Saturday, July 3, 2010

Jesus Christ Saviour (2008)



Klaus Kinski as Jesus. You've seen the few minutes of rage that opens up Werner Herzogs My Best Fiend, you've seen the clips on YouTube. You've seen nothing!

In 2008 Peter Geyers reconstruction of Jesus Christ Saviour, the name of Kinski's show, finally appeared in cinemas and on DVD. I don't know if this was a big thing in Germany, but very little has been written about about this fantastic movie outside the country. It was just by coincidence I found about it, and of course I ordered the DVD directly from Amazon.de.

For the first time we're getting a look into what really happen that night at Deutschlandhalle in November 1971, and it shows an emotional man getting hurt by the fucking idiots in the audience. I'm not usually the one that sits and talk back to the TV, but this time I had a hard time stopping myself from trying to keep quiet. Kinski tries, I think two or three times to start the show. With thirty memorized pages in his head, he demands, like all actors on stage, concentration and respect. But he get's nothing. People, or idiots, start hurling insults at him, talking back, stops listening to him, screaming rude things and at one time one fucking guy comes up one the stage and wants to take the microphone from Kinski. Kinski orders the guards to take this intruder away, and the audience starts calling him (Kinski) a fascist! God damn, who's the facists here?

But Kinski is working hard, one time after another he continues the show (still wearing a very ugly shirt), working his way thru the complicated text and some improvisations here and there. He really tries not the get provoced, and on a couple of occations he stops, standing quiet to focus - to not get angry and scream back at the retards in the audience. You can see in his eyes how his whole dream is falling apart, how he's desperate is trying to get back into his text again. There's sadness, more than anger. Finally he have to stop the show, and all those 5000 in the audience leaves...

Now, this could have been the end - but if you sit back in your sofa and waits until after the credits, you'll see one of the most powerful things I've seen in a documentary. Around one hundred people is waiting for him at the stage. He comes out, walks down to them and PERFORMS THE WHOLE FUCKING SHOW AGAIN, just for them... After a few minutes of disorder, they sit there, quiet and concentrated and Kinski can perform his show, over ten years in the making and planning.

Fuck, I wish I had a time machine to be able to go back to be one of those lucky, serious people who really wanted to listen to him. Kinski is sad and exhausted, but do what he came there for... and leaves.

Such a master-actor, such a fucking professional. I would like to see any other superstar do that now.

With this DVD you'll be able to see a big part of his Jesus-show, and it's a pity he never could tour with it - because it's a damn fine one man show. Intelligent, emotional, a brilliant analyze of the historical character of Jesus, a rebel.

Jesus Christ Saviour is a MUST in any Kinski-fans collection.




4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I love Kinski. Fitzcarraldo is one of my all time favourite movies. But this i don´t quite understand. It was 5000 there and many was just there to destroy?? You would like to think that this event cost some money back in the day.

Ninja Dixon said...

Oh, I don't think everyone was there to destroy - but after he stops the show I guess most people are leaving, including those that don't want him to make his performance - and left is those who really want to listen to him.

But you'll have to see the show, it's very interesting and gives a great insight in how Kinski worked as an artist and a human.

xanthor fek said...

this sounds awesome. I've got to see this someday...

CiNEZiLLA said...

i've gotta get this... If only I'd known about it a few weeks ago I'd have told my wife that this is what I wanted for my birthday... you can never have enough Kinski... :)