No need to bet your bottom Sacagawea dollar on it: Given that Lewis & Clark: Great Journey West (at the Loews IMAX) was produced by National Geographic and sponsored by Eddie Bauer, the flick's grandiose, guardedly p.c. take on the advent of manifest destiny is a foregone conclusion. Meticulously re-created and impersonal as the elements, the movie's less a history lesson than a set of commemorative postcards.
In fairness, IMAX films necessarily hinge on spectacle, and Great Journey West manages several beauts while dashing through the Louisiana Purchase. There's a truly staggering buffalo stampede and a brief moonlit shot of the Rockies -- clutching at the night and seemingly infinite -- that hammers home the enormousness of the explorers' task. By and large, though, the filmmakers are content to sweep via helicopter from one unspoiled-wilderness tableau to the next, cramming as much U.S.A. as possible into the large-format frame. It's the fable of expansion, with Jeff Bridges narrating. Trouble is, Lewis and Clark (as evidenced by the movie's brief journal excerpts) lived it rock by rock, maintaining their spirits via discoveries small as well as great. Too bad they're almost always in long shot. Predictably, the expedition's reliance and effect on Native Americans is underlined or elided where convenient -- likewise the instability of man's grip on nature. A detailed address of such concerns would be at odds with Great Journey West's bold-stroke aesthetic; the prevailing impression is of having missed the trees for the forest.
The Lewis and Clark expedition, which lasted from 1804 to 1806, marked the first time United States citizens succeeded in crossing the continent of North America. Lewis & Clark: Great Journey West provides a brief but compelling version of the trip, backed by splendid large-format cinematography. It's a journey that still proves exciting 200 years later.
Condensing a three-year expedition into 40 minutes is an unenviable task. The filmmakers have opted to concentrate on process, showing exactly how expedition members rowed, paddled, dragged and carried their boats up the Missouri River; how they climbed through the snow-filled passes of the Rockies; and how they dealt with the raging white-water rapids of the Columbia River as it flowed to the Pacific.
Narrator Jeff Bridges fills in background details about the expedition and its members. Meriwether Lewis (Kelly Boulware), only 28, chose his former army commander William Clark (Sonny Surowiec) to lead the group with him. Clark captained the boats and drew extensive maps, while Lewis explored the riverbanks, collecting plant and animal specimens. The men spent the winter of 1804-05 near a Mandan village in what is now North Dakota. There, they hired French-Canadian fur trader Toussaint Charbonneau (Greg Jackson) as an interpreter.
Charbonneau's wife Sacagawea (Alex Rice), a 16-year-old Shoshone, turned out to be the most crucial member of the expedition. After giving birth in February 1805, she accompanied Lewis and Clark and their men up to the headwaters of the Missouri. It was her introduction to the Shoshone people that enabled the expedition to continue across the Bitterroot Mountains, a grueling journey that led them to the brink of starvation. Rescued by the Nez Perce, the expedition continued to the Pacific, wintering on the Oregon coast before returning to St. Louis in 1806.
The journey had several significant milestones. Although they failed to find a Northwest passage, Lewis and Clark opened the West for further exploration and settlement. Clark's slave York (Toby Tyler), who eventually won his freedom, was given an equal vote with other members of the expedition. For that matter, Sacagawea could vote, too. (Clark would go on to raise her son, Jean-Baptiste.) Remarkably, only one member of the expedition died during the journey
The filmmakers place a premium on historical accuracy, sometimes at the expense of dramatic urgency. Staged reenactments are kept to a minimum, eliminating a lot of guesswork, but at the same time avoiding what could have been fascinating scenes. The scenery steals the show, in particular the majestic but forbidding Rocky Mountain landscapes. The thrilling visuals help make the film's drier aspects easier to swallow.
THREE STARS
out of 4 stars
Unrated; scary bear attack
42 minutes
"Lewis & Clark: Great Journey West" tackles a job nearly as formidable as the legendary cross-country expedition: packing the 2 1/2-year journey from Missouri to Oregon and back into 42 minutes. Before the screening, a little girl in front of me summed it up best: "Forty-two minutes? It should take at least an hour."
IMAX Theatre at Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village That said, this latest IMAX offering at Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village does everything you want it to. It makes you feel you are part of the expedition, riding rapids on hand-carved canoes, even losing your balance while collecting plant samples from the side of a cliff.
