SYNOPSIS: Pier Paolo Pasolini s notorious final film, Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom, has been called nauseating, shocking, depraved, pornographic . . . it s also a masterpiece. The controversial poet, novelist, and filmmaker s transposition of the Marquis de Sade s 18th-century opus of torture and degradation to 1944 Fascist Italy remains one of the most passionately debated films of all time, a thought-provoking inquiry into the political, social, and sexual dynamics that define the world we live in.

EDITORIAL REVIEW:  This film is not an exploitation film.  Anyone that watches it based on that assumption is missing the whole idea of the movie.  Pasolini made this film as an indictment of society, culture, and history.  The film is about fascism, neo-fascism, and capitalism, and the images on the screen are not to be taken at face value, but as metaphors for contemporary society and politics.  The sexual depravity shown on the screen, the coprophagy, the torture, it is all symbolic.  For example, the children in the film are forced to eat excrement because Pasolini believed that contemporary culture and society was excrement, and thus was force feeding us, the consumer, with excrement.

The most interesting aspect of this film is that Pasolini, a homosexual, linked homosexuality with death and fascism.  Why after portraying homosexuality in a beautiful way in his earlier works did Pasolini change his tune, nobody knows. Some think he lost his mind while making this movie.

Many don't like the film because Pasolini makes the victims out to be emotionless and doesn't allow us to pity them.  But that's just what he wanted! By watching the movie, we are like the victims, allowing ourselves to be abused and also being a spectator to abuse. Again, everything in this film is done for a reason.

Before watching this film you should be familiar with de Sade, Dante's Inferno, and have some basic understanding of fascism and its history.  If you lack any of these three elements, don't watch the movie because you will not get it at all.  Again, don't watch this movie at face value.  It is one of the sickest, most disturbing films ever made, and it is that way for a reason.  Not for shock value or to get banned in country after country, but to make a statement.  This film is so dangerous that it is believed by many that Pasolini was assassinated for making it.  If everyone got this movie, the world would be in deep trouble.

This fantastic Criterion Co. DVD is packed with a ton of extras on the second disc.

° Salo: Yesterday and Today, a 33-minute documentary featuring interviews with the director, actor-filmmaker Jean-Claude Biette, and Pasolini friend Ninetto Davoli.
° Fade to Black, 23-minute documentary featuring directors Bernardo Bertolucci, Catherine Breillat, and John Maybury, as well as scholar David Forgacs.
° The End of Salo, a 40-minute documentary about the film's production.
° New interviews with production designer Dante Ferretti and director and film scholar Jean-Pierre Gorin.
° Plus a booklet featuring new essays, and Gideon Bachmann's on-set diary.

Yes, you read that right.  There is a booklet in this package.  It's as heavy as two DVDs together!
 

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* This DVD will play in North America only.  This DVD should play in most players outside of North America as well, but it's not guaranteed. This DVD will play in any computer DVD-Rom.  This is NOT a DVD-R.

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STARRING: Paolo Bonacelli, Giorgio Cataldi, Caterina Boratto, Sergio Fascetti.
AVAILABILITY: In stock! Ships within one business day.
LENGTH: 116 minutes.
LANGUAGE: Italian, with OPTIONAL ENGLISH SUBTITLES.
SPECIAL FEATURES: 1.85:1 (16:9 Widescreen); Mono audio; 2 discs; Much more bonus features (see above); Trailer; Uncut.
VIEWER DISCRETION: Extensive to nudity, graphic sexual scenes, sexual innuendo, graphic violence, coarse language, may offend most..
PICTURE QUALITY: Excellent picture quality. (what's this mean?)
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: France / Italy (1975).
ALSO KNOWN AS: Salo ou les 120 journées de Sodome (France).
DATE ADDED TO OUR LIBRARY:  August 22, 2008 (pre-order) / August 26, 2008 (official release day).
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