I think you and I probably disagree as to how much Herzog judges him though. I don't think he romanticizes him like a Don Quixote character (maybe like a Don Quixote where Sancho Panza is eaten by a bear).

Gotcha. I was trying to make him seem like a sub-Quixote with my qualifications, but I could have been more clear. I mean, I think the Quixote comparison works to some degree because both chose to address their perceived problem in a completely insane manner. But, yeah, Cervantes actually likes Quixote and I think Herzog didn't so much like Treadwell as he liked the mental place Treadwell went, where madness and inspiration drove him to make beautiful films from a perspective far outside the mainstream of society, although his all-too-human tendency to anthropomorphicize nature led to tragic results. Treadwell's not that different from the classic Herzog protagonist, really, and Treadwell's skill as a filmmaker works well with Herzog's tendency to appropriate documentary film into his movies.

I've been following his career since almost the beginning (I came to his work as a rabid -no pun intended - horror movie fan), and it has been amazing to watch.

Yeah, me too, Frank.

WHY did I read the comments? WHY? WHY?

There's some good discussion in there! I must have skimmed over the bad parts.

There's some good discussion in there!

And then there are the people who explain that women are just naturally less believable actors than men, or that sexism never plays a part in anything.

And then my head explodes, and it's just so messy.

And then there are the people who explain that women are just naturally less believable actors than men, or that sexism never plays a part in anything.

And then my head explodes, and it's just so messy.

I hate everybody.

That's why we need to go back to the Elizabethan theater model! So we can see Jeremy Irons playing Ophelia!

I hate everybody.

passes Sean the Fernet and a cigarette

Yup.

So we can see Jeremy Irons playing Ophelia!

....

Okay, I kind of want to see that.

Tying the two threads together, the main reason I find it hard to call myself a Cronenberg fan (apart from the fact that I just don't do gross-out horror) is that his female characters always make me cringe. There's always something that just makes me go "Um, okay, no."

I hate everybody.

passes Sean the Fernet and a cigarette

Hey! I was hating everybody WAY before Sean and nobody's ever given me Fernet and a cigarette!

My hatred for everybody deepens.

We offered you a bottle of Boone's Farm and some rolling papers, but no, you had to hold out for better.