Luis Buñuel’s surrealist masterpiece ends with a saint dancing to the Radioactive Flesh
In short: In this 1965 satirical comedy, a 5th-century ascetic monk spends years atop a pillar to prove his holiness. His isolation is interrupted by a persistent Satan, who eventually transports him from the Syrian desert to a 1960s New York City nightclub, where the saint is forced to witness modern decadence.
Luis Buñuel’s Simon of the Desert serves as a sharp, surrealist critique of religious asceticism. Loosely inspired by the life of the 5th-century saint Simeon Stylites, the film follows a protagonist who endures years of isolation on a pillar, only to find that his piety attracts more temptation than spiritual clarity. Whether he is healing the hands of a thief or exorcising demons from his own monks, the saint remains trapped in a cycle of performative holiness that fails to impress the very people he seeks to serve.
The film’s production history is as unconventional as its narrative. While often cited as a medium-length film due to producer Gustavo Alatriste’s alleged financial struggles, star Silvia Pinal later clarified that the project was originally intended as an anthology. Plans to include segments directed by figures like Federico Fellini and Jules Dassin collapsed because those directors insisted on casting their own wives. Pinal refused to be directed by her then-husband Alatriste, leading to the abandonment of the anthology format and the film’s unique, truncated runtime.
Despite its brevity, the film remains one of Buñuel’s most celebrated works, earning a Special Jury Prize at the 1965 Venice International Film Festival. Its final sequence—a jarring transition to a modern nightclub where the saint is told he must endure the dance of the 'Radioactive Flesh' until the end—encapsulates the director's biting wit. Critics have long praised the film for its 'hard theology' and ingenuity, noting that its short duration prevents the premise from becoming tedious while leaving viewers to wonder what might have been had the original three-part vision been realized.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Simon of the Desert
- Also: Wikidata — Simon of the Desert · CC0
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