Lions Love (... and Lies)

Perhaps slightly atypical of Varda, this experimental American meta-movie from 1969 follows a New York filmmaker who comes to Los Angeles to make a film with actress Viva. Viva lives with two hippies. They divide their time between their giant bed, the swimming pool and the TV.

Varda’s cast includes some big names. Viva is played by Viva, the charismatic superstar from Warhol’s Factory. The two male leads, James Rado and Gerome Ragni, had made waves the year before with the musical Hair. Indie filmmaker Shirley Clarke also plays a version of herself, in keeping with the film-within-a-film structure of Lions Love (… and Lies). The actors frequently speak directly to the camera or break the fourth wall in other ways. “I never know whether I’m in a film or making one,” Clarke exclaims despairingly at the beginning. Later, overwhelmed by Hollywood, she steps aside, and Varda takes over her role.

Meanwhile, reality increasingly intrudes into the carefree existence of these bohemians. The assassination of Senator Robert Kennedy seems to herald the end of an era.