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Some have called this film flawed (even the director himself), but a flawed film by Herzog is better than most anything you will ever see. The sheer beauty and passion that makes up Herzog's body of work comes shining through in this picture, his final with Kinski. One of the things that have always fascinated me about Herzog is that he travels the world to tell his stories, rather than staying in one spot, namely Germany. Here, we get a Brazilian bandit who, due to his own meddling, is sent to the west coast of Africa to reignite the floundered slave trade. Imagine that, a Brazilian bandit, played by a 61-year-old, bleached blond Polish-German actor. Kinski is in great form as the title character, with madness pouring through his teeth at every remark and sneer. He's the villain, but yet comes across as a hero by the end, but must pay for his sins. The last shot of the film is haunting and chilling. Cobra Verde, after being bought out and told that the English have placed a price on his head, desperately attempts to escape by pulling a boat into the ocean but cannot move the vessel. And in the background is a polio-ridden slave, slowly encroaching, an allegorical reminder of the crippling effect of slavery. No matter how hard he tries, Cobra Verde cannot escape his past and it comes back to haunt him. The film also contains great pieces of dialogue. When another slave baron ironically toasts to slavery and calls it the greatest misunderstanding of mankind, Cobra Verde replies and says, "It was no misunderstanding, it was a crime." There, the character parallels himself against the greatest atrocity of human history: Much like slavery, Cobra Verde's actions and fates were not through circumstance and fate, but rather through his own judgments and actions. He must not suffer through the institution of slavery himself, but by his own meddling hands and ill-gotten gains.

In a touching yet sad endpoint, the final shot of the film was the last shot of the film and the last moment in cinematic history that Herzog and Kinski worked together again. By this point, they had endured each other to the bitter end and parted ways forever. In the commentary by Herzog, he notes that despite Kinski's unruly behavior and temperamental decisions, he still missed him. He regards Kinski's performance in this film as "dirty," but yet, after viewing the film, one cannot imagine any other actor to embrace such a role.

Check this film out as soon as you can. Brilliant in every regard.