Haunting, nightmarishly beautiful arthouse horror film. Jodorowsky's highly imagistic, symbolic style works perfectly in service of the story's themes of mental illness, childhood trauma, and personal agency. Producer Claudio Argento's influence can be felt in narrative and design elements imported from giallo cinema. A sensory feast for fans of horror and surrealist filmmaking.

there is nothing like santa sangre

Random nonsense. I highly recommend you avoid this waste of time.

Like watching a stage act doing horror while on hallucinigens. It was interesting to watch, just very very weird.

Alejandro Jodorowsky's magnum opus thrillingly combines ultra-violence, themes of revenge, abusive family, and mental deterioration, and heavy inspiration by silent films ('The Hands of Orlac' especially) in terms of acting and atmosphere. 'Santa Sangre' is a film that seems destined not to work; destined to end up as a forgettable exploitative diatribe, but it does. I don't know how, but it does.

Trust me, I want to like movies like this, but my goodness it was bad. The first hour is an unbelievably long and dragged out backstory explaining why the protagonist is a sick man. The rest is "almost" watchable... and I'm really struggling to even say that, because I don't want to be cruel to those that seem to enjoy it. Which brings me to the real thing that stays with me after watching this movie, which is: how in the F is it possible that this has an 87 viewer rating? How?

Una brillante ejecución narrativa por parte de Alejandro Jodorowsky en lo que muchos refieren esta cinta como la más accesible. Llena de simbolismos y elementos que son evocadores y, en gran medida, desconcertantes, Jodorowsky encuentra la manera de que el espectador se asombre con este surrealismo mágico que sólo México conoce. Por momentos recae en algo onírico y con interpretaciones viscerales que denotan la estricta dirección de actores que hace mancuerna de un guión sofisticado logrando así que, 35 años más tarde, envejezca de una manera adecuada y también que con la corrección política actual reciba un análisis a la misoginia, la discriminación y el imperialismo moderno.

Think of it as a psychedelic "Psycho" that plays out in the landscape of the subconscious. A gloriously surreal ride.

Traumatized by events in his childhood, the son of two circus performers is now insane. The return of his mother and friends inspire him to return to performing. This film was on my priority list (which I had to make because I doubt I'll be able to view all the films on my watch list before I die). I struggled to get thru the first hour. I found that period to be an over bloated backstory that could've been easily shortened. I'm a big fan of crisp movies. This isn't that. However, the last hour makes up for it by being a grotesque sequence of hypnotic imagery.

It is a wild movie that is about a young man named Fenix (Phoenix) who is going through a mental breakdown as he experiences hallucinations caused by intense grief and I won't say more; it is a movie that's too complicated to explain without revealing things, so go watch it! It is very artfully done and I would say it is more of an experience than a narrative. Don't expect it to be linear; it is like a crazy dream and a nightmare.

Manipulating the focal lens of elite through fabric of film This was a powerfully epic story about a man who escapes from a South American insane asylum. It is reminiscent of "Taxi Driver" in a lot of ways. Scenes throughout the film were extravagantly elegant and the acting was magnificent. The soundtrack was super haunting and the scenes which it orchestrated stand out for sure along the lines of noir and giallo. The scene where they burn off the genitals of the father having the affair were horrifying, and the scenes with the elephant nearly had me in tears. When they push the giant coffin off the mountain and the people rip into it for its contents it becomes a diabolically poignant view of the worlds which surround the naive minds of the audience. This was a deeply moving spectacle, and one of the finest pieces of cinema I've ever seen.

I didn't finish the movie first time round. It was pretty tedious going. The whole thing went on too long with nothing happening and unconnected events jumping around in a boring way. If you can put up with the tedium then this might just be a good film. There is one truly sick and brutal stabbing scene and some blood going everywhere but otherwise nothing to note except an unnerving sense that I had seen it before. The whole theatrical style was just painful. The ending did not validate anything and left me wandering what the hell what I just watched was about.

Pode ser uma maravilha do universo, mas A MIM não agradou...não consegui gostar de forma nenhuma.

