Anselm

Synopsis

A majestic follow up to his 2011 tour-de-force Pina, Wim Wenders’ latest 3D documentary is another luminous portrait of an iconoclastic artist, Anselm Kiefer, one of the most innovative painters and sculptors of our time. Wenders traces Kiefer’s path from his native Germany to his current home in France, connecting his life and controversial work over five decades in a mesmerizing visual experience.

While Wenders’ 6K high-resolution cameras track around monumental installations, sculptures, and enormous paintings, capturing in lucid detail all their mythic splendor and elemental power, the film also touches on the personal history of the man. Featuring stylized dramatic reenactments (with Wenders’ grandnephew Anton and Kiefer’s son Daniel portraying the artist), the film explores Anselm’s complicated relationship with his country’s Nazi past and his outsized impact on contemporary art.