Begotten

1989

Begotten

Critics Consensus

No consensus yet.

67%

TOMATOMETER

Total Count: 9

65%

Audience Score

User Ratings: 6,284
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Movie Info

Though technically and visually quite unusual, reviewers found this artsy black-and-white "mythodrama," which features repeated disembowelments, unappealing in the extreme. In the story, a god uses a knife to mutilate himself, and dies. A woman comes along, and recognizing his godhood, uses his corpse to get pregnant, and gives birth to a son. The son and she are captured and disemboweled by a nomadic tribe.
  • Rating:
    NR
  • Genre:
    Art House & International, Cult Movies, Drama, Horror, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Special Interest
  • Directed By:
    E. Elias Merhige
  • Written By:
    E. Elias Merhige
  • In Theaters:
     wide
  • On Disc/Streaming:
  • Runtime:

Cast

Brian Salzberg
as God Killing Himself
Donna Dempsey
as Mother Earth
Stephen Charles Barry
as Son of Earth - Flesh on Bone
James Gandia
Daniel Harkins
Michael Phillips
Erik Bryan Slavin
Arthur Streeter
Adolfo Vargas
Garfield White
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Critic Reviews for Begotten

All Critics (9) | Top Critics (2) | Fresh (6) | Rotten (3)

View All Critic Reviews (9)

Audience Reviews for Begotten

  • Aug 28, 2013
    At last, a film for people who found "Eraserhead" too commercial. This underground horror relic starts with a twitching God figure disemboweling himself and giving birth to a full-grown woman (credited as "Mother Earth"). She returns the favor by bringing him to orgasm and manually impregnating herself with his semen. From there, the story takes a strange turn. Features include abduction, rape and various ritualistic activities that defy interpretation. The plot has been described as a retelling of the creation myth, but trying to follow a linear story is purely optional. Suffice to say, this a great movie if you're a fan of convulsions. There is no dialogue, and the soundtrack is an alien mix of birds, crickets, flies, low drones and what sounds like the ambient splashes of a toilet tank. The visual look of "Begotten" is impossible to forget. Its gritty, black-and-white texture was apparently created through shooting with reversal stock and then re-photographing each frame for an extra layer of distortion. Often, it's difficult to tell what is happening and the image approaches pure abstraction. It's a relief that this film is only 78 minutes, because further length would defy almost anyone's endurance. Surprisingly, director E. Elias Merhige went on to craft the considerably more accessible (if equally macabre) "Shadow of the Vampire."
    Eric B Super Reviewer
  • Feb 22, 2012
    It's not much, but damn does it leave a hell of an impression. An exercise in the power of images and an attempt to use dissonant sensations to create a desired experience. Job well done.
    Edward S Super Reviewer
  • Nov 09, 2011
    A very interesting meditative movie shot only with two colours, black and white that requires a lot of patience to appreciate but is indeed unique and surreally beautiful on it's brutality. The type of movie you only watch once in a lifetime.
    Francisco G Super Reviewer
  • Nov 02, 2011
    <i>Prick your finger, it is done The moon has now eclipsed the sun The angel has spread its wings The time has come for bitter things</i> 100/100
    Edgar C Super Reviewer
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