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# L.A. FILM FEST MOVIE REVIEW ‘Encounters’ tells a bold story
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/l-a-film-fest-movie-review-encounters-tells-a-bold-story/
- Published: 2008-06-27T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-25T00:18:18.000Z
- Author: Guest Author
- Tags: Entertainment, Santa Monica, #archive-import

*By TAYLOR VAN ARSDALE Special to the Daily Press*

WERNER HERZOG’S PART INTERVIEW/PART historical narrative “Encounters at the End of the World” is an often humorous, (though sometimes sad) exploration into the reasons why certain individuals choose to reside in the bleakest place on earth — Antarctica. “There’s no point south of the South Pole,” says a Forklift operator proudly, as if revealing the obvious adds some mystical weight to its validity. Another claims, “It’s as if all the travelers were shaken out of a bag and fell down to this spot.” The unifying factor being, these peripatetic people recognize the innate wanderlust in each of their ice loving companions.

McMurdo Base, a dreary mining camp from which Herzog “can’t wait to leave,” is filled with professional dreamers, odd balls and scientists. A day trip to a field camp harboring biologists studying seal’s milk shows the stark remoteness of the locale. And just when you’re thinking, “Why in the heck would anyone want to spend time here?” a young zoologist remarks, “If you walk out on the ice you can hear your own heartbeat.” There’s no wind, no sound, nothing to intrude on your thoughts. That is until the seals begin their underwater calls, and the scientists lay down, ears to ice, in order to simply listen. “They have a completely inorganic sound … like Pink Floyd,” says the zoologist. And indeed, it’s as though we’re listening to “Ummagumma.”

Memorable scenes include, the often sarcastic, Herzog putting “hard” questions to a circumspect scientist studying penguins such as, “Are they gay?” and “Do any of them ever go insane?” The underwater photography is stunning and there’s a peaceful, serenity to this place that is not merely frozen, but teems with life, however there’s plenty inherent danger as well. Divers cannot rely on their compasses, weather patterns shift quickly; it’s not territory for the weak. One point Herzog overlooks: The issue of jurisdiction. All travel to and from Antarctica is at the discretion of the National Science Foundation. You cannot just pack up and go; you need to be invited. Don’t get your passports ready just yet; see the film instead.

TAYLOR VAN ARSDALE is a writer/producer and movie reviewer for the Daily Press. She

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/062708-13_01.jpg)

(Photo: Photo courtesy Discovery Films)

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on June 27, 2008.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/062708.pdf?ref=smdp.com)