Description

Werner Herzog is the undisputed master of extreme cinema: building an opera house in the middle of the jungle; walking from Munich to Paris in the dead of winter; descending into an active volcano; living in the wilderness among grizzly bears – he has always been intrigued by the extremes of human experience.

From his early movies to his later documentaries, he has made a career out of exploring the boundaries of human endurance: what we are capable of in exceptional circumstances and what these situations reveal about who we really are. But these are not just great cinematic themes. During the making of his films, Herzog pushed himself and others to the limits, often putting himself in life-threatening situations.

As a child in rural Bavaria, a single loaf of bread had to last his family all week. The hunger and deprivation he experienced during his early years perhaps explain his fascination with the limits of physical endurance.All his life, Herzog would embrace risk and danger, constantly looking for challenges and adventures.

Filled to the brim with memorable stories and poignant observations, Every Man for Himself and God against All unveils the influences and ideas that drive his creativity and have shaped his unique view of the world. This book tells, for the first time, the story of his extraordinary and fascinating life.

Publisher Review

PRAISE FOR EVERY MAN FOR HIMSELF AND GOD AGAINST ALL

Werner Herzog’s life story reads like a Hollywood film * Daily Telegraph * Most film memoirs are boring because film-makers don’t have a life outside film. But Herzog has lived the nine lives of a cat … and his book actually gets more interesting the further it gets from the big films * Sunday Times *Book of the Week* * Herzog’s memoir… is as intense, surprising and wacky as his films, with a real sense of reason underlying all the madness and eccentricity * New Statesman, *Books of the Year* * A visionary masterpiece * John Gray, New Statesman * He is in a category of one. You can’t believe that a person likes this stalks the earth. A complete original * Marina Hyde *