El topo (1970)

User Rating:

7.4/10   

Director:

Alejandro Jodorowsky

Writer:

Alejandro Jodorowsky (written by)

Release Date:

15 April 1971 (Mexico)

Genre:

Adventure | Fantasy | Western

Tagline:

See the naked young Franciscans whipped with cactus. See the bandit leader disemboweled. See the priest ride into the sunset with a midget and her newborn baby. What it all means isn't exactly clear, but you won't forget it.

Plot:

The gunfighter El Topo ("The Mole") and his young son ride through a desert to a village, whose inhabitants have been massacred...

Plot Keywords:

El Topo | Desert | Tunnel | Monk | Bandit

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Alejandro Jodorowsky	...	El Topo
Brontis Jodorowsky	...	Son of El Topo, as a boy
José Legarreta	...	Dying Man
Alfonso Arau	...	Bandit #1
José Luis Fernández	...	Bandit #2
Alf Junco	...	Bandit #3 (as Alí Junco)
Gerardo Zepeda	...	Bandit #4 (as Gerardo Cepeda)
René Barrera	...	Bandit #5
René Alís	...	Bandit #6
Federico Gonzáles	...	Bandit #7
Vicente Lara	...	Bandit #8
Pablo Leder	...	Monk #1
Giuliano Girini Sasseroli	...	Monk #2
Cristian Merkel	...	Monk #3
Aldo Grumelli	...	Monk #4
Mara Lorenzio	...	Mara
David Silva	...	The Colonel
Ignacio Martínez España	...	Armless man
Eliseo Gardea Saucedo	...	Legless man
Héctor Martínez	...	Master #1 (as Hector Martinez 'El Borrado')
Paula Romo	...	Woman in black
Bertha Lomelí	...	Gypsy, Mother of Master #2 (as Berta Lomeli)
Juan José Gurrola	...	Master #2
Víctor Fosado	...	Master #3
Agustín Isunza	...	Master #4
Jacqueline Luis	...	Small woman
Carlos Lavenant	...	Executioner #1
Eliseo Pereda	...	Executioner #2
Pablo Marichal	...	Slave
Beatriz Beltrán Lobo	...	Woman #1
Carmen Lamadrid	...	Woman #2
Pepita González	...	Woman #3
Cecilia Leger	...	Woman #4 (as Cecilia Leguer)
Elvira Agosti	...	Woman #5
Antonio Álvarez	...	Prisoner #1
Rueben Gonzáles	...	Prisoner #2 (as Rubén González)
Víctor Manuel Osorio	...	Prisoner #3
José Pérez Bustos	...	Prisoner #4
Eduardo Danel	...	Prisoner #5
Álvaro García	...	Prisoner #6 (as Alvaro García)
José Antonio Alcaraz	...	Sheriff
Felipe Díaz Garza	...	Deputy (as Felipe Diazgarza)
Patricio Pereda	...	The child
Marcos E. Contreras	...	Boxer #1
Arturo Silva	...	Boxer #2
Robert John	...	Son of El Topo, as a man
Julián de Meriche	...	Priest (as Julien de Meriche)
Valerie Tremblay	...	Woman in church (as Valerie Trumblay)
José Luis González de León	...	Man in church (as J.L. González de León)
Francisco González Salazar	...	Shopkeeper
Pedro García	...	Man with carrot

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
Robin Klein	....	producer
Juan López Moctezuma	....	producer
Moshe Rosemberg	....	producer (as Moishe Rosemberg)
Saúl Rosemberg	....	producer
Roberto Viskin	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Alejandro Jodorowsky
Nacho Méndez

Cinematography by
Rafael Corkidi

Film Editing by
Federico Landeros

Production Design by
Alejandro Jodorowsky

Art Direction by
José Durán

Set Decoration by
José Luis Garduño

Costume Design by
Alejandro Jodorowsky

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
José Luis González de León	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Gonzalo Gavira	....	sound effects engineer
Lilia Lupercio	....	sound editor

Other crew
Humberto Gurza	....	animal wrangler
Miguel Gurza	....	animal wrangler
'Chema' Hernandez	....	livestock coordinator
Luz María Rojas	....	production assistant
Vicente Rojo	....	title designer
Jorge Rubio Salazar	....	production assistant (as Jorge Rubio)

