Groovy East German ’70s Sci-Fi IN THE DUST OF THE STARS
December 7 : 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm
Who could possibly resist an insanely groovy mid-1970s East German space opera with an Ennio Morricone-like theme song, a nonstop underground disco where partygoers spritz hallucinogenic mouth-spray, scantily clad super-models voguing in an abstract sculpture garden, tons of silver glam-rock boots and glittery eyeshadow and red leather space-suits, and dialogue like “Thob, I’ll upload them to the Lambda channel” and “The Temians are fun people – fun and a little crazy”?! Director Gottfried Kolditz’s delirious gem of Socialist eye-candy is set in the future where a team of cosmonauts on Spaceship Cynro 19/4 crash land on planet Tem and are forced to have a really good time against their Communist principles boogying down with the local aliens (who are funding their nonstop Studio 54 action by enslaving the planet’s Turi workers in underground mines.) Visually, this ranks alongside Mario Bava’s PLANET OF THE VAMPIRES and DANGER: DIABOLIK as one of the most eye-popping and über-stylish genre treats of the era, with generous helpings of ZARDOZ, “SPACE: 1999,” and “BUCK ROGERS IN THE 25th CENTURY” thrown in for good measure. Kudos to the production team of art director Gerhard Helwig, costumer Katrin Johnson and minimalist synth composer Karl-Ernst Sasse for whipping up such a feast of Communist lounge/exotica. Shot through with some surprisingly kinky eroticism – there are lots of snakes and a jawdropping nude dance performed against a bank of lights by Anita Pallenberg lookalike Regine Heintze — , IN THE DUST OF THE STARS also features one of our favorite Seventies space villains: Klaus Nomi clone Ekkehard Schall as the Temian boss with spray-painted blue hair and a white Dracula cape that would make Marc Bolan weep with envy. Beautifully restored by the University of Massachusetts Amherst / DEFA Film Library. In German with English subtitles.
THEATER POLICIES
All seats are first-come, first-served.
The theater opens 30 minutes prior to showtime, except for “Happy Hour” events and pre-shows when the theater opens at the listed start time.
All ages are welcome at Arkadin except for Drinkolas Cage events, which are restricted to 21+. We follow the MPAA rating guidelines for all other films.
Tickets can be purchased using the BUY TICKETS link above. Upon ordering, you will receive a confirmation email from Square. Tickets may also be purchased on the day of the show at the concession counter.
If you’ve purchased advance tickets, when you arrive, please give your name at the concession counter to check in.
Tickets are returnable by sending a request through the contact form located on our About Us page prior to showtime.
When an event is sold out, we reserve the right to release open seats to customers on the waitlist. If you have a pre-purchased ticket and arrive late and there is no seat for you, your ticket will be refunded.
All screenings are held in our indoor theater unless indicated otherwise in the event description above.
Please respect your fellow movie-goers by remaining quiet and refraining from using your cell phone throughout the screening.