The Flaming Lips -Christmas on Mars

Wed 3rd Dec, 2008 in Music Reviews

The Beatles did it, the Ramones did it too – so why not The Flaming Lips? Conceived on a long car ride on New Year’s Day by Wayne Coyne and his wife Michelle, Christmas on Mars is the Flaming Lips’ first foray into cinema – and it’s a strange, surreal and somewhat unnerving ride.

Set in the recently colonised red planet, Christmas on Mars follows Major Syrtis, played by Steven Drodz, and his plight to renew hope in the doomed feelings of his crew. Far from being the futuristic paradise they had envisioned, the planet is dilapidated and uninhabitable, sending the morale of the people on Mars plummeting. In the hope of lifting their spirits, Syrtis organises a Christmas pageant to celebrate the birth of Mars’ first baby (born from science). However, things keep going wrong as the behaviour of his crew slowly becomes stranger and stranger. Just as all hope seems lost, a mysterious martian, played by Wayne Coyne, arrives – could he be the solution to all their problems?

Abstract and elaborate, this movie feels a little like Eraserhead meets 2001: A Space Odyssey, with a little bit of the weirder corners of Eat Carpet thrown in for good measure. With its grainy black and white shots interspersed with random moments of intense colour, and its homemade sets built in various bedrooms, backyards and factory areas, this film is definitely more home movie than Hollywood epic. The Flaming Lips have always been ones to err on the more wildly imaginative side though, and its good to see their faithful clip producer Brad Beesley with his hand in this film.

Its cast is as homegrown as the sets, comprised mainly of members of the band ( Michael Ivins and Kliph Scurlock appear as crew members), their families and friends. Some of the performances are a bit stiff, including Drodz’s somewhat sobering performance as Major Syrtis. But Coyne’s dramatic entrance as the Alien Super-Being, roughly 30 minutes into the movie, is a seriously magnificent moment. Similarly, Coyne’s other-worldly portrayal of the silent, sage martin is fantastic. Band friend Mark DeGraffenried is also quite amusing as the hard-ass, pissed off Captain Icaria, whose introductory speech to the Alien Space-Being is one of the movie’s more chuckle-worthy moments.

The soundtrack, which comes as a bonus disc to accompany the movie, is a collection of haunting, space-age orchestral arrangements. Rich with spatial layers and haunting and at times cacophonic noises sounds, the score cements the eerie, surreal atmosphere that the whole movie is bathed in. There are a couple of beautiful, near-radio-friendly gems in there. One of these is Space Bible With Volume Lumps which, with its rich orchestration and melodic noises, contains hints of Four Tet and Stereolab. But while you can definitely hear the signature sweeping, emotional tones of the band beneath a lot of these songs, if you’re hunting for another Flaming Lips pop record should probably look elsewhere.

Even at 84-minutes long, it takes a little while before the film really starts to get interesting. What carries the movie is its overriding message, which in its religious celebration of something inherently scientific, seems to point to the way of the future (however run-down it seems in the film). Flaming Lips fans should dig this, but fringe-dwellers may not find it so accessible. Christmas on Mars might not reach cult status that it promises. However, this ambitious effort, which adds an interesting layer to an already multi-faceted and unique band, will definitely not go unnoticed.

Christmas On Mars is out now through Warner Music.