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Movies / Upcoming / Salo, Or The 120 Days of Sodom
Salo, Or The 120 Days of Sodom

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Salo, Or The 120 Days of Sodom (1975)

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Reviews Counted:21

Fresh:15

Rotten:6

Average Rating:6.3/10

Runtime: 1 hr 56 mins

Genre: Foreign Films

US Box Office: $0

Synopsis: Pier Paolo Pasolini was a celebrated poet, writer, and all-around intellectual, but it was his maverick, controversial filmmaking that distinguished him as an influential artistic force. The... Pier Paolo Pasolini was a celebrated poet, writer, and all-around intellectual, but it was his maverick, controversial filmmaking that distinguished him as an influential artistic force. The director's last film, 120 DAYS OF SODOM, an adaptation of the Marquis de Sade's 18th century novel, remains his most notorious (and most censored) due to its scenes of graphic rape and torture of adolescents. Pasolini relocates the novel's horrific abuses from France to the final days of Mussolini's reign, effectively rendering a grim portrait of the degradation of the human body and spirit beneath Fascist and Nazi rule. [More]

Starring: Paolo Bonacelli, Giorgio Cataldi, Umberto P. Quinavalle, Aldo Valletti

Starring: Paolo Bonacelli, Giorgio Cataldi, Umberto P. Quinavalle, Aldo Valletti, Caterina Boratto

Director: Pier Paolo Pasolini

Director: Pier Paolo Pasolini
Composer: Ennio Morricone

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Salo, Or The 120 Days of Sodom

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

Dramatically feral and artistically fertile, "Salo" is a rigorous movie that dares to use the metaphor of torture as a device of utter physical and psychological annihilation for both the victim and the torturer.

Full Review Source: ColeSmithey.com | comment Comment
07/11/09
Cole Smithey
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
10/18/08
Time Out

Intended to be read as a caustic commentary on the evils of Fascism, Salo is marred by the uneasy perception that Pasolini (rather like purveyors of modern Torture Porn) is simply getting off on the abuse he visualizes with such delight.

Full Review Source: ESplatter | comment 4 Comments
08/27/08
Steve Biodrowski
Steve Biodrowski
ESplatter

Fastidiously attuned to the denial of the comforting release of either eroticism or expulsion, Pasolini's boudoirs of perversion lack De Sade's scarlet hedonism. Quite the opposite, his boners reveal only the presence of spiritual rigor mortis.

Full Review Source: Slant Magazine | comment Comment
08/25/08
Eric Henderson
Eric Henderson
Slant Magazine

There's a sense of pure evil clinging to the film like nothing I've ever experienced. I do not believe this is unintentional, nor do I believe it is pointless.

Full Review Source: Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) | comment Comment
05/14/08
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

The result, despite moments of undeniably brilliant insight, is nearly unwatchable, extremely disturbing, and often literally nauseous.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
10/23/07
TV Guide's Movie Guide

Very hard to take, but in its own way an essential work.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
10/23/07
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader

There are absolutely fascinating ways of reading and understanding this Pasolini epic. But would I ever want to watch it again? Probably not.

comment Comment
09/10/05
Dan Fienberg
Dan Fienberg
Zap2it.com

No review available.

comment Comment
07/24/05
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

Shocking film.

Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | comment Comment
06/15/05
Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

A perfect example of the kind of material that, theoretically, anyway, can be acceptable on paper but becomes so repugnant when visualized on the screen that it further dehumanizes the human spirit, which is supposed to be the artist's concern.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
05/09/05
Vincent Canby
Vincent Canby
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

In all honesty it's a terrible, terrible experience -- but give the guy credit: It's certainly unique.

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
01/20/05
Christopher Null
Christopher Null
Filmcritic.com

No review available.

comment Comment
07/02/04
Jake Euker
Jake Euker
F5 (Wichita, KS)

For Salò, a film genuinely concerned with the nature and power of misanthropy, Pasolini’s murder is a conclusive action; it is an example of martyrdom.

Full Review Source: Not Coming to a Theater Near You | comment Comment
02/24/04
Rumsey Taylor
Rumsey Taylor
Not Coming to a Theater Near You

No review available.

comment Comment
02/08/04
Daniel M. Kimmel
Daniel M. Kimmel
Worcester Telegram & Gazette

A difficult film to watch, but one that forces you to think

Full Review Source: Cinematic Reflections | comment Comment
12/07/03
Derek Smith
Derek Smith
Cinematic Reflections

No review available.

comment Comment
07/30/02
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

I was more intellectually engaged than offended while watching it.

Full Review Source: MovieMartyr.com | comment Comment
03/05/02
Jeremy Heilman
Jeremy Heilman
MovieMartyr.com

A film from a text which single-handedly defined the term 'unfilmable'

Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | comment Comment
08/24/01
Shane Burridge
Shane Burridge
rec.arts.movies.reviews

As disturbing as it set out to be. This may not be an enjoyable experience but it is definitely an experience.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
02/13/01
Kim Newman
Kim Newman
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
all

Latest News for Salo, Or The 120 Days of Sodom

May 19, 2008: RT on DVD: National Treasure 2, Diary of the Dead, Plus Salo News!
Exciting announcements abound this week (Fearless Director's Cut! A new Little Mermaid movie! Gossip Girl on DVD!) while Nicolas Cage's treasure-hunting adventure sequel,... More...

April 27, 2007: When Is A DVD Worth $400? A Look At Criterion Collectibles
When is a DVD worth $400? To DVD enthusiasts, it's when said disc is a rare Criterion white-ring issue of Pier Pasolini's 1975 film "Salo," which can go for upwards of... More...

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