BAMcinématek presents Strange Victories: Black Soldiers and World War II, a series focused on African-Americans’ experiences during the war, Nov 10–16
The Wall Street Journal is the title sponsor for BAMcinématek and BAM Rose Cinemas.
October 10, 2017/Brooklyn, NY—From Friday, November 10 through Thursday, November 16, BAMcinématek presents Strange Victories: Black Soldiers and World War II. Inspired by the release of Dee Rees’ extraordinary new epic Mudbound (sneak peek screening at BAMcinématek Oct 24 with director Dee Rees in attendance), BAMcinématek presents a cross section of films that explore the unique experiences of black soldiers who, in racially-segregated units, fought the spread of fascism overseas only to face racism again on home soil. These groundbreaking classics, compelling documentaries, and revisionist action spectacles shine much-needed light on the experience of black soldiers and veterans as the United States continues to struggle today with its legacy of historical, systemic racism.
The series begins with Spike Lee’s Miracle at St. Anna (2008—Nov 10), a necessary corrective that mobilizes familiar tropes of the traditional Hollywood World War II movie to present a powerful story of black infantrymen who fought for a country that saw them as second-class citizens. On a similarly thrilling scale is Anthony Hemingway’s Red Tails (2012—Nov 12) about the Tuskegee Airmen, a legendary African-American fighter pilot unit. Its all-star cast features David Oyelowo, Michael B. Jordan, and Cuba Gooding, Jr. Mark Robson’s Home of the Brave (1949—Nov 14) was among the first studio-era dramas to address the challenges faced by black soldiers, including PTSD, bigotry, and the embedded racism of everyday life. In Otto Preminger’s musical Carmen Jones (1954—Nov 14), starring Dorothy Dandridge (in an Oscar-nominated performance) and Harry Belafonte, a very different studio vision of World War II is depicted. Also set on the home front, Norman Jewison’s Best Picture-nominated adaptation of the stage play A Soldier’s Story (1984—Nov 12) featuring a charismatic turn from Denzel Washington.
Strange Victories will include the New York premiere of a newly restored print of France Štiglic’s Valley of Peace (1956—Nov 15), a moving drama about a black GI in war-torn Yugoslavia. Its star, the Michigan- born John Kitzmiller, became the first black actor to win the Best Actor award at the Cannes Film Festival. The series also showcases some fascinating, rarely screened documentaries including Stuart Heisler’s The Negro Soldier (1944—Nov 11), which is followed by a roundtable discussion featuring journalist Mark Harris and archivist Ina Archer; Leo Hurwitz’s Strange Victory (1948—Nov 13)—at BAM again after a Spring 2016 run—screening with Julie Dash’s 1982 short Illusions, and Stanley Nelson’s The Black Press: Soldiers Without Swords (1999—Nov 16).
For further press information, please contact: Maureen Masters at 718.724.8023 / [email protected] Lindsay Brayton at 718.724.8026 / [email protected]
Strange Victories: Black Soldiers and World War II Schedule
Fri, Nov 10 7pm: Miracle at St. Anna
Sat, Nov 11 2pm: The Negro Soldier + panel
Sun, Nov 12 4pm: Red Tails 7pm: A Soldier’s Story
Mon, Nov 13 7pm: Strange Victory + Illusions
Tue, Nov 14 4:30, 9:30pm: Home of the Brave 7pm: Carmen Jones
Wed, Nov 15 7pm: Valley of Peace
Thu, Nov 16 7pm: The Black Press: Soldiers Without Swords
Film Descriptions
A SOLDIER’S STORY (1984) Dir. Norman Jewison. With Howard E. Rollins Jr., Adolph Caesar, Art Evans. A black officer (Rollins) steps into a racial minefield when he is dispatched to investigate a murder in a segregated army unit in World War II-era Louisiana. This tense, engrossing Best Picture nominee boasts an impressive pedigree: Charles Fuller adapted his own Pulitzer Prize-winning play; the Herbie Hancock soundtrack features Patti LaBelle; and the dynamite cast includes a young Denzel Washington. 35mm. 101min. Sun, Nov 12 at 7pm
THE BLACK PRESS: SOLDIERS WITHOUT SWORDS (1999) Dir. Stanley Nelson Jr. The rich, long unsung history of black newspaper publishing is revealed in this illuminating documentary. Through a treasure trove of archival footage and firsthand interviews, The Black Press explores how intrepid black journalists created an alternative media to tell their own stories—including invaluable coverage of black soldiers’ contributions to World War II—that were often ignored by the country at large. 86min. Thu, Nov 16 at 7pm *Q&A with director Stanley Nelson
CARMEN JONES (1954) Dir. Otto Preminger. With Dorothy Dandridge, Harry Belafonte, Pearl Bailey. Bizet’s classic opera is updated for World War II-era America, starring Dorothy Dandridge (who became the first black woman nominated for a Best Actress Oscar) as the tempestuous parachute factory worker who gets mixed up with a young soldier (Belafonte), setting the stage for tragedy. As a Technicolor extravaganza built around Dandridge’s electrifying talent, it stands as a milestone of black representation in Hollywood. DCP. 105min. Fri, Nov 14 at 7pm
