Santa Sangre (1989)
We meet Fenix naked and Jesus looking in a mental institution, and then find out about his dark childhood in the circus. He had a religious fanatic mother, and a drunk philandering father who I would swear got dubbed over by Tom Waits. One of his only close friends is a deaf mute girl being raised by an abusive painted-lady mother. And then stuff gets worse.
I love how a certain kind of movie director really likes circuses, I feel like it’s cousins with the kind that are into 19th and early 20th century magicians. An admission that with all the modern philosophical or psychological allusions, and all the ancient theories of drama a breed of cinephile likes to think are at the heart of films, there’s a healthy helping of sleight of hand, misdirection, grease paint, and tight rope acts that holds court there as well. Clearly Jodorowsky is that certain kind of director as the circus scenes are lovingly filmed, vice behind the scenes and all. The side characters you meet for the rest of the movie, are all one in their outcast status, and share that similarity despite their many other differences.
I can’t believe I’m writing “there was an elephant funeral” and I’m not talking about a Nick Cave song.
But yes, if you are a fan of the dark caberet, gothic, ramshackle entertainer type sensibilities of the two singer-songwriters that I’ve just namechecked, you’ll probably dig the hell out of this movie. It’s weirdly earnest for all of its over-the-top plot twists. Also, be aware that as a movie called Santa Sangre, it spills gallons of the stuff and has one of the weirdest psych profiles on a serial killer family relationship that I’ve seen in quite a bit.
Good dark lord is it gorgeous though.
This flick was available at the NYPL. Lady Picture Show would like you to know that her notes have the all-caps phrases GOTH AS FUCK! and HOLY SHIT, THAT’S METAL! scribbled in them repeatedly, so this movie pairs well with Fernette, Pinot Noir or Stone Smoked Porter and someone you would not be self conscious at flashing metal horns at the TV in front of.
