The following is from an editorial in The New York Times:
Werner Herzog, the prolific German filmmaker behind "Fitzcarraldo," "Rescue Dawn" and "Cave of Forgotten Dreams," has directed a 35-minute documentary on the perils of texting while driving. America's four largest wireless carriers financed the film, "From One Second to the Next," and released it online last week. AT&T will take the lead in distributing it to more than 40,000 high schools. Maddening and moving, it might be the first example of a new genre: the art house public service announcement.
"From One Second to the Next" describes four accidents — two of them fatal, all preventable. It has the look and feel of Herzog's other documentaries, with his subjects alternating between explaining what happened and posing artfully, even awkwardly, as if in a still photograph.
In some cases, Herzog was able to discover what the driver was texting just before the collision. Valetta Bradford, the mother of a now 8-year-old boy struck and paralyzed three years ago while crossing the street, says: "I'm told that the text was 'I'm on my way.' "
Chandler Gerber sped his van into a horse and buggy, killing three members of an Amish family in 2012 — a 17-year-old boy, a 5-year-old girl and a 3-year-old boy. The last message he sent was "I love you."
Reggie Shaw, who caused a 2006 crash that killed two scientists, confesses, "I don't remember what the message said. That's how important it was."
Gerber and Shaw both visit the scenes of their crimes; Gerber kneels in prayer, and Shaw sits and weeps.
While Herzog's films are often ambiguous in nature, his message in this documentary is absolutely apparent. "Don't ever text and drive." Gerber says, "You get one chance, and you live with the choices you make."