And, yeah, it's also about history. When Thomas Jefferson assigned Meriwether Lewis to cross the western part of the continent in 1804, Lewis enlisted his friend William Clark.
Producer National Geographic's biggest challenge was finding country still untouched enough to stand in for America 200 years ago. It succeeds magnificently. I dare you to spot a power line on the horizon.
There is no dialogue in the film, only narration by Jeff Bridges, so the performers pose more than they act. Yet both Kelly Boulware (Lewis) and Sonny Surowiec (Clark) capture the noble qualities of these larger-than-life figures.
"Lewis & Clark" leaves you with the right impression: Yes, this was a monumental accomplishment, but also profoundly sad. During the subsequent century, an estimated 100,000 Indian people in the explored territory would either die or be forced onto reservations by white settlers and the U.S. government.
You can't really fault the movie for choosing coffee-table over textbook understanding. That, after all, would take at least an hour.
[EXCERPT]
SPECIAL SCREENINGS
LEWIS & CLARK: GREAT JOURNEY WEST -- *** 1/2 -- The latest six-story-high movie whisks us away from St. Louis and across the prairie with the Corps of Discovery, and lays out a wide range of facts that will have you shaking your head in amazement. Shown in the large-screen format. Running time: 45 minutes. Not rated, probable G (nothing offensive). (Jordan Commons.) (June 14, 2002) -- Diane Urbani
*** 1/2 [3 1/2 stars out of 4]
In 1803, it was the equivalent of a journey to the moon.
Sure, the Lewis and Clark expedition set out to "discover" a land that had been well-known to its inhabitants for thousands of years. But the country Meriwether Lewis and William Clark were sent to survey was so vast and unknown to Americans of the time that their journey became the stuff of legend.
Now that sweeping story gets recaptured on the large-format screen with "Lewis & Clark: Great Journey West," the newest Humphrey IMAX Dome offering.
The National Geographic Society saw Lewis and Clark as a natural fit for one of its productions. The picture reunites producer Lisa Truitt and director Bruce Neibaur, the team behind "Mysteries of Egypt," one of the top five-grossing large-format films ever released.
They've pulled off another winner.
"Lewis & Clark" captures the epic history of the Corps of Discovery's 8,000-mile trek without committing the fault of many IMAX films: bookishness.
Background explanations in the film are brief but full of wonderful detail. Thomas Jefferson pulled off the greatest land deal in U.S. history when he closed the Louisiana Purchase, doubling the size of the country. Trouble was, Jefferson hadn't the foggiest idea what he'd bought from the French; he suspected there may still be woolly mammoths drinking from the Missouri River.
Jefferson sent two able officers of the U.S. Army to map the territory, survey the flora and fauna, and find a river route to the Pacific Ocean. "The Westward" would take21/2 years to journey out and return.
The film follows Lewis and Clark's route up the Missouri River through lands that were both jaw-droppingly beautiful and deadly. That the filmmakers were able to capture so much of those lands still in a wild state is amazing. Unmarred bluffs undulate into the horizon; bare mountain ridges rise like razors into the sky.
Re-enactments portray the dangers the Corps of Discovery faced from nature and humans. No IMAX camera has ever met a rapids it could resist, but in "Lewis & Clark" we also get fresh shots of attacking grizzlies and other new thrills.
Cinematography isn't the only excellent feature of the film. Jeff Bridges provides an evocative narration, and the script gives overdue tribute to Americans Indians such as Sacagewea, whose knowledge and kindness often kept the expedition from disaster.
History buffs will wince at the way "Lewis & Clark" brushes off the corps' return trip, which was filled with some of the most dramatic moments of the expedition. But anyone wanting to be swept up in the scope of this epic journey will find the National Geographic's version a delight.
[PHOTO CAPTION: "Lewis & Clark: Great Journey West" keeps the epic story of "discovery" from being bookish with brief explanations and great narration.]
The film follows the Corp of Discovery -- a group of American and French-Canadian rivermen led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. In 1804, the group is commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson to find a water route leading to the Pacific Ocean through the newly acquired Louisiana Purchase. Along the way, Lewis doggedly catalogs to-the-minute detail every new animal and plant species he can find. And Clark scrupulously records one of the first maps made of the uncharted territory.
