10 Great Movies With Plots That Make Your Head Hurt

2. The Holy Mountain

When you're watching a film and suddenly you're presented with a scene of frogs, toads and other lizards dressed in costumes, reenacting the conquest of Mexico, you know you've entered well and truly into unusual territory. And when you realise that the aforementioned scene isn't the weirdest thing about the movie, that's when the real confusion starts to set in. Alejandro Jodorowsky's The Holy Mountain is about as far removed from conventional movie making as it is possible to get - full of abstract imagery which can easily dupe the audience into thinking that someone's spiked them with a hefty dose of LSD, it explores the process of alchemical transformation with a fervour matched by its condemnation of the devoutly religious and shamelessly materialistic. That it does so with enigmatic dialogue and a visual palette so outrageous they become almost transcendental is its major achievement. A strong background in the Old and New Testament, tarot and alchemy certainly helps you get your head around its mysteries, but even then The Holy Mountain will leave you wondering exactly what it is you've just witnessed. Who knows how Jodorowsky's Dune might have turned out?