New Acquisitions
Two Legends: Alexander and Kaspar Hauser
March 1–5, 2006

The Department of Film and Media presents two new gifts to the Museum’s archives: Oliver Stone’s Alexander and Peter Sehr’s Kaspar Hauser. Each provides a contemporary, politically and psychologically oriented biography of a legendary historical figure. Stone’s gift of his most recent feature, Alexander, not only represents the only 35mm print of the director’s cut but also completes MoMA’s collection of the artist’s films to date.

Organized by Laurence Kardish, Senior Curator, Department of Film and Media. The Museum is grateful for the generosity and support of Oliver Stone, Arthur Manson, Warner Bros., Bruce Pavlow, Leisure Time Features, and Telpool.

Alexander. 2005. France/Great Britain/The Netherlands/USA. Directed by Oliver Stone. Screenplay by Stone, Christopher Kyle, Laeta Kalogridis. With Colin Farrell, Angelina Jolie, Val Kilmer, Christopher Plummer, Jared Leto. Shot in Morocco, Thailand, and England, Alexander is the epic tale of the young prince who conquered most of the known world before his death at age 32 in 323 B.C. Stone observes that "the incredible thing about Alexander was that he knew all of the Greek myths, and then acted them out in his real life. He had a lot of demon drives that modern people have… ." 167 min. New York theatrical premiere of the director’s cut.
Wednesday, March 1, 6:15; Saturday, March 4, 5:00. T1

Kaspar Hauser. 1997. Germany. Written and directed by Peter Sehr. With Andre Eisermann, Katrina Thalbach, Uwe Ochsenknecht. Sehr’s second feature is a poignant illustration, rich in period detail, of the haunting German tale. In 1828, a strange young man, dressed poorly and barely able to speak, suddenly appeared in the center of Nuremburg. He was adopted by a tutor who attempted to "civilize" him. But as his identity was explored and the possibility of his having come from royalty came to light, factions attempted to assassinate him. In German, English subtitles. 137 min.
Thursday, March 2, 7:30. T2; Sunday, March 5, 3:30. T1

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