Showing posts with label Alejandro Jodorowsky films. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Alejandro Jodorowsky films. Show all posts

Wednesday, December 05, 2012

5 Movies You Need To See Before You Watch Django Unchained

Well you could see a ton of Sergio Leone flicks or the aptly titled Django. You should have already seen all of Tarantino's other films. But my list of films before you see Q.T.'s latest are below. I'll tell you the truth, I'm damn psyched to see Django Unchained as Tarantino looks primed to mix the humor and violence the likes we haven't seen since Pulp. I can see Christopher Waltz and Jamie Foxx playing a perfect Jules/Vincent duo but we will get a DiCaprio that would make Hans Landa and Marsellus Wallace cringe.
But before we see this probable masterpiece on Christmas, here's some films that you should check out before the white man gets his ass stuffed with cotton.


5.) Boss Nigger

The Jaded Viewer says: Fred Williamson as a black bounty hunter in an all white town. And it's a western? Yup. Look at this plot (via IMDB)

Two black bounty hunters ride into a small town out West in pursuit of an outlaw. They discover that the town has no sheriff, and soon take over that position, much against the will of the mostly white townsfolk. They raise hell, chase women, and milk the locals for cash, while waiting for the opportunity to get their man.  


4.) Black Dynamite

The Jaded Viewer says: It's the funniest blaxsploitation spoof in recent years (check out my review) If you're just looking for straight laughs, you need to see this flick. Michael Jai White is hilarious. It's the next generation's I'm Gonna Git You Sucka.



3.) Sukiyaki Western Django

The Jaded Viewer says: I think Quentin Tarantino would agree with this pick as he is in Takashi Miike's crazy take on the spaghetti western. Haven't you ever wanted to see Japanese speak western twang, samurai swords and all out craziness. Who knows? Maybe Tarantino even took a few things from SWD and brought it onto Django Unchained.




2.) El Topo

The Jaded Viewer says: Alejando Jodorowsky's El Topo created the midnight movie. It's so surreal and insanely crazy, the trailer says it's not even a western. It goes beyond it. I loved this film the first time I saw it. Just a pure mindfuck in ever conceivable way. I wouldn't be surprised if we saw some elements of El Topo in Django Unchained.



1.) Goodbye Uncle Tom

The Jaded Viewer says: What the most fucked up movie about slavery disguised as a black power movie? Mondo Cane directors Gualtiero Jacopetti and Franco Prosperi deliver that to you and some. I still can't get that image of a little white girl racing through a field with a little black boy in chains. I'm pretty sure Q.T. saw this flick and said I could make something better. It's kinda messed up, but if you ever wanted to see Amistad but on steroids, this is it.

Do you have any other films you think should be on this list? Chime in and let me know your thoughts of Django Unchained!




Bookmark and Share

Tuesday, May 08, 2012

10 Things from 70s Times Square that exploitation movies need to bring back


Exploitation and grindhouse movies these days are no longer that exploitative. Sure Tarantino and Rodriguez can call their movie Grindhouse, but somehow if I'm not offended by it, it's not really exploitation. Planet Terror, Death Proof, Machete and Hobo with a Shotgun are all solid flicks but these as you would expect are sanitized Hollywood flicks for the masses.

70s Times Square could care less about the masses. They catered to the guy with the fedora, large sunglasses and trench coat. The true grindhouse films wanted to shock the shit out of you for 70 or so minutes. Bad dubbing, recut and edited foriegn flicks, and retitled films were the standard. But you'd have a wide selection of the WTF and outrageous. Movies that would offend you, test your limits and obliterate your tolerance for the absurd.

Clearly we've all grown up from our 70s scumminess and we'd hope to be a more tolerant and equal society. But a tiny part of me wants to see some exploitative absurdity, something that goes waaaay extreme that you can't believe what you just saw. A millennial Pink Flamingos if you will. 

Will we ever see any of these things/subjects ever made into a feature to call themselves real exploitation?

1.) Super duper racist films

Fight for your Life was completely nuts. Thing about this plot. 3 escaped inmates, a white trash redneck, a Mexican and an Asian violently assault a black minister. You've offended every race in America in one movie. Movies like Goodbye Uncle Tom supposedly cashed in on the blaxploitation craze but 70s grindhouse cashed in by being so offensive, you'd think a race riot would happen in the theater.


2.) Sexually violent deviousness


Ahhh clearly the 70s grindhouse could care less for women. Boobs, butts and skin all to be killed off in horrific fashion. I think of the ridiculousness of Patrick, a movie about a comatose man with psychic powers uses them to manipulate a hot nurse. The kills were wickedly hypnotizing and spawned an even more sexually violent sequel from Italy!

3.) Midgets and Freaks

Have you seen the movie Freaks? It was made in 1932 and starred actual midgets and freaks. Clearly we have to be PC about our little people and visually challenged these days. But the ironic part is this film is actually pretty good, shows them as normal people and featured a part of our society that would have been ignored.

4.) Pimps and Hookers (in Atlantic City)

The only time you see pimps and hookers is on HBO's AC Hookers. Oh what fascinating lives these two groups lead and somehow, yes somehow this could be exploited into some awesome movies if you think of it.

5.) Cannibals a Go Go

It's not like there are anymore cannibal tribes in the world anymore right? Right? I mean even if you stereotyped some tribe to be killer cannibals, it's not like they'd actually see the flick. It's the genre I miss the most. Devil white man gets comeuppance for trying to civilize the savages. It's the formula with a message and the gore.

6.) Mondo Schmondo

 Have you seen the footage of Filipinos crucifying themselves on Easter Sunday? No? Then YouTube it. This shit still happens. All countries still have some crazy, wacky rituals and I don't think we've seen them all.

7.) Experimental Surrealistic Nonsense

We all need a little Alejandro Jodorowsky in our lives.

8.) Something Japanese

Rule 34. If you've thought of something so fucked up, so nasty and so disgusting, chances are the Japanese have made a movie about it.

9.) Slashers who are plain old crazy

Luther the Geek was a movie about a carnival freak who bit the heads off chickens and drinks their blood. He then proceeds to kill random people while clucking. We need more films like this.

10.) The New Christina Lindberg

We need a movie where a girl next door vixen gets violated and then goes all revenge served cold. This is an untapped genre begging and pleading to resurface.

What 70s/80s subgenres from the olden days do you miss? Will we ever see any of these highly offensive subgenres/topics/things ever made in the Hollywood machine or the indie underground?

Chime in!

Monday, September 08, 2008

The Films of Alejandro Jodorowsky

He's made only half a dozen films but like Stanley Kubrick, the body of work of his films cannot be denied.

They are cinematic experimental, avante garde and magical realism masterpieces.

You may not agree with that conclusion. But the scope of Jodorowsky work is summed up as surreally bizarre with a touch of insanity.

From a western with mythic overtones to serial killers finding religion, it's a world like no other.

If anything, millenials should Netflix the following films to understand why Jodorowsky is important.

El Topo, The Holy Mountain and Sante Sangre are truly works of cinematic astonishments that deserve more art house viewings instead of being relegated to midnight showings.

The clips and trailers below, I hope, can give you a taste of what is, and hopefully that will be enough for a full course meal.

1.) Fando Y Lis (1968)





2.) El Topo (1970)





3.) The Holy Mountain (1973)





4.) Santa Sangre (1989)





5.) The Rainbow Thief (1990)

No trailer available


King Shot is supposedly Jodorowsky next film after 3 decades of film hibernation. Hopefully we will see more of the same.

Tags:
, , , , , , , ,,