World Trade Centre

As “United 93” realistically portrayed the terror and heroism of September 11, 2001, “World Trade Center” portrays the change that was brought about, both good and bad. Considering that Oliver Stone made “JFK”, you might have expected him to make a controversial film about 9/11. His subsequent films, “W” and "Snowden", proves that he has a love of controversial, political topics. However, in this case he puts aside his usual stance. This film does a good job in accurately portraying the emotion of one of the thousands of stories that happened. The film barely mentioned the terrorists themselves in order to put the focus squarely on the victims that those men never did see. Because of its emotional accuracy, it speaks for many of those who experienced this great change on 9/11 and not just those in the PAPD. The side stories in the film help with this as well as the acting.

All of us know what we were doing on that morning and this film can help us reminisce. Just like “United 93”, “World Trade Center” depicts the early morning of September 11 as just ordinary. It is a quiet morning in the city at first but slowly things get busier as we are shown shots of various places in New York City. The trade towers are shown but the purpose is to make them a usual part of the rest of the skyline. They invoke remorse but only because of the music. If you were to show the opening scenes of this film to someone before 9/11, the World Trade Center would not stand out to them as much as they do today. I like the contrast of the western music to the shot when the current date is displayed for the audience. We see the towers just as faintly as the other buildings around it and the remorseful feelings fade briefly. This time because of the music, we are reminded of a time when we as audiences would see the Trade Towers in a movie and they just identified the location as New York City. This easy also introduces an easy-going feeling that is erased when we see the plane’s shadow. Prior to that, the conversations between the cops are devoid of any irony that one might be tempted to include in the script. The Concourse as well as other settings on that fateful day appear to have been recreated meticulously. From what it sounds like, the set of Ground Zero was so real that it invoked tears. As one might expect, the screenplay of “World Trade Center” portrays what John and Will actually talked about and experienced while buried alive. It might seem a little out of place as they talk about “Starsky and Hutch” and it is unexpected when you first see Jesus holding the water bottle. However in a unique way, it adds to the emotional realism. I always choke up during the scene when Building 7 comes down and John & Will say what they think will be their final words. Towards the end of the film, we see the same shots that we saw at the start of the film only this time, the damage and change is obvious. Two bookends are thus powerfully created. On the positive side of things, the film ends with people that have come together in gratitude of John and Will’s recovery. In one day, we all were greatly affected but positively speaking, families were brought closer together and heroism came about in response to a cowardly attack. “World Trade Center” accurately portrays this on the emotional level. The side stories such as those of Staff Sergeant Karns and the Wisconsin Cops add to the notion that this story represents all the people around the world and what they went through on 9/11.

The acting in this film is well done. Recognizable actors were cast such as Oscar-winner Nicholas Cage, Michael Pena and Maggie Gyllenhaal but the film is so well done and the actors did so well that their fame is forgotten for the good of the subject matter. This was my first movie seeing Pena and Gyllenhaal. I think that the emotion that Cage and Pena put into their characters while buried alive shows their talent. They affected me because of the high level of emotional realism in the portrayal of this true story. In the case of Nicholas Cage, I really believed that he was slowly dying. His screaming has such an accurate level of pain that is registered emotionally. Michael Pena’s talent is best seen when he goes from fear to rage and then to emotional collapse during the scene where the jet fuel burns and the gun goes off by the heat. I had seen Michael Shannon in "Groundhog Day" and "Pearl Harbor" but it wasn't until this movie that I fully took notice of him as an actor. I like how he