gavin6942 Egyptian gods summons the angel Lucifer - in order to usher in a new occult age.This film has been on my to-see list for almost twenty years. In the 1990s, I was big into the counter-culture scene and was reading quite a bit on Charles Manson. The name "Kenneth Anger" came up again and again, and his work was something I just had to see. But the opportunity never presented itself.Now (2015) I have seen it, and it did not disappoint. Some have called it an extended music video, which is not far off. Others say it is something "occult", but even there I think that is slightly off. I doubt very much the people involved were taking themselves seriously, blending images and symbols from the Druids, Egyptians and Crowley... what an experience.

Horst in Translation (filmreviews@web.de) "Lucifer Rising" is without a doubt one of the trademark films of director Kenneth Anger, even if it not even half an hour long. There's no doubt that the today 86-year old-filmmaker really shows a very unique approach in almost all his works. However, I have to say that "Lucifer Rising" could not wow me the way I hoped it would. While it's occasionally breathtakingly beautiful and visually impressive from start to finish, most of the other aspects were rather disappointing. And that includes especially the soundtrack. i'm not sure why Anger decided to let convicted murderer Bobby Beausoleil do the job. Maybe it was his background history and he hoped to add a bit of controversy this way to the movie. However, he really shouldn't have gone for a guy which has never scored a film before and with whom cooperation will be difficult due to him being in jail and how he can't just come over to work on the matter together. They say the best soundtrack is the one you don't even perceive while watching a film. I clearly perceived this one and mostly not in a good way.My favorite part of the film was, without a doubt the first sequence. It includes the stunning Myriam Gibril, who sadly almost did no further movie work at all afterward contrary to her co-star Marianne Faithful, as Isis, a perfect casting decision and her longtime partner Donald Cammell as Osiris. Both are perfectly cast for their respective characters. While the cinematography in this short film is magnificent, as mentioned earlier, also most of the costumes, mainly including Isis' and Osiris dresses, and set decorations couldn't have been much better. I'd recommend to watch the first sequence, which I'd definitely recommend, and, then decide for yourself if it's worth going on.

Rectangular_businessman Of all the shorts directed by Kenneth Anger, this has to be my favorite one.This was a way more ambitious work, filled with lots of complex symbolism and allegories, taking several elements from different mythologies in order to create something unique and incredibly fascinating.While in some ways, "Lucifer Rising" somewhat reminded me the films of Alejandro Jodorowsky (Particularly, "The Holy Mountain") there are still some notorious differences between those two artistic creations, being both very good and memorable movie watching experiences.In my opinion, this is a wonderful short, having a mysterious and captivating quality that makes it a timeless experience, impossible to forget.

jamfitz001 This like Warhol's stuff is so dated and boring that it's pathetic. It is college cinema 101 stuff all the way, with perhaps a better soundtrack. Clichéd images culled from Aleister Crowley's tired ritual magick shtick are interspersed with some stock nature footage. The pulsing psychedelic soundtrack is c-grade but that's better than the low rent cheesy film making.Crowley's beliefs traced a supposed path back through ancient Egyptian mysticism, culminating in his belief in the death of the age of Christ and the beginning of the Age of Horus brought about by Crowley's revelation of the golden dawn of his thelemic system. Seemed really cool to the young pot-head counterculturals and durn it...a couple of them played along with Kenneth Anger when he brought a camera by. bang your head against a wall for ten minutes, it is a more rewarding experience than sitting in the muck and dreck. Thumbs down