5. Santa Sangre (1989)
More weird and transgressive goings on from Alejandro Jodorowsky, this time involving a complex narrative of flashbacks and flash-forwards to tell the sad tale of Fenix, a boy brought up in a circus who has been hospitalised in a mental ward. We learn that he had a rough childhood - he was traumatised by his father cutting his mother's arms off and then his father killed himself. His mother is a religious fanatic who belongs to a sect called 'Santa Sangre' - Holy Blood. Fenix escapes the hospital and goes back to his mother who uses him as a pair of arms and conducts revenge and murder on a grand scale, against Fenix's will. Santa Sangre is not a film that you will forget in a hurry. It is not to everyone's taste due to its transgressive and disturbing nature. The film, produced by Claudio Argento (brother of Dario) is lovely to look at, it is intensely colourful and makes even the most wretched of locations look beautiful. The film, through its transgression, forces you to confront your worst fears - loss of limbs, loss of genitals. You couldn't really call it horror. Like the bulk of Jodorowsky's films, it is a black, surreal drama. It has several haunting images that will stay with you long after you watch it - such as the elephant slaughter scene. Pure transgressive genius from Jodorowsky.