In Bewegung – Die Filme von Thomas Arslan – The Cool World

In the organizer's words:

Introduction: Thomas Arslan
THE COOL WORLD Shirley Clarke USA 1963 35mm English OV 105'
Shot on location in Harlem with non-professional actors, this classic of New American Cinema tells the story of 14-year-old Duke, who has set his mind on getting a gun in order to become the leader of a youthful street gang. With a jazz soundtrack by Dizzy Gillespie, Shirley Clarke translates the raw energy of Harlem into a cinematic experience that does not become a social reportage in its sequence of everyday events, despite the depiction of destroyed families, drug addiction, difficult living conditions, violence and marginalization. The sparingly used, breathlessly rushed off-screen commentary by the main character does not organize anything, but rather intensifies his helplessness.