By Daily Press staff
Many people were too young, too old or too incoherent to see the Mod movies of the 1960s. Now, those who missed out and many new generations can get inspiration from the hip, trippy, flashy, smash films.
On Friday, July 14, at 7:30 p.m., the Aero Theater will hold a screening of “Performance,” directed by Nicolas Roeg and Donald Cammell. Described as a wild and deeply layered psychedelic movie, gangster James Fox goes on the lam, hiding out in reclusive pop-star Mick Jagger’s decaying townhouse in the hippie London ghetto. Jagger and polysexual girlfriend Anita Pallenberg put Fox through his paces with mind games and large doses of psylocibin mushrooms — all climaxing in the “Memo for Turner” production number. Brutal beatings, sexual identity crises and prodigious drug-taking is punctuated by one of Jack Nitzche’s best scores.
Saturday, July 15 at 7:30 p.m. the Aero will have a screening of “A Hard Day’s Night,” director Richard Lester’s carefree comedy that captured the Beatles at their best, clowning like the musical Marx brothers. From Lester’s restless handheld camerawork to writer Alun Owen’s surreal Day-in-the-Life script, to the Beatles themselves — exuberantly singing “Can’t Buy Me Love,”“If I Fell” and many others.
Sunday, June 16 at 7:30 p.m. the Aero audience will see a double feature. First, Jane Fonda is the final word in comic-strip heroines in Roger Vadim’s “Barberella.” It’s a wacked-out romp in the 41st century through a universe populated by a blind birdman, a one-eyed dominatrix, and galaxy dictator Duran Duran and his orgasm machine, featuring an ultra-groovy soft-psych soundtrack by Bob Crewe and the Glitterhouse.
Next up on the same ticket is “Danger: Diabolik” directed by Mario Bava. The surre-al Euro thriller ’60s flick is based on the popular Italian comic-strip hero. From sexy, cat-suited super-thief John Phillip Law to gorgeous gal pal Marisa Mell, to Ennio Morricone’s psychedelic paradise of a score, this is Mod, baby.
The films will be played at the Max Palevsky Theatre at the Aero Theatre, located on 1328 Montana Ave. Tickets are available online at www.fandango.com. For full festival details, go to www.modsandrockers.com.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on July 14, 2006. Read the original PDF.