Begotten

Begotten
Directed by Edmund Elias Merhige
USA 1989

PLOT

Inside an abandoned house, a masked figure commits suicide with a razor. From his corpse emerges a woman (also masked) who masturbates the deceased until she becomes pregnant. She soon gives birth to a trembling, deformed humanoid: both will attempt to integrate into a tribe of hooded men but will be brutally raped and tortured, in an increasingly unbearable crescendo for the viewer.

CONSIDERATIONS

*Begotten* (The Begotten) is undoubtedly a complicated film, not suitable for all audiences (both for its “language” and its almost blasphemous content), but undeniably well-made and very original. Perhaps it is only during the closing credits that one can grasp the meaning of the work: the character who commits suicide at the beginning is God, and from His death, Mother Nature is born. After intercourse with the corpse, she gives birth to the Son of Earth. Subsequently, Mother and Son go into the world of men, where the “begotten” entity is cruelly tortured by them (of whom we do not see anyone’s face, as if to represent all of humanity), along with the mother. In the end, from the death of the two protagonists, new plants and flowers are generated.
This is a very unusual film: shot in black-and-white film, despite being from 1989 (according to the closing credits).
The characters are all hooded or in costume, never speak, nor reveal anything about themselves. The “soundtrack,” composed by Evan Albam, is also made up of sounds from nature. Despite this, Begotten is characterized by visionary violence that is truly out of the ordinary, managing to disorient the viewer at every moment.
It is usually considered one of the greatest expressions of the Weird genre. In some ways, this feature film also connects to the style of Eraserhead, though with even more heightened tones.

Completely devoid of dialogue, the film relies entirely on stark black-and-white film, highly grainy and deliberately deteriorated images, constant, obsessive sounds, and symbolism that becomes visual art. A visual and visionary journey inside a nightmare, a product that will likely disgust many viewers, leading them to abandon it within the first few minutes, but which may also captivate with its sublime cinematography.
In any case, it is a film that leaves a lasting impression.

This is Merhige’s debut work, condensing in the 70-minute feature film a brutal denunciation of all the violence humanity inflicts on nature.
This concept is developed through highly impactful sequences: torn flesh, group violence, self-harm, filth, and much more, making the film a descendant of historical avant-garde movements, though completely devoid of vital sarcasm.
Begotten is a dark, bleeding, dying, embittered film—an untamable, savage work, and precisely for this reason, it is fascinating, capable of captivating the viewer and subjecting them to its will.

After this work, the director would go on to direct Shadow of the Vampire and Suspect Zero eleven years later, before disappearing from the radar.
Begotten is available for free on YouTube.

PANDEMONIC MOMENT

The opening is immediately explosive: the masked figure vomits blood and commits suicide by tearing apart their flesh and intestines with a long razor.
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