Passion and obsession intertwine in ‘Fire of Love’

“The way the Kraffts shot volcanoes, there’s an unmistakable love from behind the frame, and it was so wonderful to work with that kind of material,” says director Sara Dosa of “Fire of Love,” a documentary that warmly pieces together the relationship and career — and film footage — of French volcanologists Katia and Maurice Krafft. Their love of “what forms and reforms the world” erupts onscreen with penetrating wonderment. It’s a fearless curiosity that has these two flocking from one volcano to the next, documenting, filming and photographing the sleeping and the active giants. The narrative explores their passion for each other and their craft, which undeniably brings them closer. Metaphorically, the flow of lava from red volcanoes subliminally connects the fresh landscape of their relationship, while the gray, more destructive volcanoes display the rocky side of their love. “Maurice once wrote, ‘For me, Katia and volcanoes, it is a love story,’” Dosa says. “He is giving us a thesis statement for his life, perhaps a prism through which we can interpret his legacy. For us, we thought he was giving us a love triangle. Not just love between him and Katia, but the third element in this triangle, the pursuit of volcanoes. That pursuit so deeply and dearly kept Katia and Maurice together.” The couple was killed in a volcanic eruption in Japan in 1991.