El Topo

[Andrew]

In the chaotic history of cult films there are several legendary movies.  This bizarre story is one of them.  El Topo is a gunfighter who seeks out the four Masters and defeats them, but he ends up imprisoned in a cave filled with dwarfs and eventually destroys America.  Sounds weird?  It is.

Click here to go to the Review

[Trevor]

  Thanks, Andrew!

"Could you please teach me all of this without beating the s**t out of me?" 

All of Jodorowsky's films were banned in South Africa and I have never seen any of them at all. Even in these enlightened times, go into a video store here in Pretoria and ask for El Topo or The Holy Mountain: all you will get is a shrug and a blank stare.

Thanks to this review, I  at least know what the film is like. 

[peter johnson]

Numerous scenes from the film are almost word-for-word Buddhist parables & Zen koans -- It's an interesting device, and gives the illusion of familiarity to the film for those who've read Buddhist literature/something to grasp on to when the going gets too weird.
Case in point:  When Hijo comes back & says to his father that he will kill him but the old man persuades him to help finish the wall/tunnel/construction first.  When the task is over, he presents himself to his son who then cannot kill him because by working together with him he is no longer the abstract, mythical,  enemy "other", but someone flesh and blood who he now knows.  This is almost identical to a Japanese Buddhist fable attributed to Joshu, and dating from 1200 A.D. or so, if I remember correctly.
peter mole/denny iguana

[Ed Sigma]

I got to see this on the big screen recently, at the BFI, and it has to be in my top three strangest cinema experiences.  The sheer number of ways one can interpret this film and the imagery is enough for whole film study courses, I kind of got the whole "screw America" vibe early on, though the meanings behind bits like the Russian Roulette scene still baffle me.  In the end, I don't know what it means, but I like it.  Good review!

[robinloaf]

 Holy cow, this is one weird movie! I loved every minute of it. Sometimes, the movies that don't make any traditional sense are the most memorable. Look at the films of David Lynch (MY HERO!!!). Did anybody really understand "Eraserhead"? Or "Lost Highway"? Or "Inland Empire"? "El Topo" is one of the prototypes for this kind of movie. It was preceded (2 years) by "2001: A Space Odyssey" which was a great movie but you have to watch it a few times before you get it. These movies are not made for Joe Megaplex, leave them to see the latest Jerry Bruckheimer noise-fest! If you are a serious movie geek, you should definitely watch "El Topo". Along these lines, I also recommend any film by David Lynch and "Pink Floyd The Wall".

[Inyarear]

Sounds like this film could be called "Revenge of the Illegal Immigrants!"

[M.G. SMITTH]

 THIS IS A MUST SEE FLICK FOR WEIRD CINEMA LOVERS! I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE HECK IT ALL MEANS BUT, YOU WON'T SOON FORGET IT! JUST SEE IT! THE ONLY FAULT I HAVE WITH THIS FILM IS THAT IT OBVIOUSLY INSPIRED  TOM "BILLY JACK" LAUGHLIN-T.C. FRANK [WHAT'S MY NAME TODAY????] TO MAKE "THE TRAIL OF BILLY JACK" AND "THE MASTER GUNFIGHTER". FORGET "WATERBOARDING"!!!! [HANG TEN, DUDE!] THESE TWO FILMS ARE A MUCH BETTER WAY TO GET INFO FROM SUSPECTED TANGO! JUST HIT THEM WITH A TASER EVERY TIME SOMEONE SAYS THE WORD "BILLY" OR "THE GOVERNMENT" AND YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO SHUT THEM UP! I SLEEP NOW!

[movieguy247]

This is one crazy ass movie! Nuttier than any David Lynch flick! I LOVE IT!!!!! Another cool fkick from Jodorowsky is "Santa Sangre" (Holy Blood). Released in 1990 I don't think it's available on DVD. This is another weird one, it features a creepy carnival, a mute tight rope walker, a disturbed momma's boy and an armless woman. You need to see it for yourself. It is available on VHS so if you know of any stores that still rent these out, you might get lucky.

