- Happy People: A Year in the Taiga. New documentary film directed by Dmitry Vasyukov, produced and narrated by Werner Herzog. Screening at Vancity Theatre Dec. 9-15. Rating: 8 (out of 10)
Werner Herzog lends his name and expertise on extreme worlds to a new documentary about a year in the life of Siberian fur trappers.
Herzog has taken footage originally shot for a four-hour television program by Russian director Dmitry Vasyukov and condensed the material into a feature film for theatrical release.
The extreme conditions the Bakhta-based hunters face in their desolate region fits right in with the rest of Herzog's oeuvre and it's easy to see why he became involved in the project.
Close-up we could be on Cypress or Grouse Mountain but as the camera pulls back and pans over the vast surreal landscape it's obvious there's no Starbucks or any other creature comforts of modern life in this part of the world.
