Barbarella (1968)

Jane Fonda is magnificent as the sexually liberated titular character, based on Jean-Claude Forest's comic book of the same name. Her innocence may be equal parts naïvety, but her sincerity balances it out beautifully. Her introduction is an unforgettable slice of 60s cinema. We're then invited into a fur-lined cockpit wherein she cements her place in counterculture history.
The psychedelic FX are often badly scaled and at times plot is almost non-existent, but the playful self-awareness that both mocks and celebrates its own cheapness seduces the part of me that can fully embrace that sense of fun; somehow it makes it all the more lovable.
It seems inappropriate to judge Barbarella by conventional criteria because it plays by its own rules from beginning to end, but I guess I should try:

4 exaltation transference pellets out of 5

Spirits of the Dead (1968)

aka Histoires Extraordinaires

An anthology film comprised of three works based on the stories of Edgar Allan Poe. The three directors are Roger Vadim, Louis Malle, and Federico Fellini, respectively, with each film lasting for approx 40 minutes.

01. Vadim's Metzengerstein was my favourite. Jane Fonda plays a debauched Countess who dresses like an ancestor of Barbarella (also a Vadim film). A poetic v/o adds extra beauty, while a recurring musical theme generates unease. It's ridiculous but is the only one I'll choose to watch again.

02. Malle's William Wilson is a flashback story that starts out okay but slows to a deathly crawl wherein all impetus is lost. I generally like confessional narratives, but it was too tedious to recommend.

03. Fellini's Toby Dammit is typically arty, employing an unusual colour palette, but has very little discernible Poe. Terence Stamp is fantastic as the troubled actor, working from a script that's pretentious and infuriating. It's five mins of greatness diluted with thirty-five mins of self-indulgence.

3 torments out of 5