Pioneers of the Movement
Action! If there’s one word associated with cinema, the tension of movie sets, and the focus of attention, it’s this one. Action is very often at the heart of popular cinema: Harold Lloyd hanging from the clock hands in Safety Last! (1923), Cary Grant threatened and strafed by a plane in North by Northwest (1959), Franka Potente gasping for air in Run Lola Run (1998)... Westerns, swashbuckler films, martial arts or adventure flicks, thrillers, all these genres rely on action—sometimes frenetic, sometimes meticulously measured.
From movies by Sergei Eisenstein to Gilles Carle, from John Ford to John Boorman and Werner Herzog, via Paul Verhoeven, Kathryn Bigelow, Park Chan-wook, Érik Canuel, and Nicolas Winding Refn, this series will take you through the full range of emotions, from laughter to thrills, from fear to satisfaction.
Accompanied on the piano by Roman Zavada
The films in this program are preserved in our collections
Four outlaws attack a train before being pursued by rangers. One of the earliest Westerns, it was an immediate hit with the public. Driven by its innovative visual style and dynamic editing, this film is one of the very first to demonstrate a genuine narrative and dramatic structure, entirely focused on action.
In a garage that also serves as a fire station, a pair of clumsy employees cause mayhem while trying to do their jobs. A young man tries to get them out of the way so he can court the owner’s daughter. A delightful moment of chaos that marks the final collaboration between Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle and Buster Keaton.
The tramp Charlot decides to join the police force and is assigned to the infamous (and misnamed) neighborhood of Easy Street, which is ruled by a particularly aggressive tough guy. A meticulously choreographed film of urban violence, where slapstick gags rub shoulders with tragic visions of poverty, already reflecting Chaplin’s social concerns.
After escaping from prison, Laurel and Hardy mix up their pants while trying to dress in civilian clothes. Off they go on an impossible mission: to discreetly swap pants, a highly suspicious activity that will take them all the way to the top of a skyscraper under construction. Just as the heroes make their dizzying ascent, the comic genius reaches new heights here. One of the famous duo’s last silent films.
