Part of BAMcinemaFest
Sat, Jun 23 at 2pm
All films in 35mm.
The Black Balloon
Director: Josh and Benny Safdie
While trying to move 40 kids six blocks in New York City, a stressed man accidentally loses a bouquet of a hundred balloons. In that bouquet, a lone black balloon scurries free. It dies and comes back to life, returning to the city cruising for a companion. On the beat, it learns that humans are complicated creatures with extreme highs and lows, but full of life nonetheless. An intended for Children’s film turned Sci-Fi urban fable.
US, 2012, 21min
The Safdies have curated a program of classic, balloon-themed shorts appropriate for all ages that complement their latest work. Included in this program are:
The Red Balloon
Director: Albert Lamorisse
A young boy discovers a stray balloon that seems to have a mind of its own. Wandering through Paris while being pursued by bullies, the two become inseparable in this exquisite film told from a child’s point of view. Minimal French dialogue with English titles. Courtesy of Janus Films.
France, 1956, 34min
The Balloonatic
Director: Buster Keaton
The Great Stone Face stumbles into a series of misadventures when he finds himself inadvertently lifting off on a hot-air balloon in an amusement park. Landing in the wilderness, he reunites with the young woman (Phyllis Haver) who just rejected his advances on a Tunnel of Love ride, and with whom he must now find a way to survive. One of his final two-reelers, this charming film combines the classic tropes of the Keaton canon: death-defying gags and a lovestruck hero. Courtesy of Cohen Media Group.
US, 1923, 22min
Balloon Land (The Pincushion Man)
In this classic animated short, a place called Balloon Land is inhabited by a population of balloon people (including icons such as Laurel & Hardy and Charlie Chaplin). They are all under threat by the pincushion man, a nefarious villain who goes around popping people with pins.
US, 1935, 6min
