Timothy Treadwell, the star of the documentary “Grizzly Man” was probably one of the craziest men I have ever had the chance to observe. He was also a brave man. I know I personally would never go live with Alaskan black bears for thirteen summers in a row. But I guess in order to do such a task for so many years, a person most be some what mentally unstable. But Treadwell did what he loved, and I guess that’s all the matters. I don’t blame him one bit, because he died doing what he loved. For people to criticize him for this is wrong. He didn’t harm a single person or animal, just himself. He observed, studied, and lived with these bears. He even named them and counted them in his group of friends. Like I said, whatever makes you happy, do it.

What upsets me is the director, Werner Herzog. This man made a documentary on one of the craziest, wildest men that America has seen in quite some time. Herzog does well, too, at catching the views and lifestyle of Treadwell. But then he messes up the whole documentary when he personally gets involved. We hear his voice and his vocal input, but he crosses the line when we get that one chance to see him. It’s in the scene where we first learn there is a tape that holds the sound to Timothy Treadwell’s and his girlfriend’s, Amie, deaths. Herzog is privileged enough to hear this recording of Treadwell’s last words (or screams). Yet he just had to put his two-cents in and tell the tape owner to destroy it, to never listen to it. I really don’t think this was his place at all. He didn’t live with the bears like Treadwell, he didn’t survive the Alaskan wilderness, in fact he didn’t do a single thing that Treadwell did. And since he has no experience in this man’s life, I don’t think Herzog has a single right to tell a woman who was emotionally, spiritually, and physically involved with Treadwell what to do.

What I hope is that the lady didn’t destroy the audio tape. I hope she realized Herzog had no idea what he was talking about, and that the decision was ultimately up to her. I know it sounds brutal and even grotesque to save an audio tape of a man’s death, but that’s not the point. The point is that Herzog, or any other person really, doesn’t have the right to tell the woman who inherited this tape what to do. Plus, Herzog’s unneeded advice pretty much ruins his credibility as a documenter. A documenter is supposed to document the actuality, the reality of situations and people. They are supposed to remain as unbiased and even invisible as possible. Herzog did neither of these when he put in his biased advice. Like we discussed in class, it seemed like he was trying to play God over this little audio tape. Not cool. I know I personally will not seek out to watch another documentary made by Werner Herzog.