Movies at MacArthur

The "Movies at MacArthur" film series takes place the third Tuesday of each month (unless noted otherwise). Doors to the museum open at 5:45 p.m. and the movies begin at 6:30.

Admission is free and there will be complimentary popcorn and drinks available.

January 21, 2025, 6:30 PM

For 75 years, the United Service Organizations (USO) has lifted the spirits of American soldiers and kept service personnel connected to their families and country while abroad. From its inception just prior to American involvement in World War II, the USO has remained committed to its mission of increasing morale amongst our servicemen and women. While some aspects of war have greatly changed, the need for connection, entertainment, and care within our armed forces has not. USO: For the Troops conveys the fast pace and complex logistics of a modern USO tour, underlying the importance of the organization not just for service people, but for America as a whole.

                              

The Search for Kennedy's PT-109

February 18, 2025, 6:30 PM

At the height of World War II, Navy Lieutenant John F. Kennedy stood at the helm of a U.S. patrol boat and in one ill-starred night made his mark in the annals of history. National Geographic reveals the true story behind the legend as famed ocean explorer Dr. Robert Ballard travels to the Solomon Islands to find the sunken wreck of Kennedy's boat, the PT-109. Through eyewitness accounts of survivors, local islanders and other PT crews on patrol that night, along with footage from the war in the Pacific, the film relates the story of JFK’s heroic struggle to rally his crew and get them safely to shore and explores the controversies that have swirled around the boat's sinking.

March 18, 2025, 6:30 PM

Discover the fascinating story of Elizebeth Smith Friedman, the ground-breaking cryptanalyst whose painstaking work to decode thousands of messages for the U.S. government would send infamous gangsters to prison in the 1930s and bring down a massive, near-invisible Nazi spy ring in WWII. Her remarkable contributions would come to light decades after her death, when secret government files were unsealed. But together with her husband, the legendary cryptologist William Friedman, Elizebeth helped develop the methods that led to the creation of the powerful new science of cryptology and laid the foundation for modern codebreaking today.

Model T’s to War: American Ambulances on the Western Front

April 15, 2025, 6:30 PM

Between 1914 and 1917, before the US's entry into World War I, over 3,000 American volunteers, paying their own passage, set sail for France to aid the war effort. Focusing on the valiant work of the American Field Service, a group of young men who drove Ford-built Model T's to the frontlines, the documentary takes the viewer on an archaeological journey of discovery using silent-film footage, rare photos, & French battlefields.

 

May 20, 2025, 6:30 PM

In every American war from the Revolutionary War to the Persian Gulf War, American military men and women have captured the horror, pathos and intensity of warfare by writing letters home.  Tens of thousands of these letters have been handed down from generation to generation.  Using the most compelling and enlightening of these missives, War Letters tells the story of American wars from the viewpoint of the men and women in the front lines.

 

June 17, 2025, 6:30 PM

The true story of the U.S. military's ban on gays and lesbians - from its implementation, through passionate protests and debates, and finally to its repeal.  In 1993, President Bill Clinton, trying to deliver on his election promise of lifting the ban on gays in the military, encountered vehement opposition that resulted in the compromise legislation, known as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." This documentary examines the consequences of the policy and the fight to repeal it - a battle that would last 17 years, span three presidencies, and result in the discharge of 13,368 active service members. Shot during the final 15 months of the law prior to its repeal, the film includes archival news footage and interviews with key players, from policy experts to Pentagon personnel, as well as personal accounts by a number of actively- serving gay soldiers. 

July 15, 2025, 6:30 PM

Since 2001, more veterans have died by their own hand than in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan. According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, one veteran dies by suicide in America every 80 minutes.  The Veterans Crisis Line, based in Canandaigua, NY and open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, receives more than 22,000 calls each month from veterans of all conflicts who are struggling or contemplating suicide due to the psychological wounds of war and the challenges of returning to civilian life.  The timely documentary spotlights the traumas endured by America’s veterans, as seen through the work of the hotline’s trained responders, who provide immediate intervention and support in hopes of saving the lives of service members

August 19, 2025, 6:30 PM

On September 2nd, 1945, World War II came to its official end aboard a legendary battleship anchored in Tokyo Bay. Some seventy million people had died during the war, but now the fighting would end not with a rifle shot but rather with the swift stroke of a ceremonial pen.  The official surrender ceremony on the USS Missouri would attract a world-wide radio audience with famous Pacific commanding General Douglas MacArthur handling the Instrument of Surrender proceedings. Over 3,000 soldiers and dignitaries looked on from every inch of Missouri’s decks, including a small delegation of conquered Japanese.  What happened immediately after the signing that left so many in complete awe? What is Mighty Mo’s legacy today at Pearl Harbor, where she rests not far from another famous battleship, the USS Arizona? Are there veterans still alive who were there to witness the Japanese surrender ending the war?

September 16, 2025, 6:30 PM

Immediately after the attacks on September 11, 2001, the United States government initiated a secret war against Afghanistan, deploying fewer than one hundred Special Forces troops to fight back. Building a coalition with the rebels of the Northern Alliance, the US troops faced off against the Taliban and the terrorist organization al-Qaeda. They succeeded in driving both out of power by the end of 2001 with minimal casualties and without conventional, large-scale military operations. Despite this victory, the U.S. and its allies soon became mired in a seemingly never-ending war. This untold story features unprecedented access to the Green Berets who played pivotal roles in these covert missions. Reflecting on their experiences and on the brothers-in-arms they lost, these elite soldiers offer a riveting celebration of valor and a sobering, cautionary tale.

October 21, 2025, 6:30 PM

Black Hawk Down: The Untold Story presents the heroic efforts of soldiers from the 2^nd Battalion 14^th Infantry Regiment, 10^th Mountain Division.  These men demonstrated extraordinary courage, skill, and discipline as they fought their way into a “baited ambush” to rescue special operations forces pinned down at the crash site of Super Six-One while also attempting a rescue a the crash site of Super Six-Four. Two soldiers were killed and eighteen wounded in what many have described as the most ferocious urban combat since the Battle for Hue during the Tet Offensive in 1968.

 

November 18, 2025, 6:30 PM

Through the eyes of seven World War II artists, They Drew Fire shows an intimate and often startling look at combat, and the task of transforming the horrors of war into stark, revealing, enduring works of art.  Soldiers, sailors, and airmen created more than 12,000 works of art.  The artwork, commissioned by the U.S. government, has been hidden away in dusty military archives, unseen since the war, until now.  Most of the artists were trained for combat and carried weapons.  They stormed the beaches in the South Pacific, accompanied our men into Normandy, and fought with the ground troops in France and Italy.