Product Details

• Actors: Werner Herzog, Jean Clottes
• Directors: Werner Herzog
• Format: Color, NTSC, Widescreen
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: G (General Audience)
• Studio: MPI HOME VIDEO
• DVD Release Date: November 29, 2011
• Run Time: 90 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (145 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B005HP2J66
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,869 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
  • #78 in Movies & TV > DVD > Special Interests
• Learn more about "Cave of Forgotten Dreams" on IMDb

Editorial Reviews

CAVE OF FORGOTTEN DREAMS, a breathtaking new documentary from the incomparable Werner Herzog (Encounters at the End of the World, Grizzly Man), follows an exclusive expedition into the nearly inaccessible Chauvet Cave in France, home to the most ancient visual art known to have been created by man. One of the most successful documentaries of all time, CAVE OF FORGOTTEN DREAMS is an unforgettable cinematic experience that provides a unique glimpse of pristine artwork dating back to human hands over 30,000 years ago -- almost twice as old as any previous discovery.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

125 of 134 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Creative use of 3D October 15, 2011

By Bob Drake VINE™ VOICE

Format:Blu-ray

I happen to like 3D in the theater and at home, so I want to speak to that aspect of this film.

Mr. Herzog saw the potential for 3D when he first visited the cave. He had to create his own, collapsible 3D equipment to fit through the hermetically sealed cave door, and it had to be manually adjusted for parallax depending on the distance to the image being filmed because access is via a walkway from which they could not stray. On the second visit they could use the knowledge from the first to gauge the length of extensions required to see images on the back side of pendant rocks and protrusions.

The end result is a 3D feast. The cave painters used the 3D shape of the rocks in the cave to give depth to their paintings. In one case the face of a ox is on one face of a rock and the flank of the beast corresponds to a bulge in the side of that same rock, around the corner, much as if you were viewing the animal. While the film and the paintings can be appreciated in 2D, the true artistry of the ancient painters can really only be appreciated in 3D, and Mr. Herzog was right to endure the extra hardship of lugging the 3D camera through the cave.

Bravo.

82 of 87 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A soulful film, a deep experience, November 1, 2011

By DJ Joe Sixpack HALL OF FAMETOP 500 REVIEWER

Format:DVD

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"The Cave Of Forgotten Dreams"
(Directed by Werner Herzog, 2011)
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Given unprecedented access to the Chauvet Cave, a vast archeological repository located in the south of France, legendary director Werner Herzog and a minimal crew of four crawl through tunnels and balance on delicate metal catwalks, filming the extraordinary and breathtaking cave paintings found within. Herzog designed a lightweight, portable 3D camera, small enough to be brought into the cavern, so that he could capture the ways in which the ancient artists of Chauvet used the natural contours of the cave walls to enhance their artwork. Although often rough technically, it is the most meaningful use of 3D cinematography I have ever seen, placing viewers inside the space of the cave in a way that seems magical and unreal.

The Chauvet cave paintings were made over 30,000 years ago, depicting predatory animals such as bears and lions, as well as bison, rhinos, mammoths and perhaps most striking of all, a wall of beautifully rendered horses. The spiritual and artistic presence of these paintings is almost overwhelming, embued with primal, primordial history and an astonishing technical and aesthetic command: these pictures are both evocative and beautiful. Herzog approaches them reverently, and delights in their mystery, often shooting them in half-shadow or using moving, flickering light to suggest the rude torches used by their creators as well as the complete, total darkness that shrouded these powerful pictures for untold millennia.... Throughout the film he intones in a soft European murmur, musing about the nature of human consciousness and the relationship of this ancient artwork to our own modern sensibilities: how much of the aesthetic and world view of this primitive culture do we carry about with us today? Some viewers may find the intellectualism and pretensions hard to take (as well as the often intrusive but oddly affecting score...) yet it is hard to deny the power of the subject.

You or I will never be able to go inside these caves -- they are closely guarded by the French government -- but in Herzog's film we can become immersed in them. Leaving the theater, walking in sunshine or under electric lights, you may marvel at the wonders that thirty thousand years of human life have brought - the works of stone and steel, plastic and glass, the layer upon layer of habitation and roads, the planes in the sky and the optical magic that brings art to life in films such as this. And, like Herzog and his crew, you may find yourself swept up by the connections we still have to the stunning pictures that lay hidden inside a dark cave for far more time than civilization itself... it is truly miraculous.

