Drama  •  1973  •  115 min  •  Adults (18+)

The Holy Mountain (1973)

The Holy Mountain poster

The Holy Mountain (1973)


Rating & Dimensions

Bias Rating
Analyzing...
Leans Progressive
Political: Strong Left
Diversity: Moderate
LGBTQ: Neutral
Trans: Positive
Christianity: Negative

Viewer Rating
7.8

Overview

The Alchemist assembles together a group of people from all walks of life to represent the planets in the solar system. The occult adept's intention is to put his recruits through strange mystical rites and divest them of their worldly baggage before embarking on a trip to Lotus Island. There they ascend the Holy Mountain to displace the immortal gods who secretly rule the universe.


Starring Cast

Alejandro Jodorowsky  •   Horacio Salinas  •   Zamira Saunders


Where to watch

Detailed Bias Analysis

Analyzing...
Leans Progressive

Primary

Political: Strong Left
Confidence: Medium

The film's central thesis explicitly promotes a progressive ideology through its pervasive critique of capitalist excess, consumerism, and the hypocrisy of established power structures and organized religion, advocating for radical spiritual and societal liberation.

Diversity: Moderate
Confidence: High

The film showcases significant visual diversity in its casting, featuring a wide array of individuals from various backgrounds in key roles, which contributes to its broad exploration of humanity. Its narrative offers a symbolic critique of societal power structures and human vices, rather than explicitly targeting or negatively framing traditional identities.

Secondary

LGBTQ: Neutral
Confidence: Medium

The film includes brief, non-judgmental depictions of same-sex intimacy and gender non-conformity as part of its broader surreal and symbolic exploration of human experience and spiritual transcendence. These elements are incidental to the main narrative and do not carry strong positive or negative arcs regarding LGBTQ+ identity.

Trans: Positive
Confidence: Low

The film features Venus (Axon), a character widely interpreted as a transsexual woman, depicted with dignity and agency. She is portrayed as a powerful cosmetician and an integral member of a spiritual quest, without her identity being a source of mockery or negative stereotypes. Her inclusion is respectful, affirming her worth within the film's diverse tapestry.

Christianity: Negative
Confidence: High

The film extensively uses Christian iconography to satirize and critique the commercialization, hypocrisy, and violence associated with organized religion and its societal manifestations, portraying its adherents as easily manipulated or corrupt.

Female Combat: N/R

The movie does not contain any action or adventure elements.

Gender Swap: No
Confidence: High

The Holy Mountain is an original film by Alejandro Jodorowsky, not an adaptation of pre-existing material with established characters. Therefore, no characters exist from a prior canon whose gender could be swapped.

Race Swap: No
Confidence: High

The Holy Mountain (1973) is an original film with characters created specifically for it. There are no pre-existing source materials, historical figures, or prior adaptations from which character races could be established and subsequently altered.


Viewer Rating Breakdown

7.8

Viewer Rating

Combines user and critic ratings from four sources

User Ratings

IMDB logo
7.7
The Movie Database logo
7.5

Critic Ratings

Rotten Tomatoes logo
8.5
Metacritic logo
7.6

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