The strange and unforgettable conclusion of Luis Bunuel's classic Simon of the Desert sneaks up on viewers so quickly that most react with some kind of surprise or shock that the film has come to an end. Only forty-five minutes, the story of the pillar-perching ascetic defies the conventions of the short film format and unfolds like a fully developed feature. Laugh-out-loud hilarious, the movie bursts with inventive visual gags and clever writing, along with Bunuel's trademark knack for knockout surrealist images. But it doesn't stop there; Bunuel's direction is a tour-de-force (I love the dizzying angles from Simon's lofty elevation intercut with the views of the people below).
Review of Simon of the Desert