HOME OF THE BRAVE (1949) Dir. Mark Robson. With James Edwards, Lloyd Bridges, Steve Brodie. This pioneering, still-potent Stanley Kramer production concerns a PTSD-stricken veteran (Edwards) confronting the racist abuse he experienced as the only black GI in an otherwise white platoon. Home of the Brave was the first studio-era drama to directly address the experiences of black soldiers, and to this day remains admirably unflinching in its condemnation of both overt bigotry and the insidious racism of everyday life. 35mm. 88min. Tue, Nov 14 at 4:30 & 9:30pm
MIRACLE AT ST. ANNA (2008) Dir. Spike Lee. With Derek Luke, Michael Ealy, Laz Alonso. Spike Lee’s dizzyingly ambitious epic chronicles the experience of four black infantrymen caught behind enemy lines in World War II Italy. Featuring some of the most kinetic, visceral battle scenes in recent memory, this antidote to the jingoistic flag wavers of yore wrestles with the complex moral choices faced by black soldiers who risked their lives for a country that regarded them as second-class citizens. 160min. Fri, Nov 10 at 7pm
THE NEGRO SOLDIER (1944) Dir. Stuart Heisler. Produced by Frank Capra for the US Army and written by black independent filmmaker Carlton Moss, this influential and widely distributed documentary carries a complex legacy. It’s at once a landmark depiction of African-Americans onscreen—an ennobling portrayal of their contributions to society and the war effort—as well as a propagandistic recruitment tool that conveniently erases the reality of racism. DCP. 43min. Sat, Nov 11 at 2pm *Roundtable discussion with archivist and writer Ina Archer and author Mark Harris (Five Came Back: A Story of Hollywood and the Second World War), moderated by series programmer Ashley Clark.
RED TAILS (2012) Dir. Anthony Hemingway. With Terrence Howard, Cuba Gooding Jr., David Oyelowo. Executive producer George Lucas’ long-gestating dream project tells the inspiring true story of the Tuskegee Airmen, the first band of black World War II pilots in the then-segregated Air Force. Filled with spectacular, adrenaline-rush scenes of aerial combat, it’s an unabashed pleasure in the old school, John Wayne tradition where, for once, the black heroes get the glory. 125min. Sat, Nov 12 at 4pm
STRANGE VICTORY (1948) Dir. Leo Hurwitz. This potent look at racism in postwar America from blacklisted director Leo Hurwitz (Native Land) contrasts the United States and Nazi Germany and finds, disturbingly, “the ideas of the loser still active in the land of the winner.” Through gut-punching imagery and bold editing, Hurwitz crafts a furiously angry critique of American moral hypocrisy that was downright radical in 1948—and tragically relevant today. + ILLUSIONS (1982) Dir. Julie Dash. With Lonette McKee. Julie Dash (Daughters of the Dust) explores race and representation in World War II-era Hollywood via the story of a black woman studio executive (McKee) passing as white. Total: 105min. Mon, Nov 13 at 7pm
VALLEY OF PEACE (1956) Dir. France Štiglic. With John Kitzmiller, Evelyne Wohlfeiler, Tugo Štiglic. Set amid the rubble of war-torn Yugoslavia, this child’s-eye fable charts the friendship between two runaway orphans and a black American GI (Kitzmiller, winner of the Best Actor award at Cannes) who becomes their protector. This newly rediscovered and restored film is a revelation: a nuanced, deeply felt reflection on war’s tragic absurdities and a watershed depiction of black heroism on screen. New York premiere! 82min. Wed, Nov 15 at 7pm
About BAMcinématek
Since 1998 BAM Rose Cinemas has been Brooklyn’s home for alternative, documentary, art-house, and independent films. Combining new releases with BAMcinématek year-round repertory program, the four-screen venue hosts new and rarely seen contemporary films, classics, work by local artists, and festivals of films from around the world, often with special appearances by directors, actors, and other guests. BAMcinématek has hosted major retrospectives of filmmakers like Spike Lee, Chantal Akerman, John Carpenter, Manoel de Oliveira, Luis Buñuel, King Hu, and Vincente Minnelli (winning a National Film Critics’ Circle Award prize for the retrospective), and hosted the first US retrospectives of directors Arnaud Desplechin, Hong Sang-soo, Andrzej Zulawski, and Jiang Wen. Since 2009 the program has also produced BAMcinemaFest, New York’s home for American independent film, and has championed the work of filmmakers like Janicza Bravo, Andrew Dosunmu, Lena Dunham, and Alex Ross Perry. The 12-day festival of New York premieres, now in its ninth year, ran from June 14—25, 2017.
Credits The Wall Street Journal is the title sponsor of BAM Rose Cinemas and BAMcinématek. Steinberg Screen at the BAM Harvey Theater is made possible by The Joseph S. and Diane H. Steinberg Charitable Trust.
Delta is the Official Airline of BAM. Pepsi is the official beverage of BAM.
BAM Rose Cinemas are named in recognition of a major gift in honor of Jonathan F.P. and Diana Calthorpe Rose. BAM Rose Cinemas would also like to acknowledge the generous support of The Peter Jay Sharp Foundation, The Estate of Richard B. Fisher, Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams, Brooklyn Delegation of the New York City Council, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, New York State Council on the Arts, and Bloomberg. Additional support for BAMcinématek is provided by The Grodzins Fund, The Liman Foundation, and the Julian Price Family Foundation.
Your tax dollars make BAM programs possible through funding from the City of New York Department of Cultural Affairs and the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature. The BAM facilities are owned by the City of New York and benefit from public funds provided through the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs with support from Mayor Bill de Blasio; Cultural Affairs Commissioner Tom Finkelpearl; the New York City Council including Council Speaker Melissa Mark Viverito, Finance Committee Chair Julissa Ferreras, Cultural Affairs Committee Chair Jimmy Van Bramer, Councilmember Laurie Cumbo, and the Brooklyn Delegation of the Council; and Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams. BAM would like to thank the Brooklyn Delegations of the New York State Assembly, Joseph R. Lentol, Delegation Leader; and New York Senate, Senator Velmanette Montgomery.
Special Thanks Veronica Neely/20th Century Fox; Kristie Nakamura/WB Classics; National Archives; Brian Fox/Criterion Pictures; Mary Tallungan/Disney; Jack Durwood/Paramount Pictures
General Information
BAM Howard Gilman Opera House, BAM Rose Cinemas, and BAMcafé are located in the Peter Jay Sharp building at 30 Lafayette Avenue (between St Felix Street and Ashland Place) in the Fort Greene neighborhood of Brooklyn. BAM Harvey Theater is located two blocks from the main building at 651 Fulton Street (between Ashland and Rockwell Places). Both locations house Greenlight Bookstore at BAM kiosks. BAM Fisher, located at 321 Ashland Place, is the newest addition to the BAM campus and houses the Judith and Alan Fishman Space and Rita K. Hillman Studio. BAM Rose Cinemas is Brooklyn’s only movie house dedicated to first-run independent and foreign film and repertory programming. BAMcafé, operated by Great Performances, offers a dinner menu prior to BAM Howard Gilman Opera House evening performances.
Subway: 2, 3, 4, 5, Q, B to Atlantic Avenue – Barclays Center (2, 3, 4, 5 to Nevins St for Harvey Theater); D, N, R to Pacific Street; G to Fulton Street; C to Lafayette Avenue Train: Long Island Railroad to Atlantic Terminal – Barclays Center Bus: B25, B26, B41, B45, B52, B63, B67 all stop within three blocks of BAM Car: Commercial parking lots are located adjacent to BAM
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