While the story line is important to the film, it really takes a backseat to the unbelievable landscape shot for the film. You'll hang perilously from a cliff, run from a growling grizzly bear and feel the rumble of thousands of bison. Sweeping over the calm, whispering, yellow prairie land of the Great Plains, trudging through the majestic peaks of the Rocky Mountains and paddling through the chilly Missouri River, the film is double-fold remarkable seen on the awesome IMAX screen. "Lewis & Clark" also pays special attention and tribute to the people native to the land who helped along the way, nearly 50 Native American tribes, including the Mandan, Hidatsa and Nez Perce. Without their expertise and guidance the expedition would surely have failed.
Sacagawea (pronounced in the film sa-ga-ga-wea), a 16-year-old Shoshone Indian, pregnant and wife to fur trader Toussaint Charbonneau, was instrumental to the voyagers in her direction, interpretation with native tribes and education of the land and its resources. And while the exploration is one of triumph, there is also foreboding hindsight knowledge of the future for the people that called these lands home.
When leaving "Lewis & Clark" you will likely want to pile into your car with some of your closest buddies and take a road trip out west. For now though, the film serves as a close second to actually viewing the area in person. It also imparts an appreciation and hope that the beauty possessed by these awesome lands stay protected and preserved for at minimum another 200 years.
If you are one of the six people in the area who has not yet seen an IMAX movie, this is an experience not to be missed. A few tips for the IMAX first-times: All seats are good seats, but in the event that you arrive early, go to the top of the theater. This area fills up fast and you won't have to crane your neck up the way you might in the lower rows; the realistic effect of the screen can be a little daunting. If you feel dizzy, the IMAX people suggest closing your eyes for a few moments to let the moment pass. Eventually though your eyes will adjust and then hang on for a truly unique, realistic experience.
"Lewis & Clark" is produced by National Geographic and narrated by Jeff Bridges. Tickets are $6.75 for adults (ages 18-59), $5.75 for seniors (ages 60+) and $5.25 for children (ages 3-17). Children two and under seated on an adult's lap are free. Call (414) 319-4629 for show times and reservations. A $1.50 service fee is charged for advance registrations. The IMAX Theater is located at 800 W. Wells St.
CHULA VISTA, Aug. 26, 2002 -- In its day, it was the equivalent of a trip to the moon. It opened up vistas to the eventual expansion of the fledgling United States of America to the Pacific Ocean and remains one of this country's most daring -- if underappreciated - grand adventures.
Celebrating the bicentennial of Lewis and Clark's heroic journey westward, the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center is now showing "Lewis & Clark: Great Journey West," a 42-minute National Geographic IMAX presentation narrated by Jeff Bridges that has garnered critical acclaim.
The film dramatizes the remarkable and often perilous journey undertaken by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, young but experience toughened Army officers, and their Corps of Discovery that completed the first overland expedition to the Pacific Ocean and back -- an adventure totaling 8,000 miles and required nearly three years from 1803 to 1806. At the time, the embryonic USA totaled 17 states and assorted territories -- virtually all east of the Mississippi River. But when Napoleon -- desperate to fund his European wars of conquest -- tendered the Louisiana Purchase to U.S. President Thomas Jefferson in 1803, the United States quickly doubled in size.
What lay within its vast wilderness boundaries was anyone's guess -- it was believed that woolly mammoths still roamed the plains and that volcanoes spewed fire above the lost tribes of Israel.
It now all belonged to the USA -- and whoever resided in it.
Departing Pittsburgh on Aug. 31, 1803, and arriving in foreign territory on the mouth of the Columbia River claimed jointly by the United States, Great Britain and Russia in December 1805, the expedition detailed new scientific discoveries and identified new wildlife species (the prairie dog acquired its name and enormous herds of thundering bison were sighted). It also conclusively proved that the legendary Northwest Passage was indeed that -- a legend.
Highly accurate in his approach, the film treats with respect the party's encounter with the expanse's native peoples and the contribution, in particular, of its interpreter, a young Shoshone woman named Sacagawea, to its success. Nearly succumbing to starvation when crossing the Continental Divide, the expedition lost only one member (to natural causes) by the time it finally returned to St. Louis on Sept. 23, 1806.
While Lewis and Clark themselves were hailed as national heroes, the film shows there were, in fact, many. If it were not for the help of several indigenous Indian tribes (for which the expedition, despite its outwardly peaceful intentions, provided a chilling forecast for eventual genocide), the Corps of Discovery would never have met its goal.
