Christmas on Mars is an eccentric independent film made entirely by the band The Flaming Lips. The low budget B-movie set in mostly black and white was made over the course of seven years. Taking the viewer on a science fiction voyage celebrating hope, life and brotherhood the Flaming Lips created a story fused from an idea beginning in an old movie and ending in an unearthly dream. The story’s location is set on the planet Mars in a newly founded settlement during the Christmas season. The cast and crew are all members of the band or close friends and family creating an intimacy only those loved one can. There are a few instances of flashing colour throughout the film during peak plot moments allowing us insight to what the future may hold for these space crusaders. The journey is long and strange but in the end serves a poignant purpose.
In the beginning scenes a woman enters a small plastic chamber through an opening symbolic of a female genitalia. This woman is adorned in a minimal amount of white clothing. She seems to be mixing something in a cup and as the camera pans over her glass we see an egg flash into colour with a tiny little red sperm swimming towards it. This will be the first baby of mars. As the adventure progresses a notable amount of tension is felt among the crew aboard the crafted station; amidst the unknown planet the crew is fear stricken with thoughts of how they will survive in their new world and the impending holiday celebration. One space man is clothed in a Santa Clause costume and is seen on a small monitor screen having a bit of a mental fit. His journey soon comes to a close after a terrible case of cabin fever leads him off the plank of self-destruction. Just after Santa makes his last exit a mysterious new being appears before the crewmembers in their desperate Mars mandate. The Alien is always shown with a silent and calm demeanor; even when berated by the crew’s captain torn with frustration and anger the alien looks straight ahead with kind eyes. In various scenes throughout the movie when the Alien extends his silent knowledge of hope his face will flash with brilliant green tones.
The crew is informed that their ship is malfunctioning and their oxygen supply is decreasing at an alarming rate. The captain demands these problems be fixed but the crew does not have the parts they need to return the ship to working order. After intense oxygen deprivation Major Syrtis describes the insane hallucinations he has been having to the Mars Psychiatrist. The Major sees a baby lying on it’s back in a open space. The baby is crying and need help or attention from an adult but no one is around. Suddenly a marching band appears in the distance beating on drums and creating loud music that drowns out the sound of the crying child. As the band marches closer their faces appear to be made of female genitalia. The vagina faced marching band continues to stomp towards the defenseless baby without signs of surrender. Major Syrtis concludes the description of his vision with agonizing details of the baby’s skull being crushed under the marching bands murderous feet.
After much deliberation the crew decides the alien will be Santa during their Christmas celebration. The Alien Santa provides a feeling of hope among the rattled crew as they come together for the birth of the first Christmas baby of Mars. Like most of the Flaming Lips creative projects this film is full of symbolic messages of peace, respect, hope and brotherhood. The director Wayne Coyne has an immense obsession with the female form and proudly displays it throughout the film. In all its weirdness I find the images of a vagina faced marching band to be loudly supportive of women and their bodies. Our society likes to put a mask over female sexuality and pretend it doesn’t exist. I find it refreshing to see images of vagina celebrated in such an artistic way.
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