Film Reviews

Invincible

• Rating:
• Director:
• Starring: Anna Gourari
• Details: Ger / 129 mins / (No Cert).

Werner Herzog's first bona fida feature in a decade, Invincible, tells the true story of Zishe Breitbart (Jouko Ahola), a Jew who was also one of the strongest men in Berlin. Hired to be part of his act by the hypnotist Erik- Jan Hanussen (Tim Roth), Breitbart soon wins national acclaim, which due to his religious beliefs, caused the ruling Nazis no shortage of headaches - exacerbated by the fact that Breitbart practiced his faith openly.
Since Invincible is a Herzog movie, it almost goes without saying that visually it borders on the majestic, his skill at directing features has, if anything, been honed by his decade-long absence from the medium. The narrative is relatively focused, and the director seems most interested in the subjects of spirituality and mortality, giving the film an emotional grounding which wasn't always evident in his previous works. The performances are all good, especially Roth as the snarling Hanussen, but ultimately the film depends overtly on generalizations and stereotypes when it comes to both Germans and Jews, and the director sometimes makes unfathomable leaps when it comes to metaphorical imagery.

Review by Garreth Murphy