A mere two centuries ago the land between the Mississippi River and Pacific Ocean was, to the young United States, as unknown as the surface of the Moon. That all changed with the epic, 8,000 mile journey of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. Together with rivermen and their guide, the young Shoshone woman Sacagawea, they journeyed over uncharted wilderness from St. Louis to the mouth of the Columbia River on the shores of the Pacific Ocean and back again. The budding U.S. would never be the same-nor would the many Indian tribes of the West. This IMAX film is a finely acted dramatization of this remarkable saga, nicely balancing Lewis & Clark's heroics with scenes of great natural beauty and lessons about Native-American history. Humphrey IMAX Dome Theater, Milwaukee Public Museum, through March 6.
The danger of the uncharted West comes to life in this large-format film produced by National Geographic in honor of the 200th anniversary of the Lewis & Clark expedition. Actors inhabit the roles of Merriwether Lewis and William Clark as they lead 31 people on a 4,000-mile trek to the Pacific Ocean and back on a journey that opened the frontier for the expansion of America.
A large-format film depicting one of the most compelling and heroic adventure stories in history. The film chronicles a group of explorers -- the Corps of Discovery -- led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark into uncharted territory to find a water passageway to the Pacific Ocean and describe for science the wonders of the west. The expedition encountered and conquered an endless series of physical challenges as they traveled on their 8,000-mile journey to the Pacific Ocean and back.
The current IMAX docudrama "Lewis & Clark" leaves the impression that those 19th-century American explorers were the first white men to visit the Pacific Northwest. Tony Horwitz's new book, "Blue Latitudes: Boldly Going Where Captain Cook Has Gone Before," arrives just in time to point out that they were preceded, decades before, by a British captain, James Cook (among others).
[More about the book about Cook.]
DCI's latest release, "Lewis & Clark: Great Journey West" has already received numerous accolades for its depiction of a thrilling and important period of American history.
FROM THEATERS:
"'Lewis and Clark: Great Journey West' has had excellent opening attendance . . . over $14,000 in two weeks. The film has generated excellent press statewide and been very well received by Lewis & Clark aficionados gearing up for the bicentennial."
Mark Brittell, Oregon Museum of Science & Industry, Portland, OR
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"'Lewis & Clark' has vastly exceeded all of our most optimistic projections. It opened to multiple sellout shows and hasn't missed a beat in the 30 days we have had it on the schedule. It appears the public is ready for an uplifting, American hero type film like 'Lewis & Clark.' Attendance has been a bit soft for the past year like most theaters and this is the shot in the arm we needed. Plus the interest in this film we have had from teachers indicates that we should have an excellent school year as well."
Craig Blower, Reuben H. Fleet Science Center, San Diego, CA
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"'Lewis & Clark' had more than exceeded what we thought the film would do and is on track to become one of the most successful films we have shown in our nine years of operation."
Randy R. Wisthoff, Henry Doorly Zoo, Omaha, NE
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"Fabulous reviews! Strong school group bookings.... 'Lewis and Clark: Great Journey West' could be on our school schedule for years!"
Diane Carlson, Pacific Science Center
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"The scenery was absolutely breath taking I still don't know how they captured all that footage without power lines!! As for the story, it was beautifully told and I learned how truly difficult their journey was. Our educators gave it a thumbs up and can't wait to begin developing Virginia Standards of Learning for next year."
Carolyn Schwanhausser, Science Museum of West Virginia
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"The film has launched in spectacular fashion with numerous sell-outs. Audiences have often clapped at the end of the film. Regarding attendees, we are seeing lots of seniors, and of course, lots of families, too."
Wendy M. Grant, Reuben H. Fleet Science Center
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FROM PRESS / REVIEWERS:
"Emotions ride the rapids right along with the early-19th century pioneers. This larger-than-life slice of history rambles across the six-story screen in a manner sure to thrill any history buff or casual observer."
Larry Ratliff, San Antonio Express-News
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"In many ways, 'Lewis and Clark' is as much a celebration of the land itself as it is of these courageous and unflaggingly curious explorers. The IMAX format is uniquely suited to this story. We see acres and acres of buffalo. When Lewis tops a high ridge -- expecting to see the ocean, but confronted by the Rockies -- we share his mixed feelings of wonder and dread. 'Lewis and Clark' is a tale of America and of Americans -- of a nation birthing itself out of wilderness, rivers and mountains, under star-strewn skies."
