Filmstelle

In a city filled with violence, excess and religious perversion, a nameless thief wanders around. Made drunk, his body is cast to life-sized figures of the crucified Jesus Christ. Back to his senses, the thief destroys the casts and has to flee from the world and himself. On his journey, he meets a mysterious alchemist, portrayed by Alejandro Jodorowsky himself. Under his guidance, the man, together with seven other thieves, sets off on a surreal journey to The Holy Mountain, where they are to meet nine immortal masters, protectors of the secret to immortality.

The Holy Mountain is a masterpiece in the guise of a psychedelic fever dream, opening a gate into a world inhabited by alchemy and the grotesque, all dipped into the colors of Pop-Art. Political and religious systems deconstructed and commented with absurd humor. Spiritual images clash into provocative presentations, on a trip of overcoming the ego and the self. From a scandalous movie to a cult classic of the 70s, it toes the line of mysticism, pure insanity and enlightenment.

Alexandra Blum