Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		3.5
Audio		3.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

El Topo Blu-ray Movie Review

Watch it at midnight, watch it at noon, just watch it.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman April 14, 2011

Perfection is to get lost.

Must every film be made with an absolute, readily-identifiable purpose? Even if that purpose is only implied by words and actions through which a correlation may be made between the superficial and some greater reason for being, must there be a definitive, can't-miss point that may require connections between the visible and the abstract, but still a point even though hidden from view by the generalities of the story, the construction of the characters, the stylistic choices that shape the film, and the invisible words behind the dialogue? Or does a film need to be something that's easily-digestible, a picture that's perfectly organized and effortlessly and immediately placed into proper context and fully understood? Is there greater value in one form or another -- one may just as easily be as profoundly purposeful as the other -- or does the more underground, imaginative, even difficult picture by its very nature at least seem to lay claim to the "superior" of the two if only for the greater necessary involvement of the audience to at least try and more fully appreciate what it is it has to say? Director Alejandro Jodorowsky's (The Holy Mountain) El Topo certainly falls into the "underground" category -- its title says as much, and the title may be the most easily-read part of the movie -- as a picture so carefully constructed through the juxtaposition of identifiable elements set against abstract concepts and abnormal interpretations that would seem to allow the movie to address the hows and whys of issues man has struggled to define since his time on Earth began, or it may simply be an oddball concoction that only means whatever meaning one assigns to it, even if that meaning is "nothing." Indeed, El Topo is a picture that may be seen to be either everything or nothing, a film that's easy to become lost in, difficult to sort out, and impossible to escape.

A journey begins.

A clad-in-black gunslinger known as "El Topo" (Director Alejandro Jodorowsky) and his nude seven-year-old son (Brontis Jodorowsky) head off into the desert and stumble upon a massacre where a lone survivor begs to be killed and is, mercifully put out of his misery by the young boy with a well-placed bullet to the chest. The pair discover the identities of the assailants -- a vicious captain (David Silva) and his gang of ruffians -- who are dealt with efficiently but not necessarily swiftly. After the confrontation, the gunslinger leaves his son with local monks and takes a woman named Mara (Mara Lorenzio), previously a sex slave for the captain and his men, as his prize. She convinces El Topo that she will only love him if he proves to be the best of his kind; he sets out to slay some of the finest gunfighters around, and while he is unable to defeat them through raw skill, he manages to outmaneuver, outthink, and outwit them. The journey sees the gunslinger set his path, a path that will lead him towards a future of great discovery, triumph, and remorse, all of which will shape his mind, body, and soul along the way.

Superficially, the first half of El Topo is fairly easy to understand -- a gunslinger exacts revenge on a slaughtered peoples, saves a girl, and sets out to prove his worth to her by taking on the best shots around -- but the picture is so packed with unsettling and uncertain imagery; various social, spiritual, and personal insights up for various interpretations; and characters and places that seem to suggest greater meaning than the general story seems to offer; that point towards something not necessarily greater than the story at large, but something far, far more unique than the "Spaghetti Western" façade might otherwise suggest. The contrast between a man clad in black and his naked son riding along with him is a startling visual juxtaposition that could suggest anything from the differences between life and death or purity and sin. From where or to where, for what or for whom they are traveling goes unanswered, save for the opening scene where the boy is given the task of burying his first toy and a picture of his mother, perhaps as a right-of-passage, perhaps as a symbol of leaving a tragic past behind and starting a future where neither will factor into the new way of life. Either way, he is told to do so because he is now "a man." Within the opening moments, before the title sequence, even, El Topo has managed to perplex its audience and bombard them with questions, and this beautifully unending string of "hows?" and "whys?" and "whats?" literally defines every frame in the movie. The picture is packed with imagery both obvious and carefully shrouded and subtle, coming both in the physical form, such as malformed individuals and phallus, and more conceptual imagery, hinting at purity, spirituality -- including the roles of faith, trust, and hope in religion in a broad sense, as well as, it would seem, one's selection to embrace one of many religions -- and sin, with segments of the picture even given a corresponding Biblical title to reinforce whatever its themes both general and more deeply thematic and thoughtful suggest at various levels of understanding.

El Topo -- literally translated "the mole" -- is described at the beginning of the film as a creature that digs through the earth in search of the sun. Sometimes, it finds the surface but is blinded by the light. Taken to a more metaphorical meaning (what else when it comes to El Topo?), the picture may be seen as something that's more at home away from the norm, out of reach and out of sight from the influences of the norm that is the allegorical sun-drenched surface, and the picture better understood and taken in perhaps blindly or in the dark (at midnight, as would be appropriate here), with no preconceived notions and certainly no idea as to what lies ahead and what the consequences of unearthing, as the case may be both literally and figuratively, the picture and its ideas may reveal, and no matter the interpretation one may assign to it, both as a whole and in its smaller collective segments. It's the perfect metaphor to be sure; Jodorowsky certainly backs it up with an admittedly perplexing but highly watchable film that seems to be everything and nothing all at once, the picture swirling in symbolism but then suddenly punctuated, in one scene, with a character walking in circles and repeating time and again "nada" -- "nothing." While "nothing" is a viable interpretation of the greater whole, one cannot deny that El Topo offers something, which is, at the very least, food for thought, an exercise in abstract and unique cinema that may be nothing, may be everything, but like its title suggests, best to see it in its proper context, in its preferred domain, where the light of external influences cannot alter its highly irregular but certainly viable and worthy-of-attention-and-respect existence and purpose.

