Tusk

Tusk review contributed by Steve Puchalski at Shock Cinema

Even though my print of this ultra-obscure Jodorowsky pic was in French with NO subtitles, you really don't need a translation in order to get the gist of this self-termed "fable panique." Set in turn of the century India, Jodorowsky drops most of his crazed mystical/religious/hallucinogenic stylings in order to tell a relatively straightforward story of a little girl, Elise, and a little elephant, Tusk, both of whom are born at the same time, and how their lives interconnect over the years (yawn). It begins on a good note, with Jodorowsky intercutting an elephant and a woman, each giving birth. But the movie swiftly turns into nothing more than a Disney G-rated nature film, with most of the $5 million budget going for Elephants-Are-Us rentals. There are a few sledgehammer-subtle points about French colonialism vs. the Forces of Nature, with Anton Diffring playing the girl's tyranical father, and a nutty Indian medicine man popping up for comic relief. But for most of this debacle's interminable two hour running time all we're fed are long scenes of big animals lumbering around the countryside. When the little girl grows up, she discovers a psychic link to Tusk the Elephant when she stops it in its tracks during a rampage, but NONE of Jodorowsky's crackpot enlightenment or savage grotesqueries from his earlier epics is on display here. Instead, it takes all too many predictable routes, such as Elise getting kidnapped by the buffoonish bad guys (they're the ones who don't respect elephants), with our heroic packyderm saving her life. Perhaps the problem lies in the fact Jodorowsky was adapting a novel entitled "Poo Lorn of the Elephants", which, for all I know was some shitty children's book. Maybe Jodorowsky was so desperate to get behind a camera after all his failed attepts at DUNE, that he grabbed the first thing to come along. Or perhaps he just wanted a free trip to India.

Language: French

Directed by
Alejandro Jodorowsky

Cast (in alphabetical order)
Cyrielle Claire
Anton Diffring
Christopher Mitchum

Written by
Nicholas Niciphor

HEY! There are no SUBS!!! Asshole.

This is a two cd rip without subtitles, but they are not heavily needed, the film speaks for itself, and remenber this is not an El Topo nor a Holy Mountain and not in any way similar to a Santa Sangre be Warned, this is a bootleg copy as you can see from the screenies the quality is not that awesome, be warned again not so good quality andno subtitles, I consider now that you are warned so dont expect any answers to complaints on these aspects.

I meant it as a joke.

sorry, I guess I over-reacted, not one of the greastest days in my life.

I'm sorry as well mate. It's easy to forget that irony don't translate well in written form.

GROUPHUGG?!!!!