The Great Museum

Filmmaker Johannes Holzhausen presents a fly-on-the-wall view of the operation of Vienna's Kunsthistorisches Museum in this fascinating documentary filmed in 2012–13 during preparations for the reopening of its Kunstkammer wing. In true cinema vérité style, The Great Museum features no narration or background music; instead the camera simply follows administrators in meetings—where they discuss budgets (including ticket prices), the design of signs and brochures, and the etiquette for visits by state officials—and observes staff members as they decide the arrangement of paintings in a gallery, work at restoring manuscripts and artifacts, and even check traps in the ceiling for moths. We see a nobleman's donation of his father's uniforms, the retirement of a long-time staffer, a colleague marveling over the model of an imperial sailing ship in the restoration room, two officials being disappointed when they're outbid for items at a local auction house, and a woman in the visitors' service department who complains that she and her co-workers are treated as second-class employees. While appearing to be randomly tossed together, these cinematic slices ultimately present a kaleidoscopic portrait that reveals the inner workings of a major art museum. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (F. Swietek)