Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore

Introduced by writer Thora Siemsen

Dir. Martin Scorsese. 1974. 112 mins. Archival 35mm. With Ellen Burstyn, Kris Kristofferson, Harvey Keitel, Diane Ladd. Burstyn herself lobbied for Scorsese to direct this story of a single mother and a would-be singer who finds love and a job at a diner while waylaid in Phoenix on her way to Monterey. Burstyn’s choice proved wise; she won an Oscar, and the film’s success advanced Scorsese’s burgeoning career. With its singular mix of Hollywood melodrama and ragged seventies authenticity, Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore remains a crucial film to understanding the complexity and diversity of Scorsese’s filmography. And, as writer Thora Siemsen expresses in her essay “By the Time I Get to Phoenix” in DO NOT DETONATE…, it is a quintessential film about desert life and how one pit stop can change the course of your entire existence.  

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.