The Cool World

Shot on location in Harlem with non-professional actors, this classic of New American Cinema tells the story of Duke, a teenager who has set his mind on getting a gun to become the leader of a street gang. With a jazz soundtrack by Dizzy Gillespie, Shirley Clarke translates the raw energy of Harlem into a cinematic experience, which in its sequence of everyday events does not become social reportage, despite the depiction of dysfunctional families, addiction, difficult living conditions, violence, and marginalization. The main protagonist's breathless voiceover, which is sparingly used, does not put anything in order but intensifies his helplessness.(bik)