The next feature film in the Opera House Cinema Series is “They Shall Not Grow Old,” a unique tribute to the veterans of World War I. It will be screened this Saturday and April 2, at 7:30 p.m.

The next feature film in the Opera House Cinema Series is “They Shall Not Grow Old,” a unique tribute to the veterans of World War I. It will be screened this Saturday and April 2, at 7:30 p.m. A special discounted admission ticket is available to all active and retired military.

Academy Award-winner Peter Jackson directs this homage to the British troops of the First World War with never-before-seen-footage of soldiers as they faced the fear and uncertainty of frontline battle in Belgium. Digitally remastered and now in color, the footage has been studied by lip reading experts whose transcripts were recorded and used as audio for the film. Overlaid by a narrative of those who partook in the war from interviews made in the 1960s and 1970s, this historic revisiting marks one hundred years since the end of the Great War.

Ben Kenigsberg, in the New York Times, calls the film a “brisk, absorbing and moving experience.” Mick LaSalle, in the San Francisco Chronicle, calls it “profound … (the film) shows that actually seeing something is different from knowing it intellectually, or even from imagining it.” Chandler Levack, in the Toronto Globe and Mail, calls it “powerful tribute to every veteran and one of the most empathetic portraits of war ever created.” Chris Nashawaty, in Entertainment Weekly , says “now, 100 years later, the dead speak to us. And finally, we can understand … to a degree.” Rated R for disturbing war images, “They Shall Not Grow Old” runs one hour, 39 minutes.

The Opera House Cinema Series is sponsored by Lake Shore Savings Bank. Tickets are available at the door for $7 (adults), $6.50 (seniors & Opera House members) and $5 (students) the night of each screening. Active and retired Military can attend for the $5 price of a student admission. A book of 10 movie passes is available for $60 at the door or online at www.fredopera.org. Thanks to the generous support of an anonymous donor, the first 20 SUNY Fredonia students at each screening are admitted free. For more information, call the Opera House Box Office at 679-1891.

The Opera House is equipped with individualized closed captioning headsets for the deaf as well as with assistive listening headsets for the hearing-impaired. Simply request one from any usher or Opera House staff member.

The 1891 Fredonia Opera House is a member-supported not-for-profit performing arts center located in Village Hall in downtown Fredonia. For a complete schedule of events, visit www.fredopera.org.