi-biographies, and a large number of documentaries. Through it all, Herzog himself has become the subject of considerable controversy, at times seeming to be as obsessively motivated as some of his film subjects. The auteur’s off kilter blend of nihilism and often black humor has given him and his films a decidedly unique place in contemporary media, to the point that a supposed note Herzog jotted off to his cleaning lady became an internet sensation (it’s actually a brilliantly written parody by Dale Shaw). Shout! Factory, a label which repeatedly stubbed its corporate toe on its last big deluxe boxed set built around the talents of one person (Bruce Lee: The Legacy Collection, the only time in my reviewing career I have had to start over from scratch due to a complete recall and reissue) may seem to be throwing caution to the wind by upping the ante with this release. Here there are no fewer than 16 films by Herzog, housed in a handsome hardback booklike case that also features a wealth of text and information about each of the films. Fifteen of the films are new to Blu-ray (Shout's horror imprint Scream Factory released Herzog's Nosferatu the Vampyre as a standalone a few months ago), and the offerings here cover both iconic films in Herzog's oeuvre as well as some oddities. The extremely handsome packaging offers a 7.5" x 7.5" x 1.5" hardback book exterior casing which houses heavy cardstock pocket holders that contain the discs. Also included are The Werner Herzog Condition by Stephen J. Smith, an appreciation of the director's work with essays about each of the films. The films get even more text in write-ups by Chris Wahl and Brad Prager. Each of the pocket holder pages details the film (or in some cases, films) on each disc, with audio options and special features listed.

Cobra Verde is the last of the famed collaborations between Werner Herzog and Klaus Kinski, and the one that famously pushed the two really off the deep end (despite the legends surrounding their behavior on some of their previous efforts). But much like both Aguirre: The Wrath of God and Fitzcarraldo, Cobra Verde serves as yet another riff on Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, with a seriously obsessed main character embarking on a journey that only increases his madness. Sourced from a novel by Bruce Chatwin which Herzog became infatuated with while filming Where the Green Ants Dream, Cobra Verde details a typically Herzogian slide into madness by one Francisco Manoel da Silva (Klaus Kinski), a Brazilian rancher who starts the film with a certain amount of moral turpitude and then devolves from there.

Francisco’s “adventures” take him from ranching to gold mining to murder and, eventually, a life under the assumed alter ego of Cobra Verde. During his exploits as this banditry, Francisco attracts the attention of a local sugar plantation owner, who puts da Silva in charge of his slaves. Francisco’s inherent trajectory toward peccadilloes soon gets him exiled to West Africa, where the sugar baron sends him as punishment for some amorous adventures as well as other missteps. The plantation boss fully expects da Silva to perish in the wilderness, though he tasks the erstwhile bandit with reopening the slave trade.

The film teeters on the edge of incomprehensibility once the African sequences start unfolding, but there’s a hallucinatory grace to much of the proceedings. This film offers Kinski at his most primal, even feral. His Francisco is a grunting, sneering, spitting madman, one who for a while at least becomes a “player” in one of the most despicable activities in the history of Mankind.

Cobra Verde is notable for its use of actual West African tribesmen, including a so-called “Omanhene” (i.e., ruler) of the African village of Nsein. This gives the film a sort of verité ambience at times, something that’s distinctly at odds with the florid theatricality of Kinski’s work. The film is often opaque, but it’s a suitably visceral depiction of obsession— whether it be Francisco’s, Kinski’s, or indeed Herzog’s.

Cobra Verde Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Cobra Verde is presented on Blu-ray with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.86:1. Until the film gets to Africa, the palette here is rather cool and tamped down, offering lots of pale teals and barely suffused pinks. That palette becomes considerably more vibrant in the African sequences, with bright, vividly saturated colors that pop really well. Herzog zeroes in on Kinski's face repeatedly throughout the film, and those shots offer abundant fine detail, including the almost incredible blue of his eyes. Contrast is strong throughout this presentation and black levels are also deep and convincing. Grain structure is intact and consistent throughout the presentation.

Cobra Verde Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

As with some other films in the Herzog set, the original German language track (in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0) offers a bit more punch, especially in the midrange, than the English language version (also in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0). Both dialogue and the glut of ambient environmental effects are rendered with excellent fidelity and some surprising dynamic range. Popul Vuh's great score, which is augmented by some traditional African chants (including in that enigmatic closing moment) also sound great.

Cobra Verde Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer (1080p; 3:23)


• In Conversation - Werner Herzog and Laurens Straub (1080p; 58:00) is another audio only supplement (a still of Herzog is on screen) which gets into great detail on the genesis of the project and the always volatile Klaus Kinski.


• Herzog in Africa Documentary (1080p; 45:32) is a really fascinating piece by Steff Gruber documenting Herzog's shooting of the film. This is sourced from older, faded elements.


• Still Gallery (1080p; 10:35)


• English Commentary with Werner Herzog. Herzog is once again joined by Norman Hill, and delivers his usual highly entertaining and informative reminiscences about the film. If you thought the relationship between Herzog and Kinski was strained in some other films, wait until you hear what happened during this one!

Cobra Verde Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Cobra Verde may not have quite the consistency of Aguirre, the Wrath of God, but it has its own brand of visceral intensity. What the film lacks in narrative cohesion (not to mention coherence) it makes up for in the startling viciousness of Kinski's performance. Technical merits here are generally very strong and Cobra Verde comes Recommended.