The Screen at Contemporary: SLOW. FAST. STRANGE

About

Selected dates | 2024 | 6.30pm or 7.30pm
Nottingham Contemporary
£6

The Screen at Contemporary presents SLOW. FAST. STRANGE.  A collection of films where the soundtrack is the main character.

Music and film have long been entwined.  Each affects the other profoundly. They can blend harmoniously; they can contort each other., In symbiosis, they leave us seeing music and hearing image. Curated in collaboration with our friends at Running Circle Records, we have selected films with some of the best scores, and paired them with further listening recommendations. 

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IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE (2000) | Fri 2 Aug, 6.30pm–8.15pm

Two strangers form a bond when they suspect their respective partners are having an affair with each other.  Deliriously sumptuous visuals invoke longing, memory, and desire, whilst a haunting score swells between the lovelorn protagonists as a kind of liminal, sonic space. Yumeji’s Theme, composed by Shigeru Umebayashi, will haunt you long after you’ve left the cinema. A masterful, potent, meditative audiovisual experience that exudes yearning from every frame and bar. 

LIFT TO THE SCAFFOLD (1958) | Fri 9 Aug, 6.30pm–8.15pm

During one long night in Paris, a man plots the murder of his employer and his lover’s husband—but all goes awry when someone gets stuck in a lift. Malle’s punchy, tense crime drama pays homage to classic American Film Noir whilst giving it a fervent, contemporary edge. Consistent with French New Wave’s love affair with jazz, Miles Davis famously improvised the groundbreaking expressive score which enhances the film’s kinetic, frantic energy. 

THE HOLY MOUNTAIN (1973) with original Live Score by Bo Ningen | Fri 16 Aug, 7.30pm–10.15pm

Director Alejandro Jodorowsky stars as the Alchemist, a guru who leads a group of seven pilgrims on a magical quest to a sacred mountain where they may achieve spiritual enlightenment.  A scandal on its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, this cult masterpiece intertwines 1970s spiritual yearnings, existential philosophy, and sex. A visually stunning and grotesque fever dream that is as much conceptual artwork as a stunning monument of cinema. 

This rare screening will be accompanied by an original live score by Japanese psych rock band Bo Ningen. They say of the piece: “We used the underlying mystical structure of the film to write the pieces so that this live score has a deeper connection with this cult classic. Wandering deep into Jodorowsky’s mirror-filled labyrinth, we managed to draw our own version of an alchemical journey and brought back this music. We hope this live score will be a guiding light for each of you to find your own path to The Holy Mountain”.

KING CREOLE (1958) | Fri 23 Aug, 6.30pm–8.30pm

Elvis Presley plays Danny Fisher, a young man denied his diploma for fighting at school. With his opportunities limited, he gets pulled into the criminal underworld of New Orleans, where his singing talents get him noticed.

Elvis famously didn't enjoy the films he was contractually obliged to make, dismissing them as  kitsch "teeny-bopper" fodder. King Creole packs a different punch; the opening song alone captures a rawness from Elvis he had never shown on screen before. King Creole sounds fantastic and has a grit that is lacking in other Elvis pictures, but it cannot be ignored that Elvis and stars like him are indebted to largely uncredited Black musicians who created the iconic sounds of jazz and rock and roll.

Running Circle is a Sneinton Market based record shop, originally founded in 2017 as an independent record label by musicians & DJs Guohan Zeng and Tom Towle. The duo have been curating ambitious music releases and supporting artists in the early stages of their career, from Nottingham and further afield including Kinkajous, Pete Beardsworth & Yazmin Lacey. They've also programmed events across the city and regularly broadcast on internet radio stations Balami [Peckham] and Radio Al Hara [Palestine].

NIGHT ON EARTH (1991) | Mon 9 Sep, 6.30pm–8.45pm

Across one night, we jump between five taxis in New York, Rome, Paris, Los Angeles, and Helsinki, encountering their bizarre passengers. Love, death, dreams and desires, and existential angst all play out in the confines of these in sequences that range from devastating to hilarious. This gem from  the legendary Jim Jarmusch epitomises the vitality of the early 90's independent film scene in the US. Since he is a musician as well as filmmaker, music is core to Jarmusch’s cinematic practice. His long-time collaborator and kindred spirit Tom Waits created the soundtrack for Night on Earth. The result is a visceral fusion of musical and cinematic genius. 

Running Circle

Running Circle is a Sneinton Market based record shop, originally founded in 2017 as an independent record label by musicians & DJs Guohan Zeng and Tom Towle. The duo have been curating ambitious music releases and supporting artists in the early stages of their career, from Nottingham and further afield including Kinkajous, Pete Beardsworth & Yazmin Lacey. They’ve also programmed events across the city and regularly broadcast on internet radio stations Balami [Peckham] and Radio Al Hara [Palestine].

Access
This event is inclusive for wheelchair users; our building is wheelchair accessible with lift access to all floors. If you require a wheelchair space, please email info@nottinghamcontemporary.org or phone 0115 948 9750 so we can ensure a space is set up for you.

If you require a free ticket for a carer, please contact us using the details above to arrange this.

This event will take place in The Space. 

If you have any questions around access or have specific access requirements we can accommodate, please get in touch with us by emailing info@nottinghamcontemporary.org or phoning 0115 948 9750.