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FAMILY ROMANCE Werner Herzog finds truth in a tall tale that’s too good to make up…
At 77 years old, Werner Herzog is busier than ever. In the 12 months before Teasers enjoys his inimitable company at the Cannes Film Festival, he’s made three features, conducted a workshop in the Peruvian jungle, and played a pivotal role in Star Wars show The Mandalorian. So how does he choose his projects?
“What comes with great vehemence at me,” he offers in his signature apocalyptic tone. “With Family Romance,
I understood it was so big I had to deal with it right away. We do not have a clear notion anymore about what is real and what is a lie and what is fake news. Facebook, for example, is a stylised selfrepresentation. And there are at least 30 fake Herzogs on social media. So it poked something important and started a feeding
frenzy in Hollywood. But before they wrote a 140-page deal memo, I was already filming.”
Shot in Japan in just 14 days, Family Romance is based on the true story of the titular Tokyo company that hires out actors to play surrogate family members when the real ones are not available. Ishii Yuichi is the real-life founder of the firm, and is here seen pretending to be the father of a young girl whose actual dad abandoned her. But this is not one of Herzog’s documentaries, for the scenarios are scripted.
It’s a fascinating hall of mirrors, allowing the German auteur to reflect on family, loneliness and connection. It’s also, he argues, a whole new way to construct a film. “When you look at cinema today, you have basic formulae. You have a scene where they’re driving a car, a scene where they’re having a discussion at the dinner table. Even films that are pure fantasy… it’s not unexpected that a dragon comes flying. But in Family Romance, there’s nothing you’ve seen before.” JG
ETA | 1 MAY / FAMILY ROMANCE OPENS IN TWO MONTHS.