HOLY MOUNTAIN
HOLY FUCK! HOLY MOUNTAIN!
I was first introduced to the work of Alejandro Jodorowsky through the film Santa Sangre (1989) by the very blue-eyed Theo Stanley, who was either the last of my girlhood crushes or my first adult heartbreak (1999). Santa Sangre was amongst the gateway films that turned me into the amateur cinephile.
Last weekend cinespia hosted a special Sunday night cemetery screening of Jodorowsky's Holy Mountain (1973). While the film may only hint at a cohesive or linear narrative plot, it can best be summarized as follows: A jesus-type figure encounters a mystical alchemist who convinces him and the 7 planetary rulers to leave their material existences behind to go in search of the holy mountain in the hope of securing for themselves immortality. The highlights of the film are the, impossible to shoot in the present day, Frog and Chameleon Circus: a bloody re-enactment of the spanish conquest of aztec mexico starring frogs and chameleons. And the individual stories of the Planetary rulers, particularly Venus, Mars, & Saturn.
I went knowing I would enjoy myself, I always do at the cemetery screenings, but I was blown away by the strength of cultural & religious commentary, satire, humor, and artistic vision of this film. Financed by John Lennon and Yoko Ono and advocating use of psychedilic drugs Holy Mountain is a radical head trip. Find it and watch it.
I was first introduced to the work of Alejandro Jodorowsky through the film Santa Sangre (1989) by the very blue-eyed Theo Stanley, who was either the last of my girlhood crushes or my first adult heartbreak (1999). Santa Sangre was amongst the gateway films that turned me into the amateur cinephile.
Last weekend cinespia hosted a special Sunday night cemetery screening of Jodorowsky's Holy Mountain (1973). While the film may only hint at a cohesive or linear narrative plot, it can best be summarized as follows: A jesus-type figure encounters a mystical alchemist who convinces him and the 7 planetary rulers to leave their material existences behind to go in search of the holy mountain in the hope of securing for themselves immortality. The highlights of the film are the, impossible to shoot in the present day, Frog and Chameleon Circus: a bloody re-enactment of the spanish conquest of aztec mexico starring frogs and chameleons. And the individual stories of the Planetary rulers, particularly Venus, Mars, & Saturn.
I went knowing I would enjoy myself, I always do at the cemetery screenings, but I was blown away by the strength of cultural & religious commentary, satire, humor, and artistic vision of this film. Financed by John Lennon and Yoko Ono and advocating use of psychedilic drugs Holy Mountain is a radical head trip. Find it and watch it.
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