[Tocasia]

A bad movie? "El Topo" is considered a masterful piece of surreal-satirical filmic art... really, WTF?

[Brian]

This is not by any means a "bad movie", Roger Ebert has it listed on his website in the "great movies" section along with "Santa Sangre", Ebert has won a Pulitzer award for journalism and more than qualified to state what is a good film and what isn't, "El Topo" is not a b-movie, remove this review from your site immediately.

[Rev. Powell]

I think EL TOPO is in many ways a true bad movie.  It's pretentious, confused, and unnecessarily druggy and obscure.  It's a great big lovable sprawling mess of a movie, my favorite kind. 

However, it's also a very good movie in that it creates a unique and memorable effect---which is why Andrew gave it 5 slimes, which means a movie that is highly watchable and entertaining.  The slimes are what matters, not the artificial "good/bad" distinction. 

Even if you consider it a good movie, you have to admit that, demographically, it's the kind of good movie that lovers of bad movies often flock to.  It definitely belongs on the site next to movies of similar appeal, like PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE and MASTER OF THE FLYING GUILLOTINE.

[Brian]

I agree with most of what you wrote except the last sentence, I understand your opinion and why it would be appealing to the same demographic who enjoys the camp, satire & exploitation etc. genres (the usual standards applied to bad movies), however my argument is due to the fact "El Topo" is somewhat of a victory that the film has been critically acclaimed by many top respected critics all across the world giving a credible boost to the avant garde style and I think the fact it's being associated with a site that only reviews bad movies taints the overall perception.

[Mofo Rising]

Man, that "Brian" is something of a little bit more than a passive-aggressive ass. Doesn't really know how these new-fangled "movies" work.

I remember when I was due to proof your review of El Topo I hurriedly watched the movie before I read it. I'm more than obsessive about watching the movies I want to see on as clean a slate as possible.

El Topo invites multiple interpretations, and as peter johnson stated, it includes multiple zen koans, of which the entire point is to make your own way through for a deeper understanding. It reminds me of how tired I am of hearing people loudly proclaim what they believe Alice in Wonderland is really about (and I've heard way too many explanations).

I can still make more sense out of El Topo than Greaser's Palace.

Sorry, this "Brian" character annoyed me as being a pretentious ass. I'll go sit in my corner now.

[Andrew]

This is not by any means a "bad movie", Roger Ebert has it listed on his website in the "great movies" section along with "Santa Sangre", Ebert has won a Pulitzer award for journalism and more than qualified to state what is a good film and what isn't, "El Topo" is not a b-movie, remove this review from your site immediately.

The review will not be removed, absolutely not.  It is offensive and nearsighted that you would even ask it to be.  "I do not agree, so you have to change." is the heart of what you just said.  Intolerance of differing opinions has been one of the pitfalls of Mankind since the beginning, and you are displaying it wonderfully.  Fortunately, I have the ability to politely tell you, "No."

"El Topo" is not what I consider a b-movie, but it is a cult film.  My criteria for what I review is simply that the films "fit" on the site, which is an opinion, and any person's opinion of a film is never wrong.  Perhaps you should go and read my review, which says that "El Topo" is incredible, that I do not understand even half of it, but that I love it to death.

Frankly, any critic's opinion of a movie is exactly that - an opinion.  It is not any more right or wrong than someone with absolutely no awards for journalism, film education, or other qualifying merits.

[Rev. Powell]

I think the fact it's being associated with a site that only reviews bad movies taints the overall perception.

Maybe your issue is that you're taking the domain name too seriously.  A quick scan of the list of movies Andrew has reviewed will show that 1) they're not all "bad" and 2) "bad" means something very different in the context of this site than "deplorable."  Remember back in the 70s, when you said "I'm BAD" to mean "I'm GOOD"?  Same concept.