Having watched some of Grizzly Man, my impression of Timothy is not exactly positive. I agree with Herzog that Timothy's presence among the grizzly bears was disrespectful. Rather than trying to protect the bears, it seemed more as if he was doing it for his own satisfaction. He made it seem like he was doing it for the bears, but it looked more like he was doing it because he himself felt good about it. Especially since he was an addict before, it is possible that through these bears he was hoping to find some peace at mind even if that meant risking his life.
Herzog's personal disagreement with Timothy's view of nature is also definitely apparent throughout the movie. The deeper aesthetic truth he seemed to want to reveal was the truth about nature. Rather than getting involved with the bears like Timothy did, Herzog seemed to believe that he should respect them and their space. It's not about loving and protecting them, it's about respecting them. Herzog said that he didn't script the movie because of Timothy's case, but it is obvious that he wanted to portray his own view by including people in the documentary who were against Timothy. Also, the slight suicidal factor that Herzog mentioned was definitely apparent in the danger of being around the bears. I think Timothy's recordings had that deeper truth about nature and how it's a matter of not crossing borders and that is the way to demonstrate respect.
I totally agree with your perspective on Timothy! After watching the rest of Grizzly Man, I viewed Timothy as a man doing what he was doing for his own satisfaction. Similar to the Bokononist, I thought Timothy continued to lie to himself that what he was doing was just for the bears. However, in all reality he was not necessarily doing the bears on a reservation all that much good. The bears seemed pretty safe on a reservation where they were most likely protected by the law. Although, I would say that he did fulfill his happiness in life through all the years with the bears.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that the outcome was one that aided Timothy and not the bears, but I think that there were more layers to it than simply Timothy's "satisfaction". As a former addict and all around a somewhat deranged person, it was a journey to truly find himself. While we may condemn or judge him as much as we want, this journey was successful and that is more than can be said for many people in his position.
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