A new film theater at the National World War II museum is hoping to lure visitors with a film produced by actor Tom Hanks that features the sights and sounds of battle.

“Beyond All Boundaries,” which premiered at the museum on Saturday, inaugurated the new Solomon Victory Theater. The film recalls the winter fighting of the Battle of the Bulge in Belgium’s Ardennes Forest.

As archival footage unfolded on a 120-foot (36.5 meter) screen, the theater’s seats vibrated when German Tiger tanks stormed across the deserts of North Africa. Smoke filled the air as bomber planes made hits and snow fell on the audience, recalling the frigid winter conditions.

“We wanted to create a one-of-a-kind sensory experience that would engage all the senses,” Hanks, the executive producer, told the audience.

“We had the opportunity to do what good entertainment does, and what fine telling of history does, at its best,” he said, adding that the film’s makers wanted to present a story younger audiences could understand.

Actors Brad Pitt, Kevin Bacon, Elijah Wood and Tobey Maguire also read from diaries written by soldiers and journalists during the movie.

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