Santa Sangre

NC-17

Released Mar 30, 1990

2h 3m

Horror

List

86%

Tomatometer

44 Reviews

87%

Audience Score

5,000+ Ratings

In Mexico, the traumatized son (Axel Jodorowsky) of a knife-thrower (Guy Stockwell) and a trapeze artist bonds grotesquely with his now-armless mother (Blanca Guerra).

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Critics Consensus

Those unfamiliar with Alejandro Jodorowsky's style may find it overwhelming, but Santa Sangre is a provocative psychedelic journey featuring the director's signature touches of violence, vulgarity, and an oddly personal moral center.

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Carrie Rickey

Philadelphia Inquirer

You can say this: It is never boring.

Rated: 2.5/4

Nov 15, 2013

Full Review

Michael Upchurch

Seattle Times

Santa Sangre's content puts it beyond the call of duty for even the most slavishly devoted art-house denizen.

Rated: 2/4

Nov 15, 2013

Full Review

Dave Kehr

Chicago Tribune

What Jodorowsky lacks is a sense of humor, in the absence of which his films turn ludicrous.

Rated: 2/4

Nov 15, 2013

Full Review

Soham Gadre

Vague Visages

Santa Sangre’s themes of empathy and hope are uniquely personal for Jodorowsky, and they help bring the film’s horrors and bloodshed into perspective…

Jan 9, 2024

Full Review

Anthony Arrigo

Dread Central

Undoubtedly the definitive word on Jodorowsky's celebrated surreal serial killer picture. A big recommendation.

Rated: 4/5

Jun 29, 2021

Full Review

Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

The love child of Luis Buñuel and Federico Fellini (with a [****] by David Lynch for good measure).

Rated: 3.5/4

May 23, 2021

Full Review

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Joe B

Trust me, I want to like movies like this, but my goodness it was bad. The first hour is an unbelievably long and dragged out backstory explaining why the protagonist is a sick man. The rest is "almost" watchable... and I'm really struggling to even say that, because I don't want to be cruel to those that seem to enjoy it. Which brings me to the real thing that stays with me after watching this movie, which is: how in the F is it possible that this has an 87 viewer rating? How?

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

05/04/24

Full Review

Mauricio R

Una brillante ejecución narrativa por parte de Alejandro Jodorowsky en lo que muchos refieren esta cinta como la más accesible. Llena de simbolismos y elementos que son evocadores y, en gran medida, desconcertantes, Jodorowsky encuentra la manera de que el espectador se asombre con este surrealismo mágico que sólo México conoce. Por momentos recae en algo onírico y con interpretaciones viscerales que denotan la estricta dirección de actores que hace mancuerna de un guión sofisticado logrando así que, 35 años más tarde, envejezca de una manera adecuada y también que con la corrección política actual reciba un análisis a la misoginia, la discriminación y el imperialismo moderno.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/07/24

Full Review

Alec B

Think of it as a psychedelic "Psycho" that plays out in the landscape of the subconscious. A gloriously surreal ride.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/05/24

Full Review

Logan D

Traumatized by events in his childhood, the son of two circus performers is now insane. The return of his mother and friends inspire him to return to performing. This film was on my priority list (which I had to make because I doubt I'll be able to view all the films on my watch list before I die). I struggled to get thru the first hour. I found that period to be an over bloated backstory that could've been easily shortened. I'm a big fan of crisp movies. This isn't that. However, the last hour makes up for it by being a grotesque sequence of hypnotic imagery.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

11/24/23

Full Review

Nina E

It is a wild movie that is about a young man named Fenix (Phoenix) who is going through a mental breakdown as he experiences hallucinations caused by intense grief and I won't say more; it is a movie that's too complicated to explain without revealing things, so go watch it! It is very artfully done and I would say it is more of an experience than a narrative. Don't expect it to be linear; it is like a crazy dream and a nightmare.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/25/23

Full Review

IrateTyrant C

Manipulating the focal lens of elite through fabric of film This was a powerfully epic story about a man who escapes from a South American insane asylum. It is reminiscent of "Taxi Driver" in a lot of ways. Scenes throughout the film were extravagantly elegant and the acting was magnificent. The soundtrack was super haunting and the scenes which it orchestrated stand out for sure along the lines of noir and giallo. The scene where they burn off the genitals of the father having the affair were horrifying, and the scenes with the elephant nearly had me in tears. When they push the giant coffin off the mountain and the people rip into it for its contents it becomes a diabolically poignant view of the worlds which surround the naive minds of the audience. This was a deeply moving spectacle, and one of the finest pieces of cinema I've ever seen.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

12/29/23

Full Review

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Alejandro Jodorowsky

Director

Axel Jodorowsky

Fenix

Blanca Guerra

Concha

Guy Stockwell

Orgo

Sabrina Dennison

Alma

Thelma Tixou

The Tattooed Woman

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Synopsis

In Mexico, the traumatized son (Axel Jodorowsky) of a knife-thrower (Guy Stockwell) and a trapeze artist bonds grotesquely with his now-armless mother (Blanca Guerra).

Director: Alejandro Jodorowsky
Producer: Rene Cardona Jr., Angelo Iacono
Screenwriter: Alejandro Jodorowsky, Roberto Leoni, Claudio Argento
Distributor: Republic Pictures
Production Co: Produzioni Intersound
Rating: NC-17
Genre: Horror
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 30, 1990, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 18, 2016
Runtime: 2h 3m
Sound Mix: Dolby
Aspect Ratio: 35mm, Flat (1.85:1)

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