Movie Humans,
Why did I wait so long to watch Barbarella? Because I’m a human man incapable of love? Because everything made before 1970 is hot garbage? Because Jane Fonda is 79 years old now and I can’t see her younger image because it will remind me of the frailty of life and the inevitability of death?
Whatever the reason, that’s in the past, now that (some of us) have seen BARBARELLA.
I remember watching this movie when I was like 14 or 15 but I want to say it was on TNT or USA Network so all the nudity was edited out for television. I was so disappointed.
First off this movie starts off with a 5 minute weightless strip tease, so if you’re not already on board, you ain’t watchin right. For a skin flick from 1968 the special effects hold up pretty well (in a campy way) not distracting like ‘Star Crash’ or ‘Galaxy of Terror’. But the real star of the movie are all the wacky side characters. The Blind Angel, The Fur Suit Guy, Durand Durand, and my favorite mustachioed rebel… who’s name I forget… but who was awesome. The wacky situations and weird psychedelic visuals keep coming… and coming… and coming… the end. lol.
I mean listen, you’re not going to write a thesis on Feminism from this movie, but it was surprisingly entertaining.
This week is my turn, I’m trying to come up with a worthy successor to Barbarella.
I’ll let you know later this week.
-Mark
Barbarella[a] is a 1968 science fiction film directed by Roger Vadim, based on the French comic series of the same name by Jean-Claude Forest. The film stars Jane Fonda as the title character, a space-traveller and representative of the United Earth government sent to find scientist Durand Durand, who has created a weapon that could destroy humanity. The cast also includes John Phillip Law, Anita Pallenberg, Milo O'Shea, Marcel Marceau, David Hemmings, Ugo Tognazzi and Claude Dauphin.
Having expressed an interest in comics and science fiction, Vadim was hired to direct Barbarella after producer Dino De Laurentiis purchased the film rights to the comic series. Vadim attempted to cast several actresses in the title role (including Virna Lisi, Brigitte Bardot, and Sophia Loren) before choosing Fonda, his then-wife. A friend of Vadim's, Terry Southern, wrote the initial screenplay, which changed considerably during filming and led to seven other writers credited in the final release, including Vadim and Forest, the latter of whom also worked on the film's production design. The film began shooting immediately following the completion of another De Laurentiis comic adaptation, Danger: Diabolik, with both films sharing several cast and crew members.
The film was particularly popular in the United Kingdom, where it was the year's second-highest-grossing film. Contemporary film critics praised Barbarella's visuals and cinematography, but found its storyline weak after the first few scenes. Although several attempts at sequels, remakes, and other adaptations have been planned, none of these have entered production.
