Eight Great Films at BAMcinemaFest’s Opening Weekend
Lo and Behold, Reveries of the Connected World
Directed by Werner Herzog
Instead of the wide-open natural wonders of recent documentaries like Encounters at the End of the World and Cave of Forgotten Dreams, Herzog’s latest nonfiction work explores the digital world: the profound effects the creation of the internet has had on our society. Some of what Herzog uncovers is dark, certainly: The matriarch of one family calls the internet “the manifestation of the Antichrist” after they’re inundated with appallingly insensitive emails after photos of their dead daughter are leaked online; Herzog also interviews people being treated for internet addictions as well as a few forced to go off the grid upon discovering their hypersensitivity to the electrical fields created by wireless towers. But despite his usual dour, sardonic demeanor (once again, he narrates the film in voiceover), Herzog is no Luddite alarmist. One section of the film focuses on Foldit, a scientific online game that allows users all over the world to manipulate molecules in ways that could lead to cures for cancer and AIDS. Herzog also explores the exciting and disturbing possibilities of artificial intelligence and space travel. “We’re due for a shift in the definition of what it means to be human,” one scientist says; with Lo and Behold, Reveries of the Connected World, Herzog regards that sentiment with a healthy measure of both awe and skepticism. Kenji Fujishima (Screens June 19, 4:15pm; a Magnolia Pictures release in theaters August 19)