Christmas on Mars
Isn’t it ironic that two of the most storied, long-delayed relics of present day rock and roll culture would both be delivered in the same month? Of course I speak of the Flaming Lips’ Christmas On Mars film (which began production in 2001) and the new Guns N’ Roses disc, Chinese Democracy, which apparently has been in the works since 1994. And isn’t it ironic as well, that they’re both available just in time for Christmas?
Well I guess the Lips movie holds less irony in that department since it kinda is a Christmas movie. And by “kinda” I mean that families across the US are unlikely to hit play on this disc to interrupt A Christmas Story on Christmas day. It would be like tossing in Eraserhead for a family viewing after the kids finished opening their presents. Not exactly the best idea.
So as far as the November release dates go, the Flaming Lips have a decent excuse, but the Guns N’ Roses disc is without a doubt a holiday cash-in. Regardless, didn’t both of these bands get the memo? Our nation is at the beginning of a recession – nobody is gonna be spending money on stuff they usually just download illegally anyways!
But since the new Guns N’ Roses disc is basically guaranteed to stink, we will focus this review on Christmas On Mars. For those out of the Flaming Lips’ loop, the film has been a project that the band has been working on in Oklahoma City since before the release of their album Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots. Lips’ ringleader Wayne Coyne came up with the idea. The movie centers on a baby in outer space and some guys on a space station in Mars who have to save this child. Oh yeah, and somewhere in there Coyne himself pops up in a wacky Martian outfit with green face paint. What I’m trying to get at is that the plot in this film isn’t what you really want to concentrate you’re energy on, because you’ll probably end up throwing your DVD player out the window. It’s not that it doesn’t make any sense, it’s just that if you do make sense out of it, it’s pretty much a letdown. In short, it’s a simple story executed in an extremely ragtag fashion.
To Coyne’s credit he hasn’t been talking up this film in interviews as being Citizen Kane II. He’s been frank about how the film was basically just him and his buddies making a home-movie on steroids in his backyard in Oklahoma. In fact, more attention seemed to be given to elaborate home-made set pieces, which resemble the improvisational ingenuity of Mystery Science Theater 3000, than to seemingly more important attributes such as a script and dialogue.
And that is exactly how A Christmas Story plays out. The look, the feel, and the sound are all amazing – a true tour de force in whacked out trippy midnight cinema, but the actual film pretty much stinks. The lack of a script element is the major problem. Anytime a character starts talking the film basically turns into a train wreck, something akin to Manos The Hands Of Fate in it’s awkward execution. But when the characters keep their mouths shut and simply go about their business, and that haunting score by the band gets a chance to kick in, the film delivers some magical moments.
If only Coyne had delivered his vision to a couple of writers to hash out a genuine script, this movie could’ve been a legitimate release. I get the feeling that this was Coyne’s baby and that, for better or for worse, he wanted complete control. So in the end this film gets the release it deserves – straight to DVD where fans can seek it out with ease and regard it as another trippy, fun rock and roll embellishment.
Speaking of “trippy” I suspect that this film will not join the ranks of hallucinogenic-friendly cinema. Even though it seems to have all the key elements, (loud as hell soundtrack, psychedelic effects, Wayne Coyne directing) once you view this movie stone sober you will release this has bad trip written all over it. But, if you wanna have a really REALLY memorable Christmas this year, dose the egg nog and throw this on before dinner. You will never look at Santa the same way again.
