“We’re into stories,” said Dr. Nick Mueller, the CEO and director of the National World War II Museum. This morning,  the museum will celebrate the grand opening of its new wing across Andrew Higgins Boulevard from the existing museum, and the main attraction in the new wing is the Victory Theater and Beyond All Boundaries, a film on World War II that is purported to be in “4D.”

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i11Wd3uTRdw[/youtube]

“I’m not sure what the fourth dimension is,” said the film’s producer, Tom Hanks. Hanks spoke at a press conference in the new building’s Stage Door Canteen. The 39-minute film involves new technology and special effects to make it an immersive experience, one designed to reach younger generations.

“This could be an exercise in nostalgia,” Chef John Besh said. “We want the children and grandchildren to know what we fought for.”

Besh was part of the press conference as the proprietor of the new wing’s American Sector restaurant, which references dishes of the era. To develop the menu, he researched period menus, and his cocktail menu came straight from the Blue Room.

Sitting next to Besh on the dais was Senator George McGovern, who addressed the concern that Beyond All Boundaries might glorify war. “You’ll walk out even more determined to work for peace,” he said.

Though Hanks and Phil Hettema’s film is the star attraction in the new building, Hanks resisted making undo claims for it. “The best source (for information on the war) is the library,” he said. “What you can get from this museum is a tactile appreciation. Something will hit you in purely human terms.”

This morning’s dedication ceremony will include Hanks, Tom Brokaw, Mickey Rooney and Patricia Clarkson, and it starts a weekend of activities including a fireworks show tonight, and the Victory Stomp Saturday night with music by Deacon John and Irma Thomas. For a complete list of the weekend’s events, visit the National World War II Museum Web site.