[Watch a special segment with Brian Williams on ABC Nightly News commemorating the HBO premiere of “Alive Day Memories.”]
ALIVE DAY MEMORIES: HOME FROM IRAQ
Wednesday, November 16 @ 7PM
Art Gallery at Jeanne D’Arc Credit Union
1 Tremont Place (off Father Morissette Blvd), Lowell
Free admission | Refreshments served
In honor of this years’ Veterans’ Day, our friends at Jeanne D’Arc Credit Union have invited us back to their marvelous art space (and what we consider to be Lowell’s own intimate screening room) to co-host a very special evening of film in tribute to our past and present service men and women. The film we’ve selected is the highly acclaimed and award-winning HBO documentary Alive Day Memories: Home From Iraq, produced and hosted by three-time Emmy-winning actor James Gandolfini. This is a truly evocative, inspiring, and first-hand portrait of real men and women who survived the front lines of war and are willing to share their stories of courage and hope.
ABOUT THE FILM
Since the start of the Gulf War, tens of thousands of U.S. troops have been injured in Iraq. And for the first time in American history, 90% of the wounded survive their injuries, but a greater percentage of these men and women are returning with amputations, traumatic brain injuries and severe post-traumatic stress. In an effort to shed new light on the physical cost of war and those who struggle for daily survival, Executive Producer James Gandolfini and HBO Documentaries present “Alive Day Memories: Home From Iraq,” an up-close and personal inside look at how the war has permanently changed the lives of these wounded troops.
We extend a sincere thanks to the staff at Jeanne D’Arc Credit Union for the opportunity to present this incredible documentary. We hope you will join us and extend a special invitation to any current or past veterans of war or military personnel — we’d be very humbled to have them share their experiences with us.
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For more information on Alive Day Memories, please read the following New York Times film review and exposé “The Price of War, Front and Center:”
In the HBO documentary “Alive Day Memories” Dawn Halfaker, 27, a former Army first lieutenant, is sitting in a chair on a stark stage, talking, somewhat incongruously, to James Gandolfini, the star of “The Sopranos.” Mr. Gandolfini serves as the interviewer in the film, set to have its premiere Sunday night at 10:30. It deals with the recovery of American veterans from devastating injuries inflicted during the war in Iraq.
Ms. Halfaker, whose right arm and shoulder are gone, blasted away by a rocket-propelled grenade, says she has wondered whether her child, if she ever has one, will be able truly to love her. And then a look of intense emotion clouds her face. Ms. Halfaker’s eyes flutter, seemingly looking at some image far, far away. Finally, after a long pause, Mr. Gandolfini asks quietly, “What were you just thinking about?”
And Ms. Halfaker tells him: “The reality of, will I be able to raise a kid? I won’t be able to pick up my son or daughter with two arms.”
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