Eleanor Ringel Gillespie, Atlanta Journal Constitution
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"['Lewis & Clark: Great Journey West'] tells the tale in a way that immerses the viewer in the experience as nothing else can. Details of clothing, tools, weapons and other equipment is as accurate as research can make it, and the filmmakers managed to find beautiful sites without roads, rails, power lines, structures or contrails. This meticulously researched and excitingly staged film is the closest the curious student can come to an approximation of how the trip felt."
Ted Mahar, Portland Oregonian
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"Beautiful and dutiful, 'Lewis & Clark: Great Journey West,' ...arrays visual spectacle, historical research and sociological sensitivity in a 42-minute retelling of the extraordinary expedition that blazed a trail across early America to its Manifest Destiny at the shores of the Pacific Ocean. ..[A]udiences who thrill to the beauty of these United States and to epic adventure may find that 'Lewis & Clark: Great Journey West' whets their appetite to know more about this remarkable expedition and its impact on a young nation."
Lawrence Van Gelder, New York Times
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"The latest six-story-high movie to arrive on the SuperScreen inspires awe in an American journey. And unlike some other large-format films, this one tells its story with refreshing understatement. 'Lewis & Clark: Great Journey West' whisks us away from St. Louis and across the prairie with the Corps of Discovery, into the great unknown as it looked in 1804. 'Great Journey' lays out a wide range of facts that will have you shaking your head in amazement."
Diane Urbani, Deseret News
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"'Lewis & Clark: Great Journey West' tackles a job nearly as formidable as the legendary cross-country expedition. [The film] does everything you want it to. It makes you feel you are part of the expedition, riding rapids on hand-carved canoes, even losing your balance while collecting plant samples from the side of a cliff."
John Monaghan, Detroit Free Press
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"From the comfort of your theater seat, you can join these intrepid explorers along their grueling 8,000-mile journey through America's unmapped West. "
Karen Fanning, Scholastic News.com
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"'Lewis & Clark' is a fine introduction to the subject matter by way of a documentary-like re-creation that condenses the epic 8,000-mile journey into 42 minutes while filming in locations as close as possible to the ones described in historical journals."
David Hunter, The Hollywood Reporter
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"A journey that shaped a nation -- 'Lewis & Clark: Great Journey West' recreates historic exploration of the West. The film uses actors and large-format film to tell the story of the Corps of Discovery in sweeping scope. The filmmakers were able to capture completely pristine vistas without any hint of modernity."
Bill Blankenship, The Capital-Journal
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"All history lessons should be as enthralling. [This] dramatic recreation of the epochal Lewis and Clark expedition -- an undertaking that was in its day (1803-1806) equivalent in difficulty and danger to a trip to the moon -- represents a truly spectacular use of the IMAX format. A really tremendous piece of filmmaking and a stunning visual and aural treat."
Steve Simel, TV Guide.com
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"The National Geographic production 'Lewis and Clark: Great Journey West' traces the perilous expedition of the Corps of Discovery -- explorers who set off on the Missouri River north of St. Louis in May 1804 to chart the unknown West. Captains Meriwether Lewis and William Clark are the heroes of the new large-format film, but the real star of the show is the beautiful, young America."
Mary Delach Leonard, The Post-Dispatch
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"This illusion of an unexplored and undeveloped landscape is one of the most satisfying elements of 'Lewis & Clark.' It's a visual feast for Western buffs, and in many ways it's a throwback to those history films so common during the early years of IMAX. ... [T]he movie leaves you open-mouthed at the incredible accomplishment of the Corps of Discovery and the hardships they encountered (there's a harrowing and beautiful sequence of the expedition's nearly fatal march through the snowy Bitteroot Range)."
Robert W. Butler, The Kansas City Star
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"Bruce Neibaur's short feature is not only a fine historical and educational film but also is excellent from the point of view of filmmaking. Nearly every scene is engaging and visually interesting. There is a real cinematic feel to this authentic-looking account of the grand 28-month journey of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark into the vast, uncharted areas of the Louisiana Purchase territory."
Jim Delmont, Omaha World-Herald
We begin at the end.
The end was the final 400-odd miles of the careening 4,100-mile journey made 197 years ago by Meriwether Lewis, William Clark and 31 weary yet curious members of the Corps of Volunteers for Northwestern Discovery.
