HORROR 101 with Dr. AC: SANTA SANGRE (1989): CULT FILM PERFECTION!!!

SANTA SANGRE (1989) d. Alejandro Jodorowsky (Mexico/Italy)

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Visionary filmmaker Alejandro Jodorowsky cultivates one brilliant sequence after another, employing a staggering use of color shades, sensational aural cues, disturbing themes, and some of the most original onscreen imagery ever laid to celluloid. Hypnotizing and enticing, repugnant and crude, Santa Sangre is a thoroughly absorbing and unforgettable experience. It is at once a character-based drama, a psychological thriller, a social commentary tract rife daring symbolism, and a bona-fide musical featuring trance-inducing tunes and haunting ballads. It’s also Jodorowsky’s greatest and most accessible masterwork.

The Chilean-born actor, writer, director, composer, producer, etc. already had two legendary 1970s “midnight movie” achievements to his name with El Topo (1970) and The Holy Mountain (1973), but had been absent from the director’s chair for nearly a decade following his rarely seen 1980 elephant drama, Tusk.

Claudio Argento, the younger brother of (and frequent producer for) director Dario Argento, made a side trip to Mexico in the late 1980s, eventually co-writing the Santa Sangre screenplay with Jodorowsky and Roberto Leoni, as well as producing.

Santa Sangre’s promotional tagline states, “Forget everything you have ever seen.” While an admittedly tall order, it’s unlikely you have ever witnessed anything like it before, with brilliantly choreographed sequences, fascinating camera angles, vibrant colors, extraordinary characters, and spellbinding onscreen action. It is at once grotesque and gorgeous, unsettling and nightmarish, touching and achingly human.

Pick up Severin Films' amazing 4K four-disc box set for the full experience:

https://severinfilms.com/products/santa-sangre-uhd

Tonight, join AC and his amazing panel of guests (Neil Calderone, Raul Benitez, Dave Kosanke, Nicole Mikuzis) as we celebrate the 35th anniversary of Jodorowsky’s crowning cinematic achievement, ever-thankful for his unique vision and unquenchable passion.