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Simon plays the part of pious, ascetic saint throughout the narrative look of the movie only to be whisked away to NYC where rock and roll is alive and raging and shaking the screen. Before any one cries spoiler alert you should read his autobiography ‘my last sigh’ and then see how much of a rumination on his past and his present this film is: a personal statement on the nature of hell. He loves his drink, tobacco, dancing, music, planes, but abhors the noise, lack of privacy, and rapid urgency that his pious, religious past was blessed without. Bunuel’s surrealism really is the truth- it bypasses ordinary narratives to use symbols and absurdity to point out only the grey areas, the contradictions, the hell of life. It’s a hell we all truly love.

Terrific film by one of my favorite film makers of all time. Silvia Pinal as the Devil, and Claudio Brook as Simon are both fantastic in their roles. Might I add that Pinal is as beautiful as ever. Great writing, and one of my favorite endings ever. It also looks better than most films I’ve seen. It’s on par with Fellini’s 8 1/2, and Truffaut’s The 400 Blows (both of which have the best B&W photography I’ve ever seen)