Your Life is on the Line!: A Joe Christ Anthology

Outrageous…Revolting…Abrasive…Tasteless…These are just a few of the adjectives that define the polarizing work of punk musician turned transgressive filmmaker Joe Christ. Combining the gross-out provocations of early John Waters with the penurious, confrontational shock aesthetics of Nick Zedd, Christ utilized video as his primary medium to rail  against the cinematic boundaries of general decency and good taste. Saturn’s Core is proud to present the first volume in the complete filmography of Joe Christ, which conjures up a disturbing worldview populated solely by victims and their potential assailants; an unsettling portrait of early ‘90s American white trash culture teetering on the brink of psychosis. 

Communion in Room 410 (1988) presents a cinema vérité variation on the Last Supper replete with nudity, self-mutilation, and blood drinking. Speed Freaks with Guns (1991) chronicles the murderous home movies of a raving, paranoid amphetamine addict. In Crippled (1992), a bed-ridden, disabled woman is repeatedly abused by her amoral caretakers. Acid Is Groovy Kill the Pigs (1993) follows Christ on a homicidal, acid-fueled road “trip” that’s loosely inspired by the real life, Jeffrey MacDonald / Fatal Vision murders. Sex, Blood & Mutilation (1995) unfolds as a shocking, Mondo-style video freakshow featuring appearances by David Aaron Clark (We Await), Tattoo Mike Wilson (War is Menstrual Envy), and industrial pioneer Genesis P-Orridge (Throbbing Gristle, Psychic TV).

directed by: Joe Christ
starring: Joe Christ, Mary Leohr, Dana Wisdom, Susan Ferris, Genesis P-Orridge, David Aaron Clark, Tattoo Mike Wilson
1988-1995 / 128 min (combined) / 1.33:1 / English DTS-HD MA 2.0

Additional info:

• Region Free Blu-ray
• Archival audio commentary on all five films by director Joe Christ
• “Mondo Christ: Underground Cinema’s Punk Rock Ciazarn” - a visual essay on the Joe Christ filmography by film writer and author Heather Drain
• “Lysergic Deathtripping” - a visual essay on Acid Is Groovy Kill the Pigs by film writer and author Heather Drain
• “Sex, Blood, & Mutilation 2” - Footage from the uncompleted sequel
• “Bigger Than God” - a 28-page booklet edited by Jason Pankoke (Micro-Film) featuring writings by Will Sloan (Important Cinema Club), Vincent Albarano (Aesthetic Deviations), & musician / SOV expert James Kelly
• Trailers & TV spots
• English SDH subtitles