Advantages: One of a kind. Weird and Surrealist. Undergound Disadvantages: Graphic sexual violence. Animal cruelty. Confusing plot.
El Topo is a psychedelic, surrealist, muti-leveled, psuedo western. It was filmed in the late sixties by Chilean maverick Alejendro Jodorowsky who is notorious for never getting films made. If you are a fan of weird and wonderful cult cinema then hold your breath because this film is for you! Fistful of dollars this is not!
I first heard about El Topo in the eighties, John Lennon and Dennis Hopper claimed it was their favorite film. It earned this ... ...film! After some initial weirdness El Topo is sent to kill four masters to prove his worth. One master is an armless man with a legless man on his back, another master is kind of like jesus and lives in a hut. There is plenty of bloody gunfight action inbetween theological discussions (the effects were done by the crew who did the shootout at the end of 'The Wildbunch'). Towards the end it starts to turn into a bizzare version of Tod Browning's Freaks. ...
fraz1511 16.03.2007 ·Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful
Review of El Topo (DVD)
...must for your collection . The woman who watch the film have the hankies at the ready as you could shed a few tears over this film no matter how often you watch it. Why an Oscar was never given for the acting I do not know. It is a film that you will watch over and over again. It has the typical western backdrop but the way it is portrayed you are caught up in the action. Also if you have a family you can all watch it together. Special effects for ...
Advantages: see the film the way it was meant to be seen Disadvantages: none
...look at the legend of Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid. Released in this new form it adds extra scenes which give more character study although in places it does seem like there are still parts missing.
Nevertheless it is a beautifully shot film which due to the subject matter has a sense of inevitable doom about it. The violence that is so much a part of Peckinpah's films is here in its full glory serving to show the true brutality of the Old West.
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Advantages: Script, direction, cinematography, Danny Huston Disadvantages: Ray Winstone and John Hurt, well.... Hurt.
The Proposition is a star cast led Western set in Australia in 1880's. It's about a gang of 3 lawless brothers on the run for rape and murder. Two get caught and handed over to Capt. Stanley (Ray Winstone). Brother Charlie (Guy Pearce) is practical and brother Mikey is a childish simpleton. Stanley wants to capture the third brother Arthur (Danny Huston) as he is the most dangerous and wanted of the 3 so offers a deal to Charlie. If he finds and ... ...Charlie sets out to do the deed unsure whether he can see it through. This is an incredibly bloody film which on the whole works well but is let down by some performances. It is superbly directed by John Hillcoat who together with writer Nick Cave have created a vision of true menace and lawlessness. The cinematography is superb too and with many beautiful panoramic scenescapes of the Australian outback. In terms of performances, Danny Huston is ...
Loved this series. Cowboy films never used to be like this. The music, the characters and the action are all superb. After watching the first two episodes you will be hooked. Western fun warts and all! The final episode leaves you wanting more. So thank god for season 2 and 3 I cannot recommend this series highly enough, for a few pounds you can spend hours enjoying this series. Unlike many TV series it bears repeat viewing, the characters are quite ... ..."adult TV" experience. The best way to see this series is on DVD, apart from the quality and extras if it was a book it would be a page turner, as soon as one episode finishes you have to see the next one. The language is outrageously profane, something which I personally enjoyed but I can uderstand some people would be offended by, don't watch with your kids (it will embarass them) or with your parents (it will embarass you). ...
