The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser
All actors and roles (10)
All team (21)
Short description
Werner Herzog's 1974 drama tells the story of Kaspar Hauser, a young man who has spent his entire life confined in a small cellar, kept alive by a single figure in a black coat and top hat. One day he is brought into the world outside, placed in the town of Nuremberg in the early nineteenth century, barely able to walk or speak. A note left with him turns him into public property: first a curiosity to be displayed on a fairground, then a case studied by scholars and a wealthy household that tries to educate him toward a civilised life. The film is based on the historical figure of Kaspar Hauser, whose origins and death remain the subject of speculation.
Herzog directed, wrote and produced the film, his fourth of twenty-two features by the facts' count, following Aguirre, the Wrath of God and preceding Stroszek. The title role is played by Bruno S., with Walter Ladengast as Professor Daumer, Brigitte Mira as the housekeeper Käthe, Willy Semmelrogge as the ringmaster and Kidlat Tahimik as an Indian companion; thirty-four performers are credited.
On IMDb the film holds 8.3/10 from 24 reviews, higher than its TMDB audience score of 7.3/10 from 387 votes, suggesting critics responded more warmly than the wider public did.
What's left behind the scenes
- The film was released on American screens under the title "The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser" (English: The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser).
- The film was shot in the small Bavarian town of Dinkelsbühl.
- Herzog intended to dedicate the film to Lotte Eisner, a prominent researcher of German Expressionism, who was living in Paris at the time. Upon learning of her serious illness, the director, after completing filming, walked 400 miles from Munich to Paris, with a map and compass in hand, "sleeping under bridges," in order to "redeem" her life with his sacrifice.
- Herzog offered the lead role in the film to Bruno S. – a non-professional actor who had spent ten years in an institution for the mentally disabled, although he was not actually disabled: "He looks like a schizophrenic and behaves like a schizophrenic because he was treated so terribly. He simply doesn’t know how to behave," the director believed. He was not deterred by the fact that Bruno was more than twice the age of the historical Kaspar: "What difference does Bruno’s age make? Even if he were 65, I would cast him in this role." Herzog paid Bruno for three months of work on the film, forcing him to open a bank account. After the film’s release, he stated that the actor deserved an "Oscar" and that it was a disgrace that awards went to "someone like John Wayne."
- German critics reproached the director for casting a person who did not fully perceive the world, accusing him of "exploiting" his physical disability.
- According to the director, Bruno S. "was perfectly aware that the film was not only about how society killed Kaspar Hauser, but also about how society destroyed him, Bruno." He even considered naming the film "The Story of Bruno Hauser."
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