A retired army officer immerses himself in creating an honorary parade for the world war that ended over a decade prior. In his obsessions with recognizing the past, his present relationship with his family becomes strained.

A young boy who lives in the prairie is excited for the rare opportunity to go into town to see the fourth of July parade and celebrations. However, his day takes a turn for the worse when the family's car will not start.

After their son goes to bed, a husband and wife socialize with another couple on the Fourth of July. As the group smoke and dance, the wife watches her husband admire the other woman, and she worries that he will leave her.

When a group of boys graduate from Henry Hudson High School in the Bronx in 1944, the ceremony remains largely the same as any other year, despite the country being in the middle of World War II.

On the 4th of July, a small Texas diner receives new customers from all over the nation. One family arrives to the small town in search for an old war buddy, Bill, who offered the husband a job, but the townspeople insist that Bill's work is not accepting any new workers.

An American tourist on a trip to Nice, France with his sick wife visits a Mardi Gras parade of flowers where he grapples with the transience of life, happiness, and beauty.

A writer analyzes the popularity and success of Star Wars by considering its contemporary political movements and the narrative created by Americans.

A grandmother takes care of her granddaughter Lisa for the summer while her son, Lisa's father, is in the hospital on life support. On the last day of her son's life, the grandmother distracts Lisa by taking her to a 4th of July block party.