Yesterday, Marina linked to an article announcing the Tom Hanks produced World War II film at the National World War II museum would open today in “4D.” This means that, along with the visual and auditory experience, the film includes props, simulated winds and shaking seats. Hanks is quoted as saying that he wanted these elements in order to “put you in the actual environment.”

The short film is entitled “Beyond all Boundaries,” but it does not mark the first time filmmakers have sought to engage senses other then sight and sound. While traditional cinemas have recently embraced 3D filmmaking, techniques such as Smell-O-Vision, buzzers in the seats and squirting water at the audience go as far back as the 50s and 60s. They were also generally considered gimmicks.

Take the 1960 film SCENT OF MYSTERY for example. It was the first and only film to use Smell-O-Vision, a technology that released specific odors during the film. A theater that was complete with Smell-O-Vision ran about $1,000,000, so it makes sense that it was used just once. Cult favorite director John Waters used something similar with his 1981 film POLYESYESTER. Instead of constructing a million dollar theater, Waters created Odorama, where the audience received scratch and sniff cards. At specific points in the film the screen would a flash a number for viewers to scratch on their cards. The smells would correspond with different scents included in the scene such as flowers, pizza, glue and even feces.

Smell wasn’t the only sense targeted by these theater tricks. The king of cinema gimmicks was director William Castle. Castle would do things like place joy buzzers to the underside of seats to shock audience members for his 1959 film THE TINGLERS or attach seatbelts to certain seats that were designed to shake around.

Nowadays, most of these sensual gimmicks seem limited to amusement park attractions like Universal Studio’s “Terminator 2: 3D” and Disney’s  “It’s Tough to be a Bug.”

Smell-O-Vision, Odorama, the tingler, time traveling robots and talking cartoon bugs all seem like subjects far removed from something as real and as serious as war. Considering the history of this “4D” cinema, it strikes me as odd that Hanks would apply these type of technologies to World War II.

I generally respect Hanks as an actor and I enjoyed both SAVING PRIVATE RYAN as well as BAND OF BROTHERS. Both projects were praised for their realistic depictions of war, but that apparently wasn’t enough for Hanks. It seems like he’s obsessed with recreating World War II for both himself and the audience. But does sitting in a theater and having water splashed on your face come anywhere near to recreating the real thing? I question as to whether or not veterans would want to relive the real thing, or wish the real thing upon anyone. Hanks’ endeavor seems surprisingly tactless considering his past sensitivity and seriousness to the subject. What’s the motivation here?

I should probably reserve judgment until I’ve seen the film, but something about it just rubs me the wrong way. What do you think?