Thursday, March 04, 2021

El Topo

El Topo is a 1970 acid western directed by Alejandro Jodorowsky. An acid western is a western film sub-genre "that combines the metaphorical ambitions of critically acclaimed Westerns, such as Shane and The Searchers, with the excesses of the Spaghetti Westerns and the outlook of the counterculture of the 1960s". People who say they don't like "westerns" confuse me. I'm not sure what it is they're saying they don't like. There are so many different kinds of western films.

This film, according to Wikipedia, "is about the eponymous character – a violent, black-clad gunfighter – and his quest for enlightenment."

trailer:



watch it here:


Roger Ebert put it on his list of Great Movies. He says,
John Lennon and Yoko Ono saw it, loved it, and convinced Beatles manager Allen Klein to buy and release it. The film went on to play all over the world and engender countless interpretations. Jodorowsky encourages such speculation by titling sections of the film after books of the Bible ("Psalms"), and making El Topo perhaps a Christ figure.
I kept trying, but it felt so slow. I eventually gave up on it, great film or no.

20 comments:

  1. Not my cup of tea! Valerie

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  2. The artsy movies. Yeah, hard to get behind.

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    1. Too slow. This one was just too slow.

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  3. ...acid westerns are new to me.

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    1. It's an interesting corner of western film.

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  4. Never heard of acid westerns, but sounds interesting. I wonder if this influenced Tarantino?

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    1. I know he was influenced by some spaghetti westerns but don't know about acid westerns.

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  5. I actually like this film and the others you mentioned. I didn't know about John and Yoko though, nice bit of history. You always come up with the best movies and info. Thanks so much.

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    1. Maybe I should try it again. I may not have given it enough of a chance.

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  6. Well, if John liked it I will have to watch it--LOL! ;)

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    1. Let me know what you think. I might need to give it another chance.

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    2. Well, I tried. I only lasted 15 minutes. So dark and bleak and harsh. If there was something good coming it wasn't worth waiting for to me.

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    3. I lasted longer than you did lol, but I just wanted more plot than I was getting.

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    4. No plot--right. And nobody to care about except that poor little boy with him who was buck naked in desert conditions for no apparent reason whatsoever. Were the townspeople shot or poisoned? None of it made any sense. Kind of like an evil Monty Python...but Monty made hellamore sense. ;) Quest for enlightenment...Christ figure...??? I saw none of that anywhere. Even the sound was so harsh...and I'm hard of hearing--LOL!

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    5. Yes, I think sticking around for the whole thing would've been helpful for me, giving me the full view and some idea of where they were going, but at 2 hours? I just wasn't _that_ motivated lol I'm trying to watch City of God right now, having found it after years of looking, but somehow I'm having trouble getting into it even though it's got a clear linear plot, interesting characters, and plenty of action. My mind may need airing out lol I need to go to a park and walk around.

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  7. Never heard of this type of western before, even with John and Yoko liking it I don't think I'll be a fan although I do love westerns ...lol 😉. Happy wishes! Hugs, Jo x

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    1. All kinds of westerns lol We can't like all of them ;)

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  8. I can't believe how far behind visiting I am. I am such a slacker. Or maybe I have just taken on more than I can chew this month. I can't seem to get ahead, either art wise OR visiting and commenting. I've never heard of acid westerns, but I'm not really a western fan, so I'm glad I don't have time to watch it.

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    1. I really was motivated to watch this one, but apparently wasn't motivated enough to finish it ;)

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