It is hard for me to articulate why the films of avant-garde director Alejandro Jodorowsky fascinate and captivate me so much even though many of their defining traits are things that frustrate me in other art films. His films are strange and surreal, heavy on symbolism, magical realism, and absurd and grotesque but striking imagery. They are not subtle about their themes or symbols or attitudes towards politics, or religion, or society in general and aim to challenge artistic and filmmaking conventions. They are also filled with tenderness and sincerity. His films can be described as challenging, but Jodorowsky only means to challenge to audience only up to a point. It feels like his real intention is to change the way we view movies, art, and the wider world so that we can challenge those things together. There is no pretention or condescension in his films, only a welcoming invitation to a new experience and a new perspective. This is especially true of Santa Sangre, one of the strangest and most compassionate films I have seen. Santa Sangre isn't exactly a horror film, but it isn't exactly any other kind of film either. There is violence, drama, humor, cruel characters, bizarre scenes, psychological horror, even elements of a slasher film, but also many moments of great emotion and sympathy. All of this is put together and handled so delicately that it feels like a magic trick. The film opens with image of a nude man posed like bird on an oversized perch in a mental institution. In an extended flashback we see Fenix's traumatic childhood in a circus where he was the boy magician. His mother, Concha (Blanca Guerra), was the trapeze artist and also the leader of a religious sect that worships a saint whose arms were cut off by her rapists. His father, Orgo (Guy Stockwell), was the circus owner and knife thrower. He is crude, excessively macho, and having an affair with the tattooed woman, who is the mother of Fenix's mute friend, Alma. One night Concha discovers Orgo's affair and throws acid on Orgo's genitals. He cuts off her arms and then cuts his own throat. Somehow, despite all of that, the most traumatic moment of that horrible night is the tattooed woman driving away with Alma in the backseat, her face against the window looking back at Fenix. They watch each other being separated in a heartbreaking exchange. When Fenix, now an adult, is beckoned by his mother, he escapes from the mental institution. Hiding behind her, he acts as her arms and hands in a stage show and also in their private moments. In these scenes the actors have so well-choreographed their movements that Concha really does seem to be controlling his hands and Fenix seems to know beforehand what Concha wants to do. Concha's control over Fenix is domineering and somewhat mystical. Through controlling him psychologically she controls him physically, and this is how she exacts her revenge. The first slashing is, like many things in this movie, a paradox: it is gruesome but also hokey. The victim stands behind a sheer curtain and a knife wielding hand stabbing in a cliched, mechanical motion. Bodies pile up, but unlike a slasher movie, the kill scenes are not the crux of the movie. Concha's desire for complete control over her son results in any other woman being a threat. The slashings are a result of the horror and trauma Fenix has suffered and continues to suffer, so he is able to draw our sympathy even though he is also a murderer. This is a movie where a funeral march through town square for an elephant that ends with the elephant corpse being thrown into a canyon were residents of a shantytown cut it up for food is a footnote to the actual plot. Fenix paints the body of a victim white and buries her in a grave that glows and a bird rises out. A scene of a group of patients from the institution being taken to a red-light district with drugs and sex workers actually turns out alright. A large, muscular trans-woman wrestler turns out to be a gentle soul. Every scene contains something unexpected. Santa Sangre was written by Jodorowsky, Robero Leoni, and Claudio Argento (brother of Italian filmmaker Dario Argento). I suppose this is technically a slasher movie, but it is a slasher movie as only Jodorowsky could make. It doesn't feel like a traditional horror movie because of its emphasis on emotion and sympathy for its main character. Adult Fenix is played by Axel Jodorowsky, Alejandro's son, and he does an amazing job playing a tortured, conflicted character. He is a gentle soul and you want desperately for him to be treated as such and be freed from his trauma. There are horror movies that have strong characters, likeable characters, characters you root and cheer for, but I don't think there is another horror film that loves its main character as much as Santa Sangre loves Fenix, and that love is contagious. So why recommend Santa Sangre for Shocktober if it is not exactly horror movie? Well, if this movie is a magic trick, then I guess I want other people to see the trick. Santa Sangre is a dark fairy tale. No matter how bizarre or surreal, we accept the sights we see because they serve something more that just the images. Fairy tales use harsh situations and grim scenarios to teach a simple lesson or moral. So too does Santa Sangre use its garish, striking, but always memorable imagery and scenarios to convey something so simple we can only accept it if it is wrapped up in fantasy. At the climax there is a reveal that may not be a surprise but it is not meant to be. It is a revelation for Fenix and as such is deeply satisfying. It's the moment we've been waiting for. What a unique character study. What a gentle and loving movie. The world is cruel and there are cruel people but kindness and love can still exist and we need not be cruel to ourselves; that only leads back to cruelty to others. This is a beautiful film, a reaction I've had only a handful of times.

