No. 3 Salt and Fire (2016) 72 of 100

 

We jump forward now from Shannon’s debut and sophomore features to this one where he gets a proper part and next to top billing. It’s a pity the film is pretty rubbish, but you can’t have everything.

We open with three scientist being taken hostage with men in balaclavas in what we understand to be Bolivia. The three are on a UN mission to understand an ecological disaster that led to a large salt desert being created in what was once fertile land.

The scientists moan constantly and there is a lot of talk about diarrhoea, as two quickly go down with food poisoning. For some reason we then get a long flashback which shows them travelling and getting kidnapped. No surprises there as they were already kidnapped when we started.

Shannon appears early on but he’s wearing a mask and the subtitles have him as ‘Masked Man’ but his eyes give him away from the start. Another of the kidnappers is in a wheelchair but still dons the full commando outfit. He later springs out of the wheelchair saying he’s only in it when he despairs of humanity – looks like the biggest benefits cheat since Grandpa Joe in ‘Willy Wonka’!

The last scientist standing with clean underwear is German Laura, played by Veronica Ferres who appears to work mostly in German productions. This film does have the smell of an international co-production with lots of wavering accents and strange casting choices.

Shannon makes his big reveal after half an hour, which was no surprise whatsoever. It turns out he’s really Matt, the CEO of the conglomerate who caused the disaster. He takes Laura out into the salt flats and abandons her in a barren island in the middle of them, with supplies for a week and two near blind boys for company. I think we’re meant to think it is an evil scheme but it was more like the set up for a poor reality show.

Laura spends a week pontificating about her situation, taping her thoughts on a tablet with an impressive battery life. Mine would have died on the journey over! There is very minor peril when the last of the water is spilled but the cavalry quickly appear to explain all. Shannon knows he’s off to jail but he wanted to make sure Laura’s report covered more than just facts and figures. The section of her having to shit in a bush will no doubt be of great interest to the UN! The boys are Shannon’s adopted sons and their blindness was down to pollutants. He’s seen the light and wants to make amends. Mainly by kidnapping people.

This was a strange film by the always interesting director Werner Herzog. The plot makes no sense and the dialogue is awful. Some of the nuance is probably lost in translation but how many declarations about having the shits do you need? Several apparently.

Shannon is decent in his role as the villain who has seen the error of his ways but he was poorly served by the script and a supporting cast who looked and sounded like they had won their parts in a competition. The redeeming feature of the film was the stunning scenery and cinematography. They got a lot of use from their drone, but if this was a stand-alone nature film I’d probably have enjoyed it a lot more.

The environmental message is very on the nose here, and it is as subtle as the rumbling super volcano that Shannon declares may end us all sometime soon.

Probably one to miss, unless you are a mental completist, like some.

When is Shannon-On? - 01:57 Masked (New Record) 31:27 (Face Reveal)

Outcome? Hopefully jail, but maybe off to Rome to see a fresco

Film 2/5

Shannon Stars 3/5