The Buster Keaton Picture Show feat. Haiku Salut – Everyman Cinema

Wildfowl & York Mediale presents
The Buster Keaton Picture Show
feat. Haiku Salut
Everyman Cinema, York
Wednesday 11th September
Doors 8.00pm, Show 8.30pm
Tickets are £12 in advance (£8 concessions) from The Crescent, Earworm Records and online via See Tickets.

The Buster Keaton Picture Show sees acclaimed instrumental group Haiku Salut perform an original, contemporary live score to Buster Keaton’s 1926 comedy classic The General.

Commissioned by Nottingham Contemporary as part of the BFI’s Comedy Genius season, Haiku Salut’s score combines electronica, folk, post rock, and neo-classical elements to cast The General in a new dramatic light.

The General was described by Orson Welles as “the greatest comedy ever made, the greatest Civil War film ever made, and perhaps the greatest film ever made”, and is one of the last major films of the silent era.

The film is based on a true incident – the Great Locomotive Chase – with The General of the title referring to engineer Johnnie Gray’s (Keaton) engine. Gray has been rejected by both the Confederate Army and by his fiancee Annabelle but when Union spies steal the General (and unwittingly, Annabelle), he gets a chance to prove his heroism by catching up with The General and rescuing his beloved. In this ambitious production, Keaton performs all his own stunts using his incredible comic timing and body language to create hilarious, near perfect entertainment.

Haik Salut perform to Cohen Media’s stunning 4K restoration of The General.

“Spearheading the BFI’s Buster Keaton season is ths 4K restoration of his 1926 masterpiece, a jaw-plunging blend of physical dexterity and bravura moviemaking.” –Total Film

“The pioneering genius of Buster Keaton’s 1926 silent film The General looks even more startling than ever…more or less invented the action movie.” – The Guardian

“Haiku Salut are a singular musical force.” Mojo

The Buster Keaton Picture Show was created and commissioned by Nottingham Contemporary’s The Screen at Contemporary and supported by BFI Comedy Genius Season.

This event is supported by XR Stories