Anything But Silent
FILIBUS (1915)
Featuring Live Theatre Organ Accompaniment by Ben Model!
Wednesday, June 15th at 7:30 PM
Members $12 | Public $17
“No other crime thriller compares to Filibus!” exclaimed
a Corona Films ad in the April 1915 edition of the Italian film magazine La
Vita Cinematografica — and for once the ballyhoo was correct! Directed by Mario
Roncoroni and scripted by future science fiction author Giovanni Bertinetti, Filibus is the
most exciting, witty, feminist, steampunk, cross-dressing aviatrix thriller you
will ever see!
Flying high above the clouds her dirigible, Filibus, the
mysterious sky pirate, is a master of disguise and the scourge of millionaires,
banks, and the police. Lowered in a gondola by her henchmen, Filibus steals
from the rich and then mysteriously vanishes into the clouds. However, now,
with the famed Detective Kutt-Hendy on her trail, Filibus must up her game.
Posing as the Baroness Troixmond, the jewel thief enters the local magistrate’s
office and volunteers to help catch elusive Filibus. The criminal, she
announces, is none other than the detective himself! There follows a
cat-and-mouse adventure that includes an ancient Egyptian statue of Bastet with
glowing diamond eyes, knockout powder, mysterious handprints, and a secret
miniature camera. Filibus is a formidable opponent, who even cross-dresses and
poses as the aristocratic Count de la Brive to court the detective’s beautiful
sister while plotting his downfall. (1915,
DCP, 76 min., Italy, Silent | Dir. Mario Roncoroni)
Click the poster below to view the trailer! -
Ben Model is one of America’s leading silent film accompanists, and has been playing piano and organ for silent films at the New York MoMA since 1984 and the CAC since 2006. Since March 16th, 2020, Ben has been hosting a weekly live-streamed silent film show from his living room, “The Silent Comedy Watch Party.” Click here to visit Ben's YouTube page!
