Grizzly Man (2005)
Discovery Docs

Description

In his mesmerizing new film, Grizzly Man, acclaimed director Werner Herzog explores the life and death of amateur grizzly bear expert and wildlife preservationist Timothy Treadwell. Treadwell lived unarmed among the bears for thirteen summers, and filmed his adventures in the wild during his final five seasons. In October 2003, Treadwell’s remains, along with those of his girlfriend, Amie Huguenard, were discovered near their campsite in Alaska’s Katmai National Park and Reserve. They had been mauled and devoured by a grizzly.

Tags

Bears

Collected reviews and ratings

10 New York Times | Manohla Dargis

It is the rare documentary like "Grizzly Man," which has beauty and passion often lacking in any type of film, that makes you want to grab its maker and head off to the nearest bar to discuss man's domination of nature and how Disney's cute critters reflect our profound alienation from the natural order.
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10 BBC | Jamie Woolley

German auteur Werner Herzog pieces together the remarkable footage Treadwell left behind into a superb portrait of a fractured obsessive living literally on the edge.
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9.2 Entertainment Weekly | Lisa Schwarzbaum

Werner Herzog makes use of some of the 100-plus hours of video footage Treadwell left behind to create Grizzly Man, a mesmerizing work of disturbing power and unease.
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9.1 DVD Verdict | Ryan Keefer

Werner Herzog's Grizzly Man is a fascinating look at a man who is, innocently enough, trying to find his place in the world. And he will defend himself doing it however he can.
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9.0 Los Angeles Times | Kenneth Turan

"Grizzly Man" shows and tells an astonishing story, a disturbing and provocative tale of obsession, bravado and self-invention that leaves you open-mouthed for all kinds of reasons.
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8.8 Rolling Stone | Peter Travers

Along with interviews of those who knew him, Herzog conducts his own expedition into knowing the unknowable -- the true task of any filmmaker. Herzog makes it an art.
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8.3 The Onion A.V. Club | Keith Phipps

Rarely has the never-ending struggle between humanity and nature looked so much like a one-sided battle of wits as it does in Werner Herzog's documentary Grizzly Man, the story of self-styled naturalist Timothy Treadwell.
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8.0 Salon.com | Andrew O'Hehir

By the end of Herzog's remarkable meditation on violence, nature, filmmaking and - his usual subject - the mystery of human nature, you've seen Treadwell discuss his own death so much that the event itself seems less ironic than inevitable.
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8.0 DVD Talk | Ian Jane

Regardless of how you feel about Timothy Treadwell and his exploits, there's no denying the compelling power of Werner Herzog's film.
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