Production Companies

• Producciones Panicas

Distributors

• Douglas Films (1970) (USA)
• Allen & Betty Klein and Company (ABKCO) (1971) (USA) (subtitled)
• Abkco Films (2007) (USA) (theatrical)
• Caméra One (1975) (France) (theatrical)
• Pretty Pictures (2006) (France) (theatrical)
• Tuschinski Film Distribution (1975) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Amuse Soft (Amyuuzu Sofuto) Hanbai Inc. (Japan) (laserdisc) (VHS distributor)
• Amuse Video (Japan) (laserdisc) (VHS releaser)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Criterion Pictures (1973) (Canada)
• DMEG (2004) (Sweden) (video)
• Gruppo Minerva International (199?) (Italy) (VHS)
• Nikkatsu
• Nouveaux Pictures
• Palisades Tartan (2009) (UK) (all media)
• Raro Video (2006) (Italy) (DVD)
• Raro Video (2007) (Italy) (DVD) (re-release)
• Rosebud Video (France) (VHS)
• Siren Visual Entertainment (2007) (Australia) (DVD)
• Tartan Video (2007) (UK) (DVD)
• Unknown Video (video)
• VCL Communications

Other Companies

• Postworks New York  HD restoration and color correction (2006)
• Section 49 of Sindicato de Trabajadores de la Industria Cinematográfica (STIC)  technical support

Also Known As:

The Gopher
The Mole

Runtime:

125 min

Country:

Mexico

Language:

Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Klangfilm)

Certification:

Finland:K-18 | France:-16 | Australia:MA (2007 re-rating) | South Korea:18 | West Germany:18 | Italy:VM18 (1974) | Australia:R (DVD rating) | Netherlands:18 | UK:18 | Hong Kong:III | UK:X (original rating) (cut) | Germany:BPjM Restricted

Filming Locations:

Estudios América, Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico

Company:

Producciones Panicas

Trivia:

Years later, Alejandro Jodorowsky, ashamed of the part he forced his own son to play, invited him to his house. He went with his son to the backyard and asked him to dig. Inside the hole, there was an old teddy bear and an old picture of her mother, and Alexandro said: "Now you are 8 years old, and you have the right to be a kid".

Quotes:

[first lines]
El Topo: [to his son] You are seven years old. You are a man. Bury your first toy and your mother's picture.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Midnight Movies: From the Margin to the Mainstream (2005)

Overly Ambitious, but Still Interesting

7 out of 10

Highly controversial in it's day this thing has certainly tamed quite a bit. The blood, violence, nudity, and sexuality really seem like no big deal. The effects aren't real good either and coupled with some real chopping editing you hardly see anything that 'shocking'. In many ways this looks like just another amateurish artifact from a bygone era.

Yet content wise it is actually quite alerting. Director Jodorowsky shows a definite talent. Yes it certainly does seem to bite off more than it can chew especially with such a limited budget. It is saturated (almost bogged down) with heavy symbolism and a seeming need to blow everything up to an almost epic proportion. His ambitions just don't and can't equal the final result. Yet this is still far from a failure. Even while being hampered there are certain scenes that leave a very strong impression.

Has a reputation of being convoluted and yet it is really quite lyrical. Once one adjusts to it's mesmerizing use of symbolism it becomes fascinating. It's heavy allegorical nature is both intriguing and provocative. There is a very unique vision here, which raises it well above the fray despite the other limitations.

The story seems confusing and hard to explain, but really it isn't. It's a story of a mysterious gunmen who comes out of nowhere to avenge a town that has been massacred. Once finished with this he takes the perpetrators women and goes off into the desert. Here he must prove himself against four different masters that all seem invincible. Yet it is to women and lust that he falls victim. Defeated and demoralized he turns to spirituality and ends up fighting to save some deformed people from a town that has literally barricaded them into a underground cavern.

If nothing else the whole thing keeps you going. It is fun and interesting to see one man go through such different stages much like a lot of people. It also gives you a sort of complete view of the person by showing you all his different sides. There is a lot of religious correlations and a overall negative view of women. There is also, surprisingly, a lot of comedy and lighheartedness.

It does fail to leave a overall strong impact. There is also a very cold, alienating tone to it and the characters are all rather unpleasant. Yet for those that like to take a ride into the different they won't be disappointed. The castration of a pompous Colonel is amazing. The showdowns with the masters are memorable and the game of Russian roulette amongst a group of churchgoers isn't bad either.

The film promotes a rather curious statement made by it's director and used on most of it's posters and box covers. It states "If you are great El Topo is a great picture. If you are limited than El Topo is limited." This statement has always seemed quite amusing simply because it allows no room for anyone to criticize the film. If they do they will simply be labeled as 'limited'. I give this film 7 out of 10 points, which makes me , I guess, 70 percent great!