Santa Sangre is one of those truly perfect cinematic visions created by an auteur with such a visionary intensity that the whole film appears to be an absolute realization of director Alejandro Jodorowsky’s dreamlike vision. Jodorowsky similar to the Italian master Sergio Leone only directed a handful of features throughout his career, but when he is on fire, his directorial sensibilities match a filmmaker who has worked on double or triple the features.
1989’s Santa Sangre is at the time of writing (2012) the penultimate narrative feature film from director Jodorwsky. Over the last decade or so, there have been inklings of an El Topo sequel called King Shot in the works, but nothing has come together, and with the now in his 80’s one must wonder if this will be his truly last great film having only followed this film with the less than stellar the Rainbow Thief in 1990.
*Editor’s note since this original review was written Jodorowsky has comeback with 2 more EXCELLENT feature films Endless Poetry and The Dance of Reality.
Santa Sangre was produced by Claudio Argento, a name most cult film fans will recognize immediately as the brother of, and producer of Italian filmmaker Dario Argento. The screenplay for Santa Sangre also attributes a co-writing credit on the film to Claudio Argento alongside Jodorowsky and screenwriter Robert Leoni. The Argento credit on the film is interesting, although Jodorowsky’s prior films did not shy away from violent content Santa Sangre could be considered the most cosmetically violent feature from the director. The film stylistically has many attributes similar to the giallo genre popularized by Dario Argento through the 70’s and 80’s, and also features a garish lighting scheme that wouldn’t be out of place in a film by Mario Bava or Dario Argento. That being said the film does feature heavily into the circus and performing arts, and obviously there is a need for these color schemes, however, considering the pedigree (Argento) and time period (Late 80’s Slasher Boom) it feels slightly more than a coincidence.
The film features both Axel and Adan Jodorowsky in the character Fenix (Adan plays the young boy variation, Axel the older). The film opens with Fenix in an asylum being treated for some unknown condition, he is alone in a room with a tree inside of it. The nurses who are treating him come in, and offer him 2 meals a nice steak dinner, and a raw fish. He accepts the raw fish, much to the nurse’s chagrin. After he is done eating the fish (guts and all), he is prompted to get dressed, at which point it is noted that he has a tattoo on his chest of a phoenix.
Focusing on that Phoenix tattoo we then cut to the films flashback moments, as a bird flies through the streets of a Mexican city, and eventually introduces us to Young Fenix who is currently watching his Mother Concha’s protest of the destruction of her beloved Santa Sangre Church. We are then introduced to his family, and their circus. It turns out as a child Fenix was the child magician in his families circus. Which has a tattooed woman, and her deaf-mute daughter who Fenix even at his young age has fallen for. After the incident in the chuch, Orgo, Fenix’s Father, is caught embracing the tattooed woman by Concha, and is confronted only to he hypnotized by him into servitude, and into having sex with him. We then follow Fenix as he undergoes life experiences such as the sadness he faces after a circus elephant dies, and it’s ensuing funeral. This culminates in the hand-tattooed origin of the Phoenix tattoo from the introduction. This section of the film culminates during a circus performance where Orgo is once again caught in the arms of the tattooed woman, and is mutilated by Concha. He then takes her and performs his knife throwing act upon her, relinquishing her of her arms, before stepping out into the street, slitting his own throat and taking his own life. While that is occurring the tattooed woman escapes with Alma in her VW bus while Fenix is trapped watching from the window in a trailer.
The film then cuts to the present starting with Fenix’s life in the asylum, which he soon breaks out of after his Mother resurfaces outside of his window. He ends up becoming her arms, and together they form an act where they do things such as play the piano with the illusion that she is actually doing it. This starts innocently enough, but it begins to turn out that Fenix’s arms are under his Mother’s full control whether he wants them to or not, he will do such things around their new home as knit for her, and eventually he will begin to kill for her. As he begins to put his new act together, and bring people home he starts to kill and torture them under his Mother’s power. And then Alma returns, still in love with Fenix, and now desiring to free him from his Mother’s grasp, but she is not willing to let go that easily.
Santa Sangre, I’ve seen it on VHS, DVD, Blu-ray, and now on Severin’s GLORIOUS 4k UHD. I can say without a doubt you can sweep all other versions you have into the dustbin, because this is all you will really need. This 2160p transfer is the best Santa Sangre has EVER looked on home video, the insane colors of the film POP from the screen, detail is greater than it has ever been before, all while maintaining the very important natural film look. Audio comes through crisp and clear without issue, and is well balanced (English, Spanish, and Italian tracks are available). The film also includes a Blu-ray disc with the new restoration. Extras include a commentary track with Jodorowsky and Alan Jones, an interview with Jodorowsky on the new restoration, deleted scenes with commentary. There is a trailer rounding off the feature discs. We then get a feature length documentary on the film, following that there is an INSANE amount of interviews of interviews with the main players behind the film, plus additional featurettes, documentaries, short films, Q&A’s, and so much more. Closing off the set is a CD soundtrack and inside the case is a series of reproduction promo photos.
This is seriously the definitive release of Santa Sangre and one of the great releases of 2021. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.