No American studio film from the late 1960s captures the contradictions of the sexual and countercultural "revolutions" better than Richard Lester's stylish and intelligent Petulia. Set against the background of San Francisco during the Summer of Love, Petulia presents a doleful portrait of an intelligent but unhappy young woman (Julie Christie) and the consequences of her brief extra-marital affair with a recently divorced doctor (George C. Scott). Luring the viewer into a raffishly mod film space, Lester's masterwork begins like many other "kooky" and freewheeling films of the period. But as the film unfolds, the viewer is presented with an increasingly complex view of emotional paralysis and loss of volition. Cameo performances by Big Brother and the Holding Company, the Grateful Dead, and members of the Committee add brief touches of local color to this exceptional film.-Albert Kilchesty