There are some outstanding films that could be called fairy tales for adults, including: "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," "Wings of Desire," "Eraserhead," "Pan's Labyrinth," "The Night of the Hunter," "Donnie Darko," -- and also The Flaming Lips' 2008 film "Christmas on Mars." All of these films are dreamlike, filled with a childlike sense of awe and also a mature adult understanding of the brokenness & sorrow in the human condition. It's as if the adult filmmakers of these movies still retained the joy & wonder they knew from childhood, but they also developed a melancholy sense as adults of how tragic & challenging life can be. "Christmas on Mars" is filled with a sense of grandeur & beauty, but also of the dread & drudgery that human existence can include. During the film's story, which is set in the future, Mars has a space station but the space program has gone into decline and the people there are stranded. They're doing work on the spaceships that they used to get there. The space station has become shabby & disheveled in appearance. The scientists appear to be confident, but a heavy sense of pessimism pervades the mood. But, it's Christmas, and into this scene of defeat & peril enters a celestial being, played by singer/songwriter Wayne Coyne, who brings hope. "Christmas on Mars" has a refreshingly deadpan sense of humor, and a uniquely striking visual style, along with a thrilling symphonic rock soundtrack from The Flaming Lips reminiscent of their fantastic albums "The Soft Bulletin" (1999) and "Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots" (2002). "Christmas on Mars" is a cinematic treat, made especially powerful through the effective demonstration of how blissfully valuable hope can be in a psychologically bleak & cold environment.

I give this a five because I didn't feel the urge to just yank the disk out of the player-- although I did fast forward through a good portion of it. However I did watch it through to the end. . .and scratched my head when it was done.For most of you ordinary folks who might feel moved to try this video offering. It's set on Mars. That's just about ALL the Science Fiction that will make direct sense to you. The rest of the plot is rather spare and spotty. The colony is falling apart. It's Christmas Eve. A Baby is being born in some weird machine. An enigmatic Alien shows up. The Guy who's supposed to play Santa for the Base commits suicide.And a Station Manager is walking about and we hear his maundering thoughts as he listens to all the complaints, protests and hopelessness from the fellow colonists.Beyond that, the special effects are more in line with the old visual/photographic effects of the old Beatles cartoon movies--but done pretty well. The set of the Mars base/station is actually pretty cohesive and believable. . .but it's the story that requires your willful mental compliance (or is it Complacency?), not the sets or the visual effects.It's saying something about Hope and Birth and Christmas, I think-- but you'll still be scratching your head when it ends.This weird offering is best enjoyed with a group with lots of food and alcohol and conversation. The Alcohol should be liberally distributed and imbibed BEFORE the movie is started.Many of you have seen or been to parties where a big flatscreen was playing some weird video while everyone is talking and having a good time and listening to music. And every once in a while, they look at the big screen on the wall and go: Huh?That's exactly what this movie is like.

i'm not talking about the movie... i'm talking about the other two commentors... i come here because i'm trying to get some sort of handle by which to navigate the corridors to the films that i might enjoy...stop me if this sounds familiar... and then i get to this place where people involved with the film aren't bright enough to at LEAST vary their blurb... their 'free advertising'/hype, as it were... am i the only one that thinks that the same references, referred to in slightly varied wordings, is more than a coincidence? or maybe these two had a latte after their film festival viewing and we're privy to their all too similar insights? what are the chances?can't we, the people who are tired of these cheeseballs, do some sort of aesthetic cleansing?

Okay. To try & sum this trippy little film up in (at least)one sentence: Take a jigger of Andre Tarkovsky's original Russian version of 'Solaris',mix in a dash of David Lynch's 'Eraserhead',fold in a pinch of '2001:A Space Oddyssey',add elements of John Carpenter's 'Dark Star',and just a tiny bit of 'Tetsuo:The Iron Man',shake well,pour into your cerebral cortex (with plenty of LSD),and Shazam, you have 'Christmas On Mars'. This is the absolute midnight cult film (if any cinemas had half a brain to screen midnight films,these days). This is the first feature film from the Oklahoma based rock band, the Flaming Lips. Wayne Coyne,who co writes the screenplay & co directs the film, also has a role as a space alien who never so much as speaks a word, but you somehow know exactly what he/it means. The film also features acting (?) performances by fellow Lips member,Steven Drozd as a freaked out astronaut,as well as other members of the band (and also Isaac Brock from Modest Mouse)in other roles. This film was shot over something like seven years, on a shoestring budget. Although there is no concert appearances by the band,the music & sound design was performed by the Flaming Lips (mostly a lot of deep space ambient sound). I especially admired the films visual look (which was filmed mostly in high contrast black & white with psychedelic colour bursts from time to time). This is the kind of film that will be a treat for some viewers (mostly Flaming Lips fans,who the band eternally thank at the film's conclusion), and a crashing bore to others (those who have no tolerance for something really different). The choice is yours. No MPAA rating here, but would easily snag an "R", due to course language, and some really surreal pseudo/quasi pornographic hallucination sequences. Leave the little one's home (who would probably be bored and/or confused out of their skulls,anyway).