Having fathered an illegitimate child with his lover, Marie, feckless soldier Franz Woyzeck takes odd jobs around his small town to provide some extra money for them. One job is volunteering for experiments conducted by a local doctor, who puts Woyzeck on a diet of peas. This serves to drive him close to madness, and the discovery that Marie is involved in an affair with the local drum major exacerbates the situation. Pushed too far, Woyzeck resorts to violence.
Directed by Werner Herzog
becoming an adult
child hero
childhood trauma
leipzig, germany
revenge
murder
kids
Trailer
IMDB
N/A
Letterboxd
3.5 / 5
Where to Watch
Cast
Klaus Kinski
Friedrich Johann Franz Woyzeck
Eva Mattes
Marie
Wolfgang Reichmann
Captain
Willy Semmelrogge
Doctor
Josef Bierbichler
Drum Major
Paul Burian
Andres
Volker Prechtel
Handwerksbursche
Irm Hermann
Margret
Wolfgang Bächler
Jew
Rosemarie Heinikel
Herbert Fux
Unteroffizier
Crew
Werner Herzog
Director
Werner Herzog
Screenplay
Jörg Schmidt-Reitwein
Director of Photography
Harald Maury
Sound Designer
Georg Büchner
Theatre Play
Popular Reviews
49 reviews
Ruaidhri
7.0★ · 04/01/26
Aight Peas drive me senile aswell
Aight Peas drive me senile aswell
Silas Viland
6.0★ · 02/22/26
It's not a Klaus Kinski film without a little murder
It's not a Klaus Kinski film without a little murder
Nick
6.0★ · 01/09/26
An unfinished movie that’s based on an unfinished play doesn't make it any more satisfying.
An unfinished movie that’s based on an unfinished play doesn't make it any more satisfying.
Jean
7.0★ · 04/06/25
I stay up at night thinking what Klaus Kinski would do if he wasn’t an actor
Also pretty sure this is the 3rd time I’ve seen Herzog use that town square in his films
I stay up at night thinking what Klaus Kinski would do if he wasn’t an actor
Also pretty sure this is the 3rd time I’ve seen Herzog use that town square in his films
Hannah P
6.0★ · 02/12/25
Moral of the story: don’t eat only peas because your doctor says so
Moral of the story: don’t eat only peas because your doctor says so