Nanook of the North

Dir. Robert Flaherty. 1922, 79 mins. U.S. Digital projection. Flaherty’s groundbreaking documentary, which intimately hunkers down with an Inuit family, headed by Nanook, as they live and survive the harsh winters of Canada’s Hudson Bay, was so popular it became a cultural phenomenon, bringing the hunter-gatherer of the title into the American lexicon and even inspiring a hit song. While Flaherty’s work would inspire ethnographic filmmaking in the coming years, Nanook of the North is now known for its stretching of reality for the sake of narrative: the photogenic principals were actually cast by Flaherty to simulate a family. Nevertheless, the film remains a classic, an immersive account of people few moviegoers had been exposed to, showing the processes of life by the Arctic Ocean, from ice floes to hunting to child rearing, all of it photographed with fascinating and influential detail. 

Tickets: $17.50 / $12 senior and students / $10 youth (ages 3–17) / discounted for MoMI members ($7–$11). There is a $1.50 transaction fee per ticket for all online purchases. The cost of admission may be applied toward a same-day purchase of a membership. 

Order tickets. Please pick up tickets at the Museum’s admissions desk upon arrival. All seating is general admission.