The other night Antonia and I were watching something or other on Netflix. When it was over we stumbled upon Into the Inferno and I was like, “Whoa. This is that new Herzog flick.” If you’re familiar with Herzog’s films you know that he’s into extreme nature: jungles, grizzly bears, Antarctica, volcanoes. You also know that he loves classical music and poetic voiceovers. All of that and more gets set against the continually stunning footage of volcanoes in this one, and this film is definitely one of the early awards contenders that will still be getting talked about next year.
This film — like many of Herzog’s best docs — also features surprising interviews with fascinating people who relate stories about the power of the earth’s core, the connection between archaeology and gambling, and the story of a cargo cult religion based on a mysterious American diety named John Frum. Here’s a bit from the Wiki…
The religion centering on John Frum arose in the late 1930s, when Vanuatu was known as the New Hebrides, although there was a claim in 1949 that it had started in the 1910s.[1] The movement was heavily influenced by existing religious practice in the Sulphur Bay area of Tanna, particularly the worship of Keraperamun, a god associated with Mount Tukosmera.[3] In some versions of the story, a native man named Manehivi, using the alias “John Frum”, began appearing among the native people of Tanna dressed in a Western-style coat and assuring the people he would bring them houses, clothes, food and transport.[1][4]
Others contend that John Frum was a kava-induced spirit vision.[5] Said to be a manifestation of Keraperamun, this John Frum promised the dawn of a new age in which all white people, including missionaries, would depart the New Hebrides, leaving behind their goods and property for the native Melanesians. For this to happen, however, the people of Tanna had to reject all aspects of European society including money, Western education, Christianity, and work on copra plantations, plus they had to return to traditional kastom (the Bislama language word for customs).
In 1941, followers of John Frum rid themselves of their money in a frenzy of spending, left the missionary churches, schools, villages and plantations, and moved inland to participate in traditional feasts, dances and rituals. European colonial authorities sought to suppress the movement, at one point arresting a Tannese man who was calling himself John Frum, humiliating him publicly, imprisoning and ultimately exiling him along with other leaders of the cult to another island in the archipelago.[6][7][8]
Despite this effort, the movement gained popularity in the early 1940s, when 300,000 American troops were stationed in New Hebrides during World War II, bringing with them an enormous amount of supplies (or “cargo”).[9] After the war and the departure of the Americans, followers of John Frum built symbolic landing strips to encourage American airplanes to land and bring them “cargo”. Versions of the cult that emphasize the American connection interpret “John Frum” as a corruption of “John from (America)” (though it could mean John from anywhere), and credit the presence of African American soldiers for the idea that John Frum may be black.[10]
In 1957, a leader of the John Frum movement, Nakomaha, created the “Tanna Army”, a non-violent, ritualistic society that organised military-style parades of men whose faces were painted ritual colours and who wore white T-shirts with the letters “T-A USA” (Tanna Army USA). This parade takes place every year on February 15, the date on which followers believe John Frum will return, and which is observed as “John Frum Day” in Vanuatu.
Into the Inferno comes highly recommended as does this 1991 BBC doc that Antonia found, The Fantastic Invasion: John Frum and U.S.A.…
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