It is often said that comedy doesn't translate well. What's considered humorous in one culture is not always so in another, and the language is always a barrier. Even more difficult is black humor, where tragedy and comedy mix freely - it's very hard to figure out what is miserable and what is funny. Stroszek, Werner Herzog's 1977 dark comedy about Germans in America suffers from a further problem: it's a German view of America, so what is supposed to be poignant satire, what is farcical? I understand that humor is subjective and that anything is funny, but I guess I just didn't 'get' this film. It has a definite Coen Brothers feel, but of one of their lesser films which feel more cruel than funny.
Making the film more difficult for me to interpret is the presence of Bruno S. as the lead man. Bruno S. is very clearly not a traditional actor; he kind of reminds me of Harpo Marx. He seems almost oddly blessed, despite not being very bright. His way of acting around other people is not like any other person or actor. I don't know that he's really the right actor for this film, though.
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