El Topo Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

El Topo's 1080p transfer is a frustrating one. "New HD transfer from original negative under the supervision of Alejandro Jodorowsky" is how the press release describes what viewers will see, but chances are videophiles might be a little disappointed with the end results, anyway. For the good first, El Topo yields fairly strong detailing throughout, as evident in facial close-ups, the texturing of the sandy terrain seen throughout the movie, or evident in close-up shots of various clothing, both the slick black costume worn by the gunslinger and more ragged garb worn by various characters throughout the film. Colors are strong, particularly evident in the bright blue sky and, again, the earthy, sandy terrain that's nearly ever-present throughout the film. The image is also fairy sharp throughout, with good perceptible depth and only a handful of clumpier, softer scenes. Now for what's likely to perturb some viewers. Though the image generally looks good, it is practically absent of grain, giving it a sometimes scrubbed, sometimes lifeless appearance. Fine detail, as noted, hasn't been washed away, but the image sometimes lacks life. Complicating matters are sporadic edge halos; slight blocking seen in darker backgrounds; and nearly constant, but far from distracting, white speckles, random vertical lines, and the like. It's hard to argue the end result when this is what Jodorowsky has personally approved, but some viewers are still likely to be disappointed that it's not better than it is.

El Topo Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

El Topo's DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack is far from exemplary, but it's a contextually honest presentation that should satisfy fans. Dialogue sounds always thin and tinny with no sense of realism, but it does manage suitable clarity. Most atmospherics -- gusts of wind, for instance -- are handled by the front speakers, and generally crammed up the middle. Indeed, the track rarely spreads out from the center, and the surround channels are hardly, if at all, utilized to any perceptible extent. Most sound effects, whether light ambience or heavier gunshots and the like, play with a cramped, pedestrian tenor that fails to vitalize any part of the soundtrack. Music is a bit harsh and disappointingly dull, crunchy across the high end and lifeless at the bottom. Still, this is a 40-year-old budget "Midnight Movie" picture that wasn't made to dazzle the aural senses. Chances are if most viewers can accept this track for what it is, they should be satisfied with it, "faults" and all.

El Topo Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

El Topo rides onto Blu-ray with a small but serviceable and interesting assortment of extras that are sure to be a big hit with fans of the film and its director.

• Audio Commentary: Director Alejandro Jodorowsky discusses his inability to make a "normal" film, even if that was one of his goals when setting out to make the movie. He recalls the film's New York run, memories from the screenings, the picture's semi-autobiographical nature, working with his son, various artists and stories that inspired scenes in the film, his perception of Westerns and Cowboys at the time of filming, the picture's structure and themes, character progression, and much, much more. The director says at one point in the commentary: "[a] filmmaker has to do what he feels, no matter what. Even if people leave the theater...I don't care, I've done what I've wanted to do. Time will tell if what I did has value or not." What a perfect summation! Alejandro Jodorowsky proves not only a capably intelligent filmmaker with El Topo but a wonderfully articulate commentator. His insights are an invaluable companion to the film; love it or hate it, all should give this track their complete attention. In Spanish with English subtitles.
• Alejandro Jodorowsky Interview (480p, 6:56): The "Father of Midnight Movies" discusses the picture's year-long New York midnight showings, the film's themes and imagery, the contrast between "terrible" and "beautiful" things in the film, critical reaction, his relationship with Allan Klein, and the role of motion pictures as "medicine" for an ailing society.
• Photo Gallery (1080p, 3:51): Includes notes and excerpts from the script and critic blurbs.
• Theatrical Trailer (1080p, 4:04).

El Topo Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

As to the question that opened this review -- must every film have within it some definitive, definable, digestible purpose -- the answer, at least as one may choose to answer after viewing and thinking about El Topo, is obviously "no." El Topo is certainly a film that's been interpreted just about every which way a film may be, but to say there's a single answer to exactly what it is, what it has to say, and why it says it would be a falsehood, for the picture is so abstract and so certain to speak to its audiences differently -- or not speak to them at all -- that there's simply no right or wrong way of interpreting it. Whatever one takes away from the experience, which very well may differ with every viewing and depending on one's own state of mind and place in life, is for that moment, anyway, the proper interpretation for that viewer. That the film is so capable of being so many different things is its greatest source of strength; that its superficial elements don't add up to much is inconsequential, and what makes the film so unique, then, is its boldness and ability to so thoroughly confound but at the same time so thoroughly entrance. El Topo isn't for everyone; it's about as far from the mainstream as a film is likely to get, but for audiences with an open mind and a willingness to try something new, there's no better movie to watch. Though there's no guarantee as to whether one will love the movie or hate it, El Topo is a picture that demands at least the respect of a viewing, whenever one is prepared to give it a chance. Anchor Bay's Blu-ray release of El Topo features a good but somewhat problematic director-approved 1080p transfer, a cramped lossless soundtrack, and a few extras. The film comes recommended, but only those who have seen it and want to see it again should commit to an outright purchase.