That was President Thomas Jefferson's title for the mission to discover a river route to the western sea, far beyond the 16 United States of America. The final portion of the westward trek, from Oct. 10 to Nov. 26, 1805, plus the beginning of the homeward journey (March 23-May 5, 1806) are chronicled in a small but compelling exhibit that opens Friday at Washington State History Museum.
"End of Our Voyage: Lewis and Clark in Washington" opens with a ceremony, free to all, from 3 to 7 p.m. Friday in the museum's plaza.
The event offers frontier re-enactors called the Hog Heaven Muzzleloaders, radio personality Pat Cashman and dogs from the Newfoundland Club of Seattle, for the Corps of Volunteers' lone nonhuman member was a Newfoundland dog named Seaman. The dog was acquired in Pittsburgh and accompanied Lewis and Clark on the entire expedition.
A yeoman leader in our state's Lewis and Clark bicentennial celebration - this is the first of five history museum exhibits between now and 2006 - is museum director David Nicandri. He is past president of the St. Louis-based National Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Council and is the only Washingtonian serving on the council's board.
Nicandri is completing a book, titled "Lewis and Clark on the Snake and Columbia Rivers," due from University of Washington Press in December 2003.
Like most of us, Nicandri was not always immersed in the Lewis and Clark saga.
"I had no long-standing, abiding interest in the Lewis and Clark story," Nicandri said.
A native of Seneca Falls, N.Y., educated in New York state and Idaho, Nicandri has directed the Washington State Historical Society since 1987. The expedition began to lure Nicandri in July 1996, one month before he helped open the $42 million history museum in downtown Tacoma.
For Nicandri, the Lewis and Clark trail started in Nebraska City, Neb. He attended a Lewis and Clark bicentennial planning conference on the Missouri River shore. The expedition snared Nicandri when he heard a talk by historian Dayton Duncan, who collaborated on the 1997 Lewis and Clark documentary film produced for PBS by Ken Burns.
Duncan's talk was on a subject that enveloped Nicandri. It was about the momentous vote, made on the Washington side of the Columbia.
On a sandy beach just east of the present-day town of Chinook, Pacific County, at a place that became known as Station Camp, the 33 explorers, from Lewis and Clark to a slave called York and a teenage Shoshone girl named Sacagawea, each had, in an essence of democracy, one vote. They decided to spend the winter of 1805-06 on the south side of the Columbia, at a place about five miles south of what is now Astoria, Ore.
"The raw storytelling power and the pure emotion of the journey just grabbed me," Nicandri said. "I'm in Nebraska, and it's the first time I'd heard the story of the vote. It's a very powerful story.
"Then I began to realize the story. That was my true epiphany. Dayton had peeled back the lid, it's like Keir Dullea in '2001,' and you start to explore the universe.
"I realized that there were many Lewis and Clark stories right here in our own back yard."
If you go
What: "End of Our Voyage: Lewis & Clark in Washington."
When: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesdays-Saturdays, noon-5 p.m. Sundays. Exhibit runs Friday-Jan. 31. Public ceremony 3-7 p.m. Friday.
Where: Washington State History Museum, 1911 Pacific Ave., Tacoma.
Tickets: $7 adults, $6.50 for seniors 60-plus, $5 for students 6-17, free for children under 5.
Information: 253-272-9747 or www.wshs.org
The National Geographic IMAX film Lewis & Clark: The Great Journey West opens Saturday at the Pink Palace Museum.
The dramatic re-creation of the legendary expedition in 1803-1806 of Jefferson aide Meriwether Lewis and cohort William Clark kicks off the bicentennial celebration of the explorers' truly trailblazing 8,000-mile overland trek through the Great Northwest to the Pacific Ocean.
Narrated by Jeff Bridges and scored by Emmy-winning composer Sam Cardon, the film begins with the expedition's launch up the Missouri River and follows as it crosses the Great Plains, through the Rocky Mountains and across the Continental Divide.
The film also details the explorers' discovery and dealings with Indians, especially iconic interpreter Sacagawea.
The film runs through March 7, with limited showings March 8-June 27. Viewing times through most of November are 9:45 a.m. and 2 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 9:45 a.m., 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Friday; 11 a.m., 1 p.m., 3 p.m., 4 p.m., 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday; 1 p.m., 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. Sunday. Beginning Nov. 29, some show times change.
Admission is $7.25, $6.75 for seniors and $5.75 for children. For details, call 320-6362 or log on http://www.memphismuseums.org.