J'irai comme un cheval fou

Three years after Viva la Muerte, Fernando Arrabal created J'Irai Comme Un Cheval Fou (I Will Walk Like a Crazy Horse), another masterly piece of cinematic surrealism. It follows two men, Aden and Marvel. Aden is sought by the police and on the run after the death of his mother, when he meets the appropriately named Marvel, a mystical loner who lives in the desert with his goat. One of his Marvel's skills is turning day immediately into night (and vice versa) with the click off his thumbs. Aden falls in love with Marvel, and decides to show him the big city. This is where Arrabal shows us the chaos of humanity. Many memorable images ensue. This is imperative viewing for any people interested in surrealism in film. I can't recommend it enough.

In this, the third entry in Arrabal's surrealist trilogy, he steers away from the socio-political aspects that were so dominant in his previous two films, and focuses more on satirizing the modern world, along with his habitual penchant for the degradation of all things religious and themes of incest.

The basic plot outline is as follows: Aden Rey is on the run from the police after instigating the death of his mother. He eventually finds himself in the desert where he meets a curious dwarf who can communicate with and control nature. In the desert Aden gets in touch with his inner-mystic with the help of Marvel the dwarf. After hanging out with goats and camels in the desert and ultimately becoming obsessed with Marvel, Aden decides to bring him back to civilisation and show him the world.

Marvel is some kind of messianic figure. He has lived for 10,000 years and can turn night into day, make blind people see and command bees and goats to do his bidding. When the pair return to Paris (along with Marvel's goat, Therese) Aden introduces Marvel to women, tea, fancy apartments and cigars, all of which he finds incomprehensible and hilarious - regarding an old man puffing on a cigar: "He is like an infant suckling at the breast!".

At one point during the film Marvel is tricked into joining the circus where his act consists of dancing to rock 'n' roll while the crowd points and laughs, but instead of feeling humiliated he enjoys himself to no end. Halfway through his act he climbs into the lion cage and plays with the beast, then innocently frees it into the audience.

Throughout their adventures Aden suffers from constant flashbacks of his childhood, which reveals his mother to be a domineering, abusive woman who allowed him no contact with the outside world and with whom he was unhealthily in love with. He visits her home and dresses in her lingerie, then, in a nightmarish sequence, messily gives birth to a skull.

Unlike Arrabal's two earlier features I Will Walk Like a Crazy Horse is not set during the Spanish Civil War but in Paris in the early 70s, so modernism is the subject of constant parody. We frequently see gasmasked people having sex and involved in bizarre rituals. Marvel's running commentary on the absurdity and pointlessness of things is more often than not on point.

As is to be expected all of Arrabal's grotesque imagery is present, from penis mutilation to some repulsive cannibalism at the end, Arrabal never fails to disgust with his particular brand of surrealism.

"I Will Walk like a Crazy Horse" is quite an interesting film. Many will find the images repulsive and disgusting; but at the same time you can't help but to be memorized by its beauty. The story concerns Aden, a young man who kills his rich abusive incestuous mother. He flees to the desert to hide. Although Aden is a wealthy aristocrat he is unhappy and almost despises women. (mainly cause of his mom) He meets a dwarf named Marvel with miraculous powers; he can talk to animals, fly and turn night into day. Aden instantly falls in love with Marvel. Marvel has never been to the city and has never seen electronics or any part of western civilization. Aden takes Marvel to the city and this leads them on some funny and disturbing misadventures. The film is basically a rejection of the institutions created by western society. The film contains many bizarre daydream sequences. Some in which are disgusting. This film contains incest, excrement, a child execution, really strange sex and cannibalism. It might make many viewers cringe. The films most memorable and haunting seen is the people in white robes and gas masks dancing, all the while a kid drags a skeleton. If you liked both "El Topo" and "Pink Flamingos" you'll definitely enjoy Arrabal's disturbing and surreal masterpiece. Some parts are really funny, and you wonder if you're supposed to be laughing. It's quite a cinematic experience.

This has got to be one of the most pretentious movies of all time. Put all the low-grade "I'm-going-to-impress-the-world" student art films you have seen together and you still wouldn't come close to the level of pretentiousness the film reaches. This is somewhat expected from one of the founders of the "Panic" movement alongside Jodorowsky and Topor, but where the two latter had a certain balance and order in what they did, Arrabal just goes way over-the-top and loses his audience in the process.

One would like to establish metaphors and symbolisms to the film and it's characters, but the whole "nature versus civilization" story gets marred in the films sensationalism. The audience is constantly pushed away by the non-stop shock scenes and laughably pretentious dialogue (Love? What IS love?). No one cares for Marvel, the nature-boy midget who is the centerpiece in the film. He comes off as an annoying cartoonesque figure which no one really cares about. The inner logic of the film simply does NOT work (compare to Eraserhead for example, where feelings DO come out of the characters).

The film is an oddity and IS worth to see only for that reason (if you manage to sit through it). You'll wind up quoting the (I can't say it enough) pretentious dialogue with the other deranged people who have seen this. Those of you looking for shocking scenes will probably be pleased: rape, cannibalism, ejaculations, defecations, cruelty... Watch LA Grande Bouffe instead.

The late 60's/early 70's were a time of experimentation for most filmmakers. In fact filmmakers got away with things back then that few would be able to get away with now. Arrabal and his first two features, VIVA LA MUERTE and this, are no exceptions.

One thing you still can't do without scandal is full frontal male nudity - especially of children. The scene where the little naked boy is gunned down by a firing squad of an Army of Christians could be reinterpreted today as a metaphor for how children always get caught in the crossfire when religions declare war on one another. The nudity symbolizes innocence. The 10 second scene is in no way pornographic but try doing that today and you will be shut down before you can call action.

One scene predate's THE CRYING GAME by 20 years. It's too good to give away. The character of Marvel would be seen now as a Arab stereotype for sheer ignorance of all things western. Political correctness aside, the character is too funny and likable to hate.

Cannibalism, still a taboo topic, is treated by Arrabal here as a mere plot device. No wonder this movie had censorship problems, which Arrabal addresses in the DVD interview segment. My only regret is that he didn't include scene by scene audio commentary as Jodorowsky did for DVD of FANDO & LIS -which is based on the Arrabal play. It would be especially helpful in this particular scene because it looks like they may have used an actual cadaver. This finale even tops the VIVA LA MUERTE finale in which a bull is sacrificed on camera. Unless you're doing the latest installment in the FACES OF DEATH series, you just can't do that kind of stuff in a narrative feature today.

Those who see this now as merely a pretentious art film, forget how shocking it must have been then. That's especially true when you consider that it's a gay love story. One of the most unusual ever filmed. It's unsettling in a way that is stimulating. This movie was buried by the censors in 72. No major studio would green light such a production today. If you think you've seen it all, this is one you've got to go back and see in order to say that. Filmmaking could move forward if filmmakers looked back at the "scandals" the "Panic" movement of Arrabal, Topor and Jodorowsky caused in those days. It's a miracle that a film like this can survive intact. Definately not for all tastes but 10 of 10 anyway.