Safety Last! by Fred C. Newmeyer and Sam Taylor earned a place in cinematic history with a scene in which the legendary comedian Harold Lloyd, holding the hands of a clock on a tower, hangs above a distant street. We invite you to the NFM for a screening of this 1923 movie, accompanied by organist Gabriele Agrimonti. Pola Morawetz will help us navigate the world of American silent comedy.

This is the third and final show of this year’s NFM Organ Cinema series. In the ORLEN Main Hall, you will have the chance to see Safety Last!, one of the most famous films starring Harold Lloyd. This actor is often mentioned in the same breath as Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin. His persona, an ambitious and resourceful American wearing characteristic glasses, reflected the character of a time in which anything seemed possible. In the era of silent comedy, gags played a significant role – situational visual jokes, which we find in abundance here. Furthermore, audiences were drawn to the actors’ participation in scenes that today we would without hesitating task stuntmen with. Take, for example, the high-altitude situation and the trials and tribulations leading up to it…

Music has the ability to enhance comic situations. We will therefore experience the surprises and nuances that Safety Last! presents to the audience in a completely new light. Gabriele Agrimonti, an organ virtuoso who hails from Rome, will play the organ live. In the Eternal City, he serves as the titular organist at the Church of St Louis, King of France. We can expect a masterfully structured soundtrack and even a kind of reconstruction of old performance practice. After all, before the advent of sound films, the organ was a popular feature in American cinemas.

If you hold a festival pass or accreditation for the 26th International Film Festival New Horizons, you are entitled to a 20% discount off the price of max. two tickets for each of the NFM Organ Cinema events. The discount is available at the NFM Box Office, upon presenting the New Horizons Festival pass or accreditation.