An unexpected gem of a film. Very creative and whilst it's psychedelic, hallucinatory and schizophrenic, it still retains enough real world grounding and fascinating psychology to be enjoyable. A touch of light comedy, some ridiculous gore, dealing with trauma and a touching romance round it all off. Wasn't expecting this weird film to have as much depth but it was excellent.

An unexpected masterpiece, really captivating, wonderfully acted.

Santa Sangre (1989) 8 out of 10: Many reviews in 1989 gave Santa Sangre top marks. It was something fresh and new. Roger Ebert probably explains it best in his four-star review. "When I go to the movies, one of my strongest desires is to be shown something new. I want to go to new places, meet new people, have new experiences. When I see Hollywood formulas mindlessly repeated, a little something dies inside of me: I have lost two hours to boors who insist on telling me stories I have heard before. Jodorowsky is not boring. The privilege of making a film is too precious to him for him to want to make a conventional one. It has been 18 years since his last work, and all of that time the frustration and inspiration must have been building. Now comes this release, in a rush of energy and creative joy." Santa Sangre is not dull. You will see things you have never seen before and will never see again. It is as if Dali and Fellini got together and remade Psycho. (It is a much better Psycho remake than the tone-deaf Gus Van Sant 1998 disaster. I was going to call it that Vince Vaughn disaster as I usually do, but on second thought perhaps the director needs to be called out as well) The Good: The acting in this film is often very broad using lots of mime and clown techniques. It is also at times hypnotic. Sabrina Dennison as the adult version of the lead character's childhood love is particularly hypnotic though she is a deaf-mute and doesn't say a word in the film. I am amazed and saddened; that this is her only film. The other acting is good in a very stylized way. This movie asks a lot from its players, and they deliver like an R rated Mexican soap opera where someone dosed the commissary with LSD. For a film that jumps back and forth in time and is so well out there, it does have a plot that one can follow. I have seen much more straight forward films that forgot to tell a tale. The Bad: As I get older and less concerned about what people may think of my tastes and opinions I grow closer to admitting I am not a Fellini fan. This lack of appreciation for Fellini is problematic since Santa Sangre is basically Fellini fan fiction filmed. One's tolerance for clowns and circuses will be tested quite quickly by the happenings on screen. While the story is apparent with all the symbolism swirling around it, it is also quite simple â" a fable. If you are looking for original characters and twists that are not obvious or even internal logic prepare to be disappointed, Santa Sangre is about the journey, not the tale held within. The Ugly: The film has a few prominent scenes with Down Syndrome actors. They seem to be enjoying themselves, and the cast could not be kinder to them. I do find it unsettling as I am unsure that they had agency in their participation in the proceedings. It's a tough subject and unlike the facepalm when you see the clown in minstrel blackface, not one that has gotten easier to read in the subsequent decades. In Conclusion: I enjoyed myself, and I doubt I will forget Santa Sangre anytime soon. It is bizarre upon reflection that it was the performance of a mime that probably tipped this one to a see again recommend score. Recommend I do alas with more reservations than a more burned out reviewer may have.

I loved this movie. The twist has been done before, but the style, music, direction, and acting are top notch. This movie has heart.

Think of it as a psychedelic "Psycho" that plays out in the landscape of the subconscious. A gloriously surreal ride.

A powerfully political yet deeply personal film imbued with themes of Freudian maternal sexual control and self loathing, with heavy doses of artistic Gaillo violence. Jordowosky's most accessible film is as strikingly profound as the earlier world in his filmography. Santa Sangre , to put it simply, is a film with many layers.