Rent Werner Herzog: Even Dwarfs Started Small (1970)
3.2 of 5 from 69 ratings
1h 36min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
- The inmates have taken over an institution in a bleak and savage world in which everyone's a dwarf. As one of the institution's directors holds a rebel hostage while issuing orders for calm, the other inmates run amok, smashing equipment, setting fires, fighting for power and tormenting two blind prisoners. In this land of reversed proportions, these revolutionary outcasts not only destroy the symbols of civilization - cars, typewriters and dinner plates - but trees and flowers and animals as well.In this world gone mad with violence, the chickens resort to cannibalism, and monkeys are crucified.
- Actors:
- Gerd Gickel, Paul Glauer, Erna Gschwendtner, Josef Bierbichler, Stefan Güttler, Clemens Scheitz, Sonja Skiba, Helmut Döring, Gisela Hertwig, Hertel Minkner, Gertrud Piccini, Marianne Saar, Brigitte Saar, Gerhard Maerz, Alfredo Piccini, Erna Smollarz, Lajos Zsarnoczay, Pepi Hermine
- Directors:
- Werner Herzog
- Producers:
- Werner Herzog
- Writers:
- Werner Herzog
- Aka:
- Auch Zwerge haben klein angefangen
- Studio:
- Anchor Bay
- Genres:
- Classics, Comedy, Drama
- Collections:
- Horror, Nosferatu Times Three, Top 10 Award Winners at the London Film Festival, Top Films
- Countries:
- Germany
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Reviews (1) of Werner Herzog: Even Dwarfs Started Small
Small World, Big Chaos - Werner Herzog: Even Dwarfs Started Small review by griggs
Werner Herzog’s early films always feel like he’s testing how much madness an audience can take before walking out. This one’s no different. He gathers an all-dwarf cast in a remote institution where chaos slowly takes over — cars spin in circles, chickens run riot, and laughter turns to screams. It’s anarchic, strange, and hard to look away from.
There’s something compelling about watching order collapse, even if it’s never clear what Herzog’s after — human nature, power, or just striking images.
Even Dwarfs Started Small is more curiosity than crowd-pleaser. It’s ugly, absurd, and oddly poetic in that singular Herzog way. I wouldn’t hurry to rewatch it, but it’s impossible to forget.
1 out of 1 members found this review helpful.