(Oneida, NY- April 2015) In its ongoing series on films set during the First World War, Oneida Public Library will show on its big screen the touching British film “My Boy Jack,” which portrays the family of Rudyard Kipling during the war on Thursday April 9 at 7 p.m., followed by a discussion.
The film, first broadcast on British television on Remembrance Day (Armistice or Veterans Day), Nov. 11, 2007, is an adaptation of David Haig’s play of the same name and features Haig as Rudyard Kipling, Kim Cattrall as his American wife and Daniel Radcliffe as their son John. Exterior shots were filmed at Bateman’s, Kipling’s home from 1902 until his death in 1936.
“My Boy Jack” focuses on the family’s war years, from 1914 when Jack volunteers for service to the family’s discovery of his death three years after he was actually killed at the Battle of Loos, the largest British offensive mounted in 1915 on the Western Front. The drama hinges on the metamorphosis of Kipling from a jingoistic patriot and propagandist for the British war effort to a bitter, disillusioned man bereft of his only son.
A discussion with refreshments will follow the showing of the film (running time is 95 minutes).
For more information, stop by the Oneida Library, 220 Broad St., or call 315-363-3050.