36 Days of Halloween - 1989: Santa Sangre

This is a weird film; I'm not even sure how to summarize it. A young boy, Alex, grows up as part of a traveling circus. His mother, the acrobat, is extremely religious and devoted to the Church of the Holy Blood, and his father, the knife thrower, spends his days drunk or flirting with other women. Eventually, his mother discovers his father in bed with the tattooed woman, and throws acid on his groin in a fit of rage. His father cuts ...off her arms with his knives, and then kills himself in front of young Alex. Years later, Alex, now an adult, is living in an asylum when, during a trip outside, he sees the tattooed woman, and his mother comes to visit him. Then things get really weird. This wasn't really at all what I was expecting. Despite the disturbing things that happen, this feels like less of a horror film, and more of a tragedy about a boy who is really emotionally and mentally messed up by a childhood filled with bizarre and unhealthy things. I suppose it's sort of a psychological horror film? It's what happens if you take a horror/slasher film, but add in all of the backstory that led to the mental breakdown of the killer (in a good way, not in a ham-fisted way). It's definitely an impressively made film. filled with unforgettable scenes. If you're looking for something a little less mainstream, this is a good choice.