The Holy Mountain (1973)

Director:

Alejandro Jodorowsky

Writer:

Alejandro Jodorowsky (written by)

Release Date:

21 August 1974 (West Germany)

Genre:

Adventure | Fantasy | Sci-Fi

Plot:

A Christlike figure wanders through bizarre, grotesque scenarios filled with religious and sacrilegious imagery...

Plot Keywords:

Holy Mountain | Planet | Mountain | God | Solar System

Cast

Alejandro Jodorowsky	...	The Alchemist (as Alexandro Jodorowsky)
Horácio Salinas	...	The Thief (as Horacio Salinas)
Zamira Saunders	...	The Written Woman (as Ramona Saunders)
Juan Ferrara	...	Fon
Adriana Page	...	Isla
Burt Kleiner	...	Klen
Valerie Jodorowsky	...	Sel
Nicky Nichols	...	Berg
Richard Rutowski	...	Axon (as Richard Rutowsky)
Luis Lomeli	...	Lut
Ana De Sade	...	The Prostitute
Chucho-Chucho	...	The Chimpanzee
Letícia Robles	...	Bald Woman 1 (as Leticia Robles)
Connie De La Mora	...	Bald Woman 2
David Kapralik	...	Tourist
Jacqueline Voltaire	...	Tourist Wife
Pablo Leder	...	Circus Barker
Bobby Cameron	...	Fon's Working Girl
Re Debris	...	Klen's Lover
Guadalupe Perullero	...	Berg's Wife
José Antonio Alcaraz	...	Bar Owner (as Jose Antonio Alcaraz)
Héctor Ortega	...	Drug Master (as Hector Ortega)
Robert Taicher	...	Poet
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Basilio González	...	Crippled man
Harry Cohn	...	Klen's Chauffeur (uncredited)
Manuel Dondé	...	Wanderer (uncredited)
Ramiro Chávez Gochicoa	...	Boy (uncredited)
Marcela López Rey	...	Prostitute (uncredited)
Jane Mitchell	...	Stripteaser (uncredited)
Marcela Ponzarelli	...	Woman at the church (uncredited)
David Silva	...	Fon's father (uncredited)

Directed by
Alejandro Jodorowsky		(as Alexandro Jodorowsky)

Writing credits
Alejandro Jodorowsky		(written by) (as Alexandro Jodorowsky)

Produced by
Mick Gochanour	....	producer
Mick Gochanour	....	restored version
Alejandro Jodorowsky	....	producer (as Alexandro Jodorowsky)
Allen Klein	....	producer
Robin Klein	....	producer
Robert Taicher	....	executive producer
Roberto Viskin	....	producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Don Cherry
Ronald Frangipane
Alejandro Jodorowsky		(as Alexandro Jodorowsky)

Cinematography by
Rafael Corkidi

Film Editing by
Federico Landeros

Costume Design by
Alejandro Jodorowsky
Nicky Nichols

Makeup Department
María Eugenia Luna	....	makeup artist (uncredited)

Production Management
Roger Rodewald	....	post-production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Rafael Villaseñor Kuri	....	assistant director

Art Department
David Antón	....	set constructor (as David Anton)
José Durán	....	set constructor (as Jose Duran)
Manuel Felguerez	....	painter
Manuel Felguerez	....	sculptor
Alain Glass	....	painter
Alain Glass	....	sculptor
Alejandro Jodorowsky	....	painter (as Alexandro Jodorowsky)
Alejandro Jodorowsky	....	sculptor (as Alexandro Jodorowsky)
Alejandro Jodorowsky	....	set designer
Antonio Neira	....	wax sculptor (as Antonio Neyra)
Luis Urias	....	painter
Luis Urias	....	sculptor

Sound Department
C. Robert Fine	....	sound mixer
Gonzalo Gavira	....	sound effects
Howard Lester	....	sound editor
Al Steckler	....	sound

Special Effects by
Marcelino Pacheco	....	special effects

Camera and Electrical Department
Harry Cohn	....	camera operator
Miguel Garzón	....	camera operator (as Miguel Garzon)

Editorial Department
Scot Olive	....	digital intermediate colorist (restoration)

Music Department
Brooks Auther	....	music recording engineer
Al Steckler	....	music supervisor
Henry West	....	music advisor

Other crew
Humberto Gurza	....	animal trainer
Miguel Gurza	....	animal trainer
Joanne Pottlitzer	....	translator
Pat Sole	....	voice supervisor
'Chema' Hernandez	....	head wrangler (uncredited)
Oscar Ichazo	....	spiritual advisor (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Producciones Zohar

Distributors

• Pretty Pictures (2006) (France) (theatrical)
• Amuse Soft (Amyuuzu Sofuto) Hanbai Inc. (Japan) (laserdisc) (VHS distributor)
• Amuse Video (Japan) (laserdisc) (VHS releaser)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• CVR Realvision (Italy) (VHS)
• Caméra One
• Nikkatsu Video Films K.K. (1988) (Japan) (VHS)
• Nikkatsu
• Palisades Tartan (2009) (UK) (all media)
• Raro Video (199?) (Italy) (VHS)
• Raro Video (2006) (Italy) (DVD) (cut)
• Raro Video (2007) (Italy) (DVD) (boxed set) (uncut)
• Raro Video (2007) (Italy) (DVD) (uncut)
• Ropponica (1988) (Japan) (VHS) (as Cine Ropponica K.K.)
• Rosebud Video (France) (VHS)
• Siren Visual Entertainment (2007) (Australia) (DVD)
• Tartan Video (2007) (UK) (DVD)
• Visual Corporation

Other Companies

• A&R Recording Studios  music recording
• I.F. Studios Inc.  titles
• Pacific Title  opticals
• Postworks New York  2K restoration and color correction (2006)
• Reeves Cinetel Inc.  sound recording

Also Known As:

La montaña sagrada (Mexico)
The Sacred Mountain (International: English title) (reissue title)

Runtime:

114 min

Country:

Mexico | USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

UK:18 (re-rating, uncut) | UK:X (original rating, cut version) | France:-16 | Netherlands:18 | Australia:MA (2007 re-rating) | South Korea:18 | West Germany:18 | Italy:VM14 (2001) | New Zealand:R18 | USA:R | Hong Kong:III

Filming Locations:

Chichén Itzá, Yucatán, Mexico

Company:

Producciones Zohar

Trivia:

During Axon's hallucination, the battling dogs were indeed real fighting dogs.

Quotes:

Drug Master: The Cross was a mushroom - and the mushroom was also the Tree of Good and Evil.

Movie Connections:

References Un chien andalou (1929)

An absolutely brilliant film both in concept and execution.

The Holy Mountain is an epic exploration of religious experience and global socio-political trends. A scathing indictment of the abuse of power by both first and third-world nations, while simultaneously a wonderfully clever fantasy that exposes art and religion as hilarious tools of mass-mind-control. It is a truly sweeping masterpiece full of amazing imagery and even more impressive thought. And it also has one of the best endings you are likely to see -ever. Too bad it is almost impossible to find.