La Voie Lactée

One of the least accessible (and successful) of Buñuel's later films, it is mainly of interest for its pre-Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie narrative structure: as it follows a couple of tramps on their pilgrimage from Paris to a shrine in Spain, they encounter various characters and slip through time-warps, space-warps, and numerous narrative digressions en route. It is of course beautifully put together, and there are frequently very amusing interludes. But much of the humour is either too obvious in its general anti-clerical stance, or conversely, too obscure in its examination of the niceties of different Catholic doctrines. One for the Buñuel collectors, or for those knowledgeable about religious dogma.