Werner Herzog is known for heading into realms of experience, history, and study that few other filmmakers, let alone documentary filmmakers, have considered. While Hollywood has been putting money into making insufferable harangues about how the internet is ruining generations of children without expressing fully how the web has furthered civilization, Herzog's Lo and Behold, Reveries of the Connected World actually took the subject intensely seriously. He visited robotics pioneers as well as recovering internet attics and spoke with a family who had their daughter's tragic death turned into troll fodder as well as the head of Tesla. In other words, he cut through the bullshit while so many other "artists" feasted on that very thing.

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Image via Netflix

His new movie, Into the Inferno, is not nearly as urgent or "important" but it's nearly just as good and touches on one of Herzog's most beloved subjects: the chaos of nature. As you can see in the new trailer for the film, which you can see below, Herzog's latest mission involves him visiting areas close to volcanoes, some of which are still active or could become so. A large portion of the film involves North Korea, a large section of which does sit close to the bottom of a volcano, and in that, Herzog finds some immediacy, but that's not what the movie is about. Herzog believes that the chaos of nature is a reflection of what humankind has at once succeeded at and failed at in his estimation. With this movie, he conflates the subjects, and though it's not amongst his very best works, it remains a crucial volume in his storied career.

Into the Inferno arrives on Netflix on October 28th, with a limited theatrical release as well. Watch it as soon as its available.

Here's the new trailer for Into the Inferno:

Here's the official synopsis of Into the Inferno:

Werner Herzog and volcanologist Clive Oppenheimer embark upon a global journey exploring some of the world’s most mythical volcanoes in North Korea, Ethiopia, Iceland and the Vanuatu Archipelago. Speaking with scientists and indigenous peoples alike, they seek to understand the complex and deeply rooted relationship between mankind and one of nature’s greatest wonders. Produced by Spring Films, Werner Herzog Film and Matter of Fact Media, Into the Inferno artfully blends reportage, history and philosophy into a riveting cinematic experience.

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Image via Netflix
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Image via Netflix