Barbarella
1968, PG, 98 min.
D: Roger Vadim; with Jane Fonda, John Phillip Law, Anita Pallenberg.

It would be possible to do an analysis of Jane Fonda’s film career and view its entire progression as a form of penance for Barbarellaa, the campy adventures of a 41st century sexual explorer. Based on a French comic strip, Fonda and her then-husband Roger Vadim had a good time with this outrageous movie. It makes virtually no sense, but the costumes are fetishistic gems and the set design trips the light fantastic. A camp classic.

This article appears in April 21 • 2000.

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Marjorie Baumgarten is a film critic and contributing writer at The Austin Chronicle, where she has worked in many capacities since the paper's founding in 1981. She served as the Chronicle's Film Reviews editor for 25 years.