Herzog's 'Bucking Fastard' Offers Bizarre Sister Act but Loses Its Way
Werner Herzog's latest film stars Kate and Rooney Mara as Irish sisters who behave as one, but the quirky premise wears thin. The movie, which premiered at Venice, features Orlando Bloom and Domhnall Gleeson but ultimately frays due to unresolved plotlines and a perplexing conclusion.
The film premiered in competition at the Venice Film Festival, running 1 hour 49 minutes. Herzog wrote and directed, assembling a cast that includes Orlando Bloom, Domhnall Gleeson, and several Irish character actors. The narrative follows the Holbrooke sisters through a courtroom restraining order hearing, flashbacks to their shared romantic history with Bloom's character, and a subsequent relocation to the city after tabloid scrutiny.
The sisters' synchronized behavior extends to speech, movement, and identical wardrobe choices, described as mixing Olsen twins aesthetics with monastic influences. Their city move introduces stalker figures and a rooftop peeping neighbor, yet the story's momentum dissipates as subplots—including an aviary sequence and a Fantastic Mr. Fox reference—remain unexplored, leading to an abrupt conclusion that critics found unsatisfying.
This film could reinforce perceptions that Herzog's experimental instincts sometimes outpace narrative coherence, potentially influencing audience expectations for his future projects. The casting of real-life sisters Kate and Rooney Mara may draw curiosity from general viewers, though the polarizing reception could limit mainstream reach. Festival circuit reactions may shape how distributors evaluate similarly unconventional sibling-focused dramas, while the film's unresolved threads could spark debate among cinephiles about artistic ambition versus storytelling discipline.