March 30th Free Sneak Preview of first Amercian War Drama filmed in Vietnam

 

Sneak Preview of the first American War Drama ever allowed to shoot on location in Vietnam.   "21 and a Wakeup" is the true story of the final days of the 24th Evacuation Hospital at Long Binh, the last major Army Hospital remaining in Vietnam as America left Southeast Asia.   "21" is very much a women's drama, showing the enormous courage and dedication of brave women in almost unimaginable circumstances. It will have a powerful appeal to Soldier's Angels.   It has a terrific cast, including Faye Dunaway, Danica McKellar, Amy Acker, Tom Sizemore, JC Chasez, Wes Studi, Ed Begley Jr, Andre Royo, Kieu Chinh and Ben Vereen.   I'd love to have as many Soldier's Angels attend for free next Tuesday evening as possible.   We've shown this film at Fort Lewis for the Army Nurse Corps; at the Navy Memorial in Washington, and Bethesda Naval Hospital, among others. I was privileged to speak to part of the graduating class at West Point about the film by special invitation.   This Sneak Preview will be shown free to 300 Vietnam Vets at 6 PM next Tuesday March 30th at the Whittier Village Cinema on 7038 Greenleaf Avenue, immediately after the traveling wall leaves.   The trailer and more information are available on our website www.21andawakeup.com.   Please let me know if you'd like to attend. If you are able to forward this invitation, any of your members may guarantee themselves good seats by emailing wakeuptix@aol.com   Free Tickets are of course available at the door on a first come, first served basis.     Best Regards,     Chris McIntyre Writer/Director USMC 1967-71     Vietnam-era movie now playing locally Flick details work of medical personnel during forty year old conflict By J.M. Simpson on March 4, 2010 Dr. Roland Trenouth, left, and Dr. Marvin Wayne, center, are portrayed in Director Chris McIntyres Vietnam movie 21 And A Wakeup. The pair joined McIntyre, right, at a screening for 300 Veterans at Fort Lewis. The movie "21 And A Wakeup" honors the work of doctors and nurses who served in Vietnam. The film takes place during a four-day period at the 24th Evacuation Hospital, the last hospital to close during the final days of America's involvement in Vietnam. Director, Writer and Producer Chris McIntyre produced his film to cast a different and accurate light on Army medical personnels lives in Vietnam. Unlike most war movies that show the devastation of war from the soldier's view, the film dramatizes the real life story of three nurses, one of  whom is days from returning home. "Their stories have not been told on the big screen," said McIntyre, a Marine who served from 1967 until late 1971. "Nurses did heroic work; they had the most contact with the wounded." The movie is the first filmed in Vietnam since its fall to the communists in 1975. McIntyre attributes persistence for his success persuading the still-Communist government to allow him to film in Vietnam, along with the Vietnamese governments own reverence for accurate history. Opposed to the war during his college years, McIntyre was drafted, and then elected to enlist in the Marines. He soon fell in love with Vietnams country, and its brave and wonderful people. As the draw down occurs in Iraq and soon Afghanistan, McIntyre noted the 40-year-old parallel. "21 And a Wakeup" opened in Chicago, and continues its rollout across the US in 2010. The film digs deep to encompass a dozen true incidents, including those of Dr. Marvin Wayne, a top surgeon at the 24th Evacuation Hospital in 1971 and 72. Wayne accompanied McIntyre at a showing at Fort Lewiss Carey Theater Tuesday evening. Standing next to Wayne was Dr. Roland Trenouth, a physician who was badly injured in a helicopter crash. He was rushed to the 24th Evac Hospital, and then worked on by Wayne. "I compressed my years of service along with Dr. Wayne's into a single 96-hour period," said McIntyre. "Every event and every major character has a basis in a real event and true story." The title references the 21 days left in the lead nurses' tour of duty; the average age of a nurse reporting for duty in Vietnam; and the years (1954-1975) America was involved in Vietnam. Amy Acker (television's "Angel and Alias") stars as Caitlin Murphy, an Army nurse who undertakes a difficult and dangerous journey up the Mekong River to Cambodia in order to save a young Vietnamese-American girl before the American bombing of Cambodia. Like all events in the movie, Murphy's trip is based on a true story. The film also stars Faye Dunaway ("Network," "Chinatown," "Bonnie and Clyde"); JC Chasez (N'Sync, in his first film role); Danica McKellar ("The Wonder Years," "The West Wing"); Ed Begley, Jr. ("St. Elsewhere," "The West Wing"); Tom Sizemore ("Saving Private Ryan," "Blackhawk Down"); Wes Studi ("Heat," "Last of the Mohicans"); Andre Royo ("The Wire"); and Ben Vereen ("Pippin"). "It's irreverent. It occasionally portrays officers in a less than flattering light, like M*A*S*H. It shows the parties and clubs," said Wayne. "Its reality - we lived, partied, cried and saved lives." A self-described rebel whose sense of care and concern for patients has only grown with time, Wayne says the movie is very real, and tries to honor those it portrays. "I may occasionally have been a poor officer, but always tried to be the best doctor," he said. This film is about real people I knew, who worked very hard to save our soldiers lives."