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IMDbPro

El Topo

  • 19701970
  • Not RatedNot Rated
  • 2h 5m
IMDb RATING
7.2/10
30K
YOUR RATING
El Topo (1970)
DramaWestern
A mysterious black-clad gunfighter wanders a mystical Western landscape encountering multiple bizarre characters.A mysterious black-clad gunfighter wanders a mystical Western landscape encountering multiple bizarre characters.A mysterious black-clad gunfighter wanders a mystical Western landscape encountering multiple bizarre characters.
IMDb RATING
7.2/10
30K
YOUR RATING
    • Alejandro Jodorowsky
    • Alejandro Jodorowsky
  • Stars
    • Alejandro Jodorowsky
    • Brontis Jodorowsky
    • José Legarreta
    • Alejandro Jodorowsky
    • Alejandro Jodorowsky
  • Stars
    • Alejandro Jodorowsky
    • Brontis Jodorowsky
    • José Legarreta
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 148User reviews
    • 155Critic reviews
    • 65Metascore
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards

    Videos1

    Trailer [English SUB]
    Trailer 1:45
    Watch Trailer [English SUB]

    Photos140

    Alejandro Jodorowsky and Brontis Jodorowsky in El Topo (1970)
    Alejandro Jodorowsky in El Topo (1970)
    Ignacio Martínez España, Héctor Martínez, and Eliseo Gardea Saucedo in El Topo (1970)
    El Topo (1970)
    El Topo (1970)
    El Topo (1970)
    El Topo (1970)
    El Topo (1970)
    Juan José Gurrola, Alejandro Jodorowsky, and Bertha Lomelí in El Topo (1970)
    Alejandro Jodorowsky and Mara Lorenzio in El Topo (1970)
    Víctor Fosado and Alejandro Jodorowsky in El Topo (1970)
    Alejandro Jodorowsky and Mara Lorenzio in El Topo (1970)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Alejandro Jodorowsky
    Alejandro Jodorowsky
    • El Topo
    Brontis Jodorowsky
    Brontis Jodorowsky
    • Hijo…
    José Legarreta
    • Moribundo
    Alfonso Arau
    Alfonso Arau
    • Bandido 1
    José Luis Fernández
    • Bandido 2
    Ali Junco
    • Bandido 3
    • (as Alí Junco)
    Gerardo Zepeda
    Gerardo Zepeda
    • Bandido 4
    • (as Gerardo Cepeda)
    René Barrera
    • Bandido 5
    René Alís
    • Bandido 6
    Federico Gonzáles
    • Bandido 7
    Vicente Lara
    • Bandido 8
    Pablo Leder
    • Monje 1
    Giuliano Girini Sasseroli
    • Monje 2
    Cristian Merkel
    • Monje 3
    Aldo Grumelli
    • Monje 4
    Mara Lorenzio
    • Marah…
    David Silva
    David Silva
    • Coronel
    Ignacio Martínez España
    • Manco
      • Alejandro Jodorowsky
      • Alejandro Jodorowsky
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Other noteworthy figures said to be fans of the film, besides John Lennon and Yoko Ono, include directors David Lynch and Samuel Fuller, actors Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper, and performers Bob Dylan, Marilyn Manson, and Peter Gabriel. It has been claimed that this movie was the beginning of Gabriel's inspiration for the classic Genesis concept album, 'The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway'.
    • Goofs
      The opening scene is of a man on horseback riding through the desert, although the horse is on deep sand the sound is of a horse on hard ground.
    • Quotes

      El Topo: Too much perfection is a mistake.

    • Crazy credits
      The closing credits in the English-dubbed version of El Topo state that ABKCO Films copyrighted the film in 1967; however, ABKCO didn't purchase (any rights to) it until June of 1971!
    • Alternate versions
      Many Spanish and other non-English versions are censored, missing most of the sex and violence. Japanese prints on laserdisc have one piece of minor censorship (the scene with the Franciscan monks being ridden and humiliated).
    • Connections
      Featured in Jonathan Ross Presents for One Week Only: Alejandro Jodorowsky (1991)

    User reviews148

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    7/10
    Not for the weak of heart
    "El Topo" was one of the first midnight-movie cult hits because of its visually stunning, mentally exciting indulgence in gratuitous sex and exaggerated violence…

    Avenging angel El Topo—meant to be wise and mystical—rides into a town whose population has just been massacred… He guns down some of the cruel and perverse bandits responsible and brutally punishes their leader… He leaves his seven-year-old son with some monks and goes away with the gang leader's woman, Mara…

    In the desert sands, El Topo and Mara make love, and she quickly falls in love with him… After their frantic love-making, she tells him that he can prove that he's the 'best' by killing the Four Masters…

    For no apparent reason other than to please Mara, El Topo begins his mission, defeating and killing each of the Four Masters…

    The film has been quite controversial… It lacks clarity and has painful emotions that make it quite compelling
    helpful•38
    12
    • Nazi_Fighter_David
    • Aug 17, 2008

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • April 15, 1971 (Mexico)
      • Mexico
      • Re-release Official site (United Kingdom)
      • Spanish
    • Also known as
    • Filming locations
      • Cañón de la Huasteca, Santa Catarina, Nuevo León, Mexico
    • Production company
      • Producciones Panicas
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

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    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • 2 hours 5 minutes

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