The Last Days of Pompeii

Comments (0) By Shana Nys Dambrot Thursday, Oct 11 2012

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Getty Villa

17985 Pacific Coast Highway
Malibu, CA 90265

Category: Museums

Region: Malibu

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The world-famous Getty Villa's gardens and architecture are already a transplanted monument to the glory days of Pompeii -- before Vesuvius went ballistic on the city in 79 AD, in what many contemporaneous commentators felt was divine punishment for the lifestyle of lavish decadence and the disturbing prevalence of sexy snake-dancing at parties. The Villa's absolutely brilliant current exhibition, "The Last Days of Pompeii: Decadence, Apocalypse, Resurrection," combines the Getty's extensive holdings of ancient art and artifacts from its own vaults with a range of works from the 18th through the 20th centuries -- including work by Alma-Tadema, Rothko and Warhol both depicting and directly inspired by the eruption, its causes, its aftermath and its interpreted legacy. Being allowed up to visit the museum and show after dark is already pretty great, but this weekend, the Villa also finally realizes its longtime dream of screening films in its outdoor amphitheater. Both films are titled The Last Days of Pompeii, but Friday's offering is an epic 1913 historical drama from iconic Italian director Mario Caserini, while on Saturday, witness the stylish, melodramatic pageantry of the 1959 remake starring tastefully loinclothed bodybuilder Steve Reeves. Also, authentic Pompeian flatbreads. Getty Villa, 17985 Pacific Coast Hwy., Malibu; Fri., Oct. 12-Sat., Oct. 13, 7:30 p.m.; $7. (310) 440-7360. getty.edu.
Fri., Oct. 12, 7:30 p.m., 2012