That snake is the first sign that New Orleans has turned into a depraved, Herzogian swamp. The film begins with Hurricane Katrina, as the waters rise and usher the natural world into society. In Bad Lieutenant, animals have crept into manвЂ™s realm. What do they mean? In short, as weвЂ™ll see, they signify madness, chaos, nature overtaking civilization. Animals permeate Bad Lieutenant, as they do many of HerzogвЂ™s films.В Recall those monkeys in AguirreВ or the bears of Grizzly Man.В Gators, snakes, fish, iguanas they crop up often and without warning in this film. But even from its very first shot, the movie starts to hint at its subtext. Go into this blind and, one minute in, youвЂ™d never guess Bad Lieutenant was made by one of the most celebrated directors in the world.

Generic, thriller music fills the soundtrack. We start with a snake slithering through ink-black water. Their overt silliness dupes you into thinking thereвЂ™s nothing below the surface.ДЄnd so Bad Lieutenant begins likeВ a late-night B-movie, one youвЂ™d catch on USA or TNT. Cinephile cult films - IвЂ™d include Showgirls, Point Break, and Wild ThingsВ among the list - practically beg you to dismiss them. Only those who вЂњget the jokeвЂќ can become members of the cult. The Big Lebowski), Bad Lieutenant deliberately misleads casual viewers. Unlike the broader, undisputed cult classics (i.e. It mystifies movie nerds and taste-makers - the people who pride themselves on discerning quality from shlock. ItвЂ™s a moving target, incapable of being pinned down as genre trash or high art. It puzzles, eludes easy interpretation, and entertains like all hell. Werner HerzogвЂs Bad Lieutenant is a special kind of cult film. It contains nonstop spoilers and a battery of stills to help you follow along at home. This post explores the first 20-odd minutes of the film, from the opening credits to a pivotal showdown between Nicolas Cage and a young, drunk couple. Here lies the first installment in a scene-for-scene look at Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, a movie so close to my heart it was once misdiagnosed as a tumor.

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