Kansas City Remembers World War II

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Hollywood at War Film Series

 

The Kansas City Public Library showcases some of the best Hollywood films focused on World War II as part of the Central Film Series in September, operating under the Hollywood at War theme. Scheduled on Mondays at 6:30 p.m. and every Saturday at 1:30 p.m. in the Stanley H. Durwood Film Vault at the Central Library, this program is inspired by the eagerly awaited seven-part PBS documentary on World War II from director Ken Burns, which starts airing on September 23.

The film line-up for Hollywood at War includes:

"Tora! Tora! Tora!" (1970) on Saturday, September 1. This film recounts the events leading up to the day that will live in infamy, December 7, 1941, told in a semi-documentary style from both the Japanese and the American points of view. (144 min.)

"The Fighting Sullivans" (1942) on Saturday, September 8. Released during WWII, this film (aka The Sullivans) is the stirring and wrenching tale of five brothers killed in a single incident while serving on the U.S.S. Juneau. The effect on audiences when the movie was released is almost impossible to calculate; it still packs a wet wallop, so tissues will be available. (110 min.)

"They Were Expendable" (1945) on Monday, September 10. Director John Ford intimately knew the ins and outs of this story of PT boat captains battling the enemy in the South Pacific at the start of WWII. John Wayne and Robert Montgomery are just the pair to bring it to life. (138 min.)

"The Bridge on the River Kwai" (1957) on Saturday, September 15. The horrors of a Prisoner of War camp are overcome by starchy British resolve as personified by Alex Guinness, doing battle against not only his Japanese captors but William Holden as well. Chances are you'll go home whistling the "Colonel Bogey March." (161 min.)

"Stalag 17" (1953) on Monday, September 17. American Prisoners of War in a German camp suspect one of their own of spying, and all eyes are on William Holden (who served his time during the 1950s in backlot P.O.W. camps) in one of his very best performances; his por-trayal here earned him an Oscar as Best Actor. (120 min.)

"The Big Red One" (1980) on Saturday, September 22. Director Samuel Fuller brings the horrors of war to the individual and personal level in this semi-autobiographi-cal tale of the First Infantry Division as it plows its way from North Africa to a concentration camp in Eastern Europe. Lee Marvin stars. (135 min.)

"Mister Roberts" (1953) stops in at the Film Vault on Monday, September 24. An all-star cast, including Henry Fonda, James Cagney, and William Powell (in his final screen appearance) brings this hit Broadway play memorably to the screen. (123 min.)

Hollywood at War concludes with "The Best Years of Our Lives" (1946) on Saturday, September 29. After the war comes the homecoming for its survivors. An all-star cast, headed by Frederic March and Myrna Loy, stars in this classic story that richly deserved its many Oscars, and remains as timely today as when it was released.