Saturday, March 31 | 2 pm
One of the pinnacles of 1970s Modernist cinema, Moses and Aaron is based on the unfinished opera of the same name by Arnold Schoenberg, one of the most influential composers of the twentieth century. Staged almost entirely within a Roman amphitheater, in filmmaking duo Jean-Marie Straub and Danièle Huillet’s signature, austere style, the film revolves around the titular Old Testament brothers who insistently debate God’s message to His people. Straub and Huillet construct their almost surreal narrative around these long monologues, and the Israelites’ extravagantly choreographed song-and-dance responses to the brothers. Made during a period of intense artistic experimentation, Moses and Aaron pointed to the possibilities of an entirely new sort of cinema that uniquely emphasized every line reading, actorly gesture, camera movement, and edit.
Directors Jean-Marie Straub and Danièle Huillet | 1974 | In German with English subtitles | 107 minutes | NR | DCP
