Simon of the Desert is Luis Buñuel’s wicked and wild take on the life of devoted ascetic Saint Simeon Stylites, who waited atop a pillar surrounded by a barren landscape for six years, six months, and six days, in order to prove his devotion to God. Yet the devil, in the figure of the beautiful Silvia Pinal, huddles below, trying to tempt him down. A skeptic’s vision of human conviction, Buñuel’s short and sweet satire is one of the master filmmaker’s most renowned works of surrealism.

“These “spiritual shenanigans” are an unquestionably hilarious critique on religion in society, perhaps even the sole inspiration for Life of Brian, among other iconoclastic films. Despite the nixed budget and shortened running time (less than an hour), the lettuce-eating antics and merciless absurdity that lead up to the unsuspected deus-ex-machina ending only make the film seem more freakish.” Samantha Vacca, The L Magazine

“Get thee on the dance floor, Satan.” Michael Strenski