The films of Chilean born director Alejandro Jodorowsky have made an indelible mark on how I see the world around me. Back in the 1990s I developed an interest in semiotics just to break down the sigils in the Holy Mountain and that opened the doors to finding out more about the Tarot,. Jewish mysticism and film as a vehicle for magic realism.
Last year I took a twenty two hour (round trip) bus journey to Toronto to see JODOROWSKY’S DUNE. Synchronicity found me sitting behind the director- a very talented fellow named Frank Pavich- and we were able to get to know each other a bit while talking about Jodo’s legacy. Before the DUNE documentary, Jodorowsky had several aborted attempts at making a new film- his last being 1989s Santa Sangre- but no matter how strong the script or how talented the actors he never seemed to get anything off the ground.
Pavich’s DUNE project reunited Alejandro with producer Michel Sydoux and the two teamed up for La Danza de la Realidad- the Dance of Reality. It opened in the States on 23rd May and is hitting select cities nationally.
Philadelphia will be getting it for one week only starting tomorrow- 30th May.
The film opened to rave reviews- scoring a 92% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 7.6/10 on IMDB. If you’re a regular Occult Vibrations reader, I can almost bet this film will be right up your alley and absolutely worth seeking out.
And Jodorowsky’s DUNE has a June release date on DVD/Blu-ray.