Axel Jodorowsky

Blanca Guerra

Guy Stockwell

Thelma Tixou

Sabrina Dennison

Adan Jodorowsky

Faviola Elenka Tapia

Teo Jodorowsky

Jesús Juárez

Gloria Contreras

Mary Aranza

Sergio Bustamante

S. Rodriguez

Zonia Rangel Mora

Joaquín García Vargas

Teo Tapia

Edgar E. Jiménez Nava

Jacobo Lieberman

Héctor Ortega

Brontis Jodorowsky

Valérie Crouzet

Óscar Serafín Álvarez

Billy Motton

Hilario 'Popitekus' Vargas

Guadalupe 'TNT' Aguilar

Arturo 'Rinoceronte' Contreras

Gustavo Aguilar Tejada

Roger Fayard Arroyo

Alejandro Jodorowsky

Anuar Badin

Roberto Leoni

Claudio Argento

Angelo Iacono

René Cardona Jr.

Romano Checcacci

Alejandro Luna

Luca Anzellotti

Daniele Nannuzzi

Mauro Bonanni

Tolita Figueroa

Enrique Estévez

Roberto Camacho

Simon Boswell

Alfonso Godínez

Pablo Leder

Alberto López

Lars Bloch

Lamberto Marini

Sergio Arau

Lillo Capoano

Sylvia Fernández

Francisco Jaramillo

Raúl Sarmiento

Pablo Buelna

Luz María Rojas

Jesús Martín Bello

René Villarreal

Thriller

Drama

Horror

Santa Sangre

Productora Fílmica Real

Produzioni Intersound

Italy

Mexico

_**Life is a colorful psychosexual circus in Mexico City**_

A man ends up in an asylum after a shocking experience as a boy in a traveling circus in Mexico. When he escapes he finds his maimed mother and falls under her negative influence. Guy Stockwell plays the grossly overweight circus owner. 

Released in 1989-1990, “Santa Sangre” (meaning “Holy Blood”) is a surreal circus fantasy made by cult director Alejandro Jodorowsky, who’s known for “El Topo” (1970) and “The Holy Mountain” (1973). His son, Axel, plays the protagonist here, Fenix.

Surreal or not, I love circus/carnival-oriented flicks and this one works well in its bizarre way for the first half, but totally bogs down in the second. The colors are vibrant and there’s a lot of deep symbolism with a Christ figure, a giant snake and so on. The various women are displayed in a creative titillating manner (Thelma Tixou as the tattooed woman, Blanca Guerra as the lithe high wire artist, Sabrina Dennison as the innocent Alma and Gloriella as Rubi) and I suspect this is a key reason why a lot of guys hail the film.

Unfortunately, the second half is dreadfully dull. Fenix doesn’t develop as a character in any attention-grabbing way and the story isn’t compelling, unless you find Fenix using his arms to help Mommy interesting. It’s still worth catching if you appreciate eccentric cult flicks that dare to be different, just be prepared for a tedious time in the second hour. 

The film runs 2 hours, 3 minutes, and was shot in Mexico City.

GRADE: C

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Jodorosky's Santa Sangre - Original Theatrical Trailer | High-Def Digest