The Ultimate Tracking Shot

Many readers have written in about this film:

You should know about Alexander Sokurov's 2002 film "Russian Ark," a dazzling sprint through 400 years of Russian history, filmed in 33 halls and galleries of the Hermitage museum with a cast of 2,000.  The entire 96 minutes is one long tracking shot, filmed with a Steadicam; there's not a cut nor an edit in its entire breathtaking length.

Another reader adds:

It covered acres of ground with a cast of hundreds, took months to prepare, and the museum gave the producers literally one chance and one day to shoot it.  A 2-hour charge battery was invented to power the camera, one that could not be recharged.  It was all or nothing.