A highly recommended, deeply moving film - for the full effect see it in the theaters, if you can. (DJ Joe Sixpack, Slipcue film reviews) Read more ›

47 of 56 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Messages from thirty thousand years ago July 30, 2011

By Hobbes in Dobbs

Format:Amazon Instant Video

The representations of the animals in these cave paintings is extraordinary. Done on cave walls, the black, what appears to be charcoal drawings, depict horses, lions, bears, bison, rhinos, mammoths, and even the bottom half of a woman. There are shadings on the pictures that are very modern looking, most reminiscent of the artwork of Joseph Beuys and Susan Rothenberg. My eleven year old daughter said "Why didn't we see this in school?" One idea in particular stuck in my mind: that they didn't have words or musical notation, so the only way they could communicate with the future was with these drawings. The esoteric mystic, Gurdjieff wrote something to the effect that true art will last for thousands of years, and that from within the artwork there will be a feeling from the artist, an essence of sorts that travels through time. It is hard to imagine that anything we make now will last as long. This movie is a must-see for anyone and everyone, as I think you can see the essence of how the artist was...

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A Haunting Journey Into the Past--Unprecedented Access To A Tremendous Archeological Discovery November 18, 2011

By K. Harris HALL OF FAMETOP 10 REVIEWER

Format:Blu-ray

As a huge fan of Werner Herzog, who in addition to being a great filmmaker is also one of our most noteworthy documentarians, I have seen almost everything that he has produced. In many ways, this piece about Cave of Chauvet-Pont-d'Arc in Southern France is one of the most simple and straightforward works from the prolific director. It is obvious from the first frame that "Cave of Forgotten Dreams" is a subject that is deeply personal to Herzog, and he treats the topic with unequaled reverence. The Chauvet Cave is a rare anomaly discovered in 1994. It was sealed by a rock slide for over twenty-five thousand years and so its contents--both geological and archeological--were found in an uncommonly good state of preservation. Herzog and a small crew were granted limited access to the cave to showcase its treasures which include elaborate stone drawings, hand and feet prints, and animal fossils and skeletons. The discoveries are dated at approximately thirty-two thousand years old, and so to have access to them is a rare treat that we'd have been unable to see (even human breath can harm the art) had it not been for this documentary.

Herzog takes a prominent role as narrator and interviewer as well, and he speaks to the various scientists and archeologists that are working at the site. In addition to the analysis of the drawings (sophisticated pieces depicting horses, lions, bears, rhinos, etc..), we get a bit of insight into primitive tools, hunting implements, and musical instruments. But clearly, Herzog's primary interest is in the drawings which are the most ancient examples of pictorial art known to exist. As haunting chamber music plays, there are plenty of long and stagnant shots of the various artwork.... The entire documentary has a haunting, almost ethereal, church-like feeling. It's as if the cave itself represents a mysterious cathedral and the film takes it all in with long and loving detail. Not concerned with pacing or quick cut editing, we linger on the cave walls. It is undeniably beautiful and fascinating, but I'm certain that some will find this methodical presentation a bit uneventful. But it is, I'm confident, exactly what Herzog wanted--to present the film almost as if you were studying museum pieces. And through it all, he muses on the nature of humanity and our position in history.

3-D: The film and DVD utilize a 3-D presentation. It's the first time I've seen one Blu-ray disc contain both the 2-D and 3-D version. While the film is effective in 2-D, the 3-D does add an interesting element. As you might expect, this is not an out-of-the-screen presentation--the 3-D technology is used to give context to the natural surroundings. As many of the drawings are done around curves and crevices, the camera sort of glides along and the 3-D helps put this into perspective. It doesn't really change the overall effect of the movie, and is not necessary for your enjoyment of the film--but it is a subtle and lovely way to add another dimension to being inside the cave.

"Cave of Forgotten Dreams" may not be for everyone. It requires a patience and a true appreciation of the subject matter. But if you are a fan of Herzog, or documentaries in general, this is a must-see. It has a understated, but haunting, quality that might get under your skin and stick with you. KGHarris, 11/11. Read more ›