War movie benefits local soldiers

The role Corbin Allred plays in his newest movie, the

award-winning Saints and Soldiers, became a reality when he helped

Idaho soldiers come home before their deployment to Iraq. Allred

and the film’s producer, Adam Abel, joined forces with the

country music station KIZN 92.3 to host a special sneak preview of

Saints and Soldiers at Edwards Theaters on Thursday, Sept. 10. The

movie, which is based on actual World War II events, was presented

in hopes of contributing to “The Call to Duty Fund”

which aims to bring 2,000 Idaho National Guard troops home before

their deployment.

The guardsmen will receive two weeks leave from training at Fort

Bliss, Texas before being deployed to Iraq, however, the military

will not pay for their airfare to return to Idaho. Although tickets

to the event were free, organizers passed around World War II

helmet replicas for contributions towards the $300,000 needed to

bring the soldiers home. Founders of “The Call to Duty

Fund” reported that before the event on Thursday, they had

raised approximately $10,000. Boise viewers contributed to help pay

the soldiers’ transportation costs in hopes that each

guardsman will be able to come home and spend time with his or her

family before heading to war.

Allred said he feels grateful to be part of a movie that can assist

U.S. soldiers who must face Iraq shortly, “Saints and

Soldiers depicts the sacrifice and resolve that led the Allies to

victory in World War II. Now I’m honored that the film itself

might help unify a community to support our soldiers as they

prepare to face their own battles.” In a question and answer

session after the viewing of the film, Allred, joked that to get

prepared for the role he “played a lot of Playstation 2

‘Medal of Honor’ on the set.” He quickly adopted

a more serious tone and explained that most of his war knowledge

stemmed from conversations with his grandfather, a World War II

veteran. Allred views his role in the movie as a way to give

recognition to his grandparents. In fact, the photo of the woman

that Deacon (Allred) carries throughout the movie is the same photo

that Allred’s grandfather carried of his wife during the

war.

Allred should also be proud to be part of a movie that depicts the

horrors of war while keeping the gore factor to a minimum. Parents

can feel safe bringing their children to this movie which recalls

events of World War II while drawing on the personal relationships

between the soldiers that fought to deliver information across

enemy lines in hopes of saving the lives of many Americans. The

movie, which was filmed over the course of a month in Utah with a

budget of $1 million, switches from scenes of fighting between the

Allied and German troops and Deacon suffering from

“shellshock.” The dramatic moments are well balanced

with humor between the soldiers as they learn personal secrets that

help them bond in the face of war.

If you were unable to make the special preview, the film opened to

all audiences in Idaho on Friday, Sept. 10 and is now playing in

local theatres.

Michaela Herlihy
Culture Writer

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