Interkosmos

Jim Finn's feature spoof on the rise of a 1970s East German space project is part-mockumentary, part-musical, and wholly overlong. The plot involves efforts by East Germany's government (with full approval of the Kremlin, naturally) to colonize the moons of Jupiter and Saturn, thus scoring an intergalactic victory for the Soviet bloc. In the middle of this adventure, Interkosmos follows a curious romance between the cosmonauts Falcon (played by Finn) and Seagull (Nandini Khaund), who share their feelings via radio communications since they are being sent to different planetary orbits. This low-budget production has the visual style of found footage and well-worn newsreels (grainy black-and-white and faded reddish color film), although anachronistic musical interludes interrupt the story at odd moments (and there's even a weird riff by the cosmonauts on the Judy Garland standard “The Trolley Song”). Some of this is fun in an offbeat, deadpan way (the spacesuit for a guinea pig mascot is cute), but ultimately the concept wears out its novelty and what might have been an amusing short film is instead stretched to the fraying point at 71 minutes. Not a necessary purchase. (P. Hall)