Fireball: Visitors from Darker Worlds is a new Werner Herzog documentary airing on Apple TV+. It is his latest lyrical scientific film, this time about meteorite impacts across the globe and throughout time. In his usual combination of scientific fascination, human wonder, and thoughtful pondering, he shows us how different cultures and beliefs have been influenced by these visitors from space. One sequence will be hard science, the next religious wonder, and then a combination of the two.
I really miss documentaries like these that used to show up on Discovery Channel or TLC, back in the before-times when those were educational channels. So, for me, there’s a lot of familiar content here, but it was nice to catch up on some of the changes scientific observation and discovery about meteors. And it was also interesting to learn, for example, historic island dances related to a tribe’s religious beliefs based around meteor impacts. And to meet the eccentric and the equally sane people who study these rocks scientifically.
Probably not the best analysis of meteorites you can find, but certainly the most Werner Herzog one. And if you like his poetic awe, wonder, and wandering, you’ll like this doc.
Score: 81