F i r e o f L o v e - R e v i e w
Fire of Love is a modern travelogue as it takes you to places you never knew you wanted to go nor dared to even try. From Zaire to Italy, the Kraffts explore the earth’s volcanoes not only to attempt to understand them scientifically but also simply just to observe and bathe in their twisted beauty. The deep red lava that flows like a river and the mammoth ash clouds of the grey volcanoes have the power to remind us of the finite realities of our existence. At its best, this documentary raises these existential questions simply by confronting you with some of the most gripping cinematography this year.
Nevertheless, at times, the narration and the spattering of short stop-motion sequences can undermine this imagery through their oversimplified remarks upon the material. Whilst the narration does provide a clear timeline and important context about the events that unfold in the film, when it focuses on the love story and its implications on their work as volcanologists, it can become too sentimental and undercut the depth of meaning that is conveyed through the images. Moreover, it hints at larger questions about the ethical nature of the Kraffts’ adventures and the lack of funding available for volcanologists but never fully interrogates them as only a scene or a few lines of dialogue are dedicated to them.
Unlike most, when Katia and Maurice Krafft see a volcanic eruption, they immediately begin making their way towards to it. Tracing their lives as the world’s only volcanologist couple, Fire of Love tells of scientific endeavour and a seemingly unbreakable passion to not only volcanoes but also to one another. Largely made up of archival footage and still images accompanied by a chronological narration by Miranda July, the film itself almost has a childlike simplicity in its story of love and obsession. On the one hand, this is the film at its core – a well-told summary of the Kraffts’ achievements and setbacks as volcanologists with just a hint of something philosophical lying beneath the surface. However, a narrative description does not do the film justice as its true power lies in the beauty of its cinematography. The Krafft’s footage of their encounters with lava flows, ash cloud eruptions and the bubbling centres of volcanoes are so rich with colour and texture that you can feel the heat radiating from the screen. Beautifully rendered in vibrant photography that ranges from epic wide shots to extremely detailed close-ups, the strange and otherworldly quality of a volcano is a marvel to behold. Beyond the love story and the narrative, the images inspire a primal fascination and almost defy belief.
If you are looking for a profound exploration of the human relationship to the volcanic world, perhaps Werner Herzog’s Into The Inferno would be more apt. However, as a study of nature and landscape simply for its own sake, as a visual marvel unto itself, look no further than Fire of Love which plunges you into the depths of a volcano for 93 minutes and makes you thank cinema itself for allowing you to witness such a
glorious spectacle.