The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art and the USC School of Cinematic Arts present
Double feature: The Wormwood Star (1956) and Barbarella (1968)
Monday, September 23, 2024
7:30–9:25 p.m.
Barbarella (still), 1968; The Wormwood Star (still), 1956
Inspired by the Getty initiative PST ART: Art & Science Collide, the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, in collaboration with the USC School of Cinematic Arts (SCA), presented a double feature of two genre-defying films. The screenings highlighted how science fiction and occult communities provided and continue to provide space for individuals to imagine worlds governed by alternative societal norms, a theme explored in many works of narrative art in the collections of the Lucas Museum and in the USC Fisher Art Museum’s exhibition Sci-fi, Magick, Queer L.A.: Sexual Science and the Imagi-Nation.
The Wormwood Star. 1956. USA. Directed by Curtis Harrington. With Marjorie Cameron. © 2013 Academy Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. Under exclusive license from Flicker Alley, LLC. and Drag City, Inc. DCP provided by Flicker Alley. 10 min.
The Wormwood Star is a brief cinematic portrait of Marjorie Cameron (American, 1922–1995), an artist, poet, and occasional actress closely associated with the occult and avant-garde art scenes of early 1950s Los Angeles. The film’s director, Curtis Harrington, was a major figure in early American experimental cinema. Night Tide (1961), his first narrative feature film, saw Dennis Hopper in his first starring role and Cameron in her last screen appearance. The work of both Harrington and Cameron are examined in the exhibition Sci-fi, Magick, Queer L.A.: Sexual Science and the Imagi-Nation at the USC Fisher Art Museum (through November 23, 2024).
Barbarella. 1968. USA. Directed by Roger Vadim. Screenplay by Terry Southern, based on the book by Jean-Claude Forest. With Jane Fonda, John Phillip Law, Anita Pallenberg, Milo O'Shea, Marcel Marceau, Claude Dauphin, David Hemmings, and Ugo Tognazzi. DCP provided by Swank Motion Pictures. 1 hour, 38 min.
Peace reigns across the galaxy in the 41st century. But when Earth scientist Dr. Durand Durand disappears with plans for a weapon that could destroy that peace, astronaut Barbarella (Jane Fonda) is tasked with capturing him and saving the galaxy.
Director Roger Vadim transformed the psychedelic French comic strip by Jean-Claude Forest into a Pop Art sci-fi classic, showcasing iconic costumes designed by Spanish fashion designer Paco Rabanne. Released in the same year as 2001: A Space Odyssey, Vadim’s film offers a highly sensual vision of the future that contrasts starkly with the eerie sterility of Stanley Kubrick’s classic.
For more information on PST ART: Art & Science Collide, please visit: https://pst.art/