Ivan the Terrible, Parts I & II

Dir. Sergei Eisenstein. USSR. 1944/1958, 187 mins. 35mm. In Russian with English subtitles. With Nikolay Cherkasov, Serafima Birman, Pavel Kadochnikov, Mikhail Zharov, Amvrosy Buchma, Mikhail Kuznetsov, Lyudmila Tselikovskaya. Cinema founding father Sergei Eisenstein’s final completed works form an historical diptych unprecedented in scale and visual audacity. With its arc of triumph and consolidation of power, Part 1 was celebrated by Soviet premier Stalin, then leading the USSR in the Great Patriotic War, whereas Part 2, which depicts Ivan’s subsequent terrors and purges, was less welcome—it was shelved and hidden from view until both Stalin and Eisenstein were deceased. Departing from the montage-heavy approach that defined his earlier works, these two films instead layer and enrich what’s in the frame, evoking epic painting while also opting for surprise angles and perspectives that both deepen and complicate the sweeping narrative.

Tickets: $15 / $11 senior and students / $9 youth (ages 3–17) / discounted for MoMI members ($7–$11). Order tickets. Please pick up tickets at the Museum’s admissions desk upon arrival. All seating is general admission. Review safety protocols before your visit.