Ella Purnell FAN ° ° ella-purnell.org
Marie By October 24, 2014 0 Comments

Two local charities that benefit children with cancer are partnering for an exclusive screening of the critically acclaimed movie “Ways to Live Forever” on Sunday, Nov. 2, at 3 p.m. at Penn Cinema, 541 Airport Road, Lititz.

In addition to raising money for children with cancer, the event will honor the memories of Eli Sidler of Lebanon and Jed Smith of Red Lion, who both lost their battles with cancer. The boys became buddies during their many years of treatment at Penn State Hershey Children’s Hospital. Smith had leukemia, and Sidler suffered from Ewing’s sarcoma.

Their families created the nonprofit foundations, jointly called Chemowarrior, that are presenting the movie. The Eli Sidler Foundation provides funding for childhood cancer research, and The Jedediah Thomas Smith Foundation offers financial support to area families who have a child with cancer.

Advance tickets for the screening are $15 and are available at www.chemowarrior.org (along with a link to the movie trailer) or through the Penn Cinema website, www.penncinema.com. Tickets will be sold at the door, but due to limited seating advance purchase is recommended.

“Ways to Live Forever” stars Robbie Kay (“Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides”) as Sam, and Alex Etel (“Millions”) as Felix. The cast includes Greta Scaachi (“Emma,” “Flightplan”), Ben Chaplin (“The Remains of the Day,” “The Truth About Cats and Dogs”), Natalia Tena (HBO’s “Game of Thrones”), Ella Purnell (“Intruders,” “WildLike”) and Emilia Fox (BBC’s “Merlin”).

The film, based on the novel of the same title by Sally Nicholls, tells the story of two teenage boys with cancer who become friends when they meet in a hospital. Like most inquisitive boys, 12-year old Sam wants to know about UFOs, horror movies, ghosts and girls. Sam has leukemia and, although the adults in his life don’t want him to dwell on it, Sam wants to know everything about his disease and death, a possibility he might face. Together with his best friend, Felix, he embarks on a “scientific investigation” with questions, observations, evidence, reflections and lists of all the things he wants to do someday — like breaking a world record, flying in a blimp, kissing a girl for the first time, and experiencing what it’s like to be a teenager.

In this poignant yet ultimately uplifting tale, Sam and his family face the immensity of an uncertain future with love, humor and a touch of the unexpected.

“Ways to Live Forever” is distributed by World Wide Motion Pictures Corp.; website: www.wwmpc.com.

Chemowarrior: The Eli Sidler Foundation and The Jedediah Thomas Smith Foundation are 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations. Net proceeds from the Nov. 2 event will be split between the two charities.

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