The Films of Alejandro Jodorowsky
(Starz/Anchor Bay)
Alejandro Jodorowsky has fought Allen Klein and ABKCO Films for the release of his films for over 30 years. With their differences behind them, beautifully restored versions of Jodorowsky's first feature, Fando y Lis and the lost short La Cravate can emerge. The crown jewels of the set are El Topo and The Holy Mountain, two films that helped bridge Buñuel to Lynch. El Topo is cited as a direct influence on Eraserhead and John Lennon once called it his favourite film. It loosely tells the story of a gunfighter who leaves his son with monks before heading into the desert to kill four freakish gunfighters in order to become the greatest gunfighter ever. The second half is the gunfighter's resurrection as a Buddha-esque figure at the hands of the some underground-dwelling midgets. Above ground, he must face his hellish past at the hands of a sadistic sheriff while his monk son looks on. The Holy Mountain is an even more complex and anarchic film about an alchemist who recruits seven of the most powerful people in the solar system to find the holy mountain of the immortals of legend. Both films contain beautifully crafted shots that inhabit elements of Buñuel, Antonioni and early Fellini. Full of originality and scope, Jodorowsky's work must be seen to be believed.
Trevor MacLaren