In 1928 Nuremberg, a young man walked into a village barely able to speak. From those basic facts, director Werner Herzog weaves The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser, a meditation on innocence, corruption, and supposed civilization. Bruno S.—a nonprofessional actor with his own history of abuse, disability, and institutionalization—plays the lead and delivers a performance that’s both skilled and guilelessly earnest. He gives Kaspar a blank expression that touchingly hints at self-protection. When mild, confused alarm passes over his eyes, he evokes the vulnerability of a frightened dog. It’s touching and never feels exploitative. For his part, Herzog uses Kaspar to critique the societal structures that can’t wait to mold Kaspar into something either profitable or familiar: the circus that wants to include him as part of its freak show; the rich benefactor who wants to refine him; the pastors who want to indoctrinate him. Only a gentle servant (Brigitte Mira of Ali: Fear Eats the Soul) accepts him and holds no agenda toward “improving” him. When the two of them sit quietly together at a table, it’s one of the rare times Kaspar seems to be at peace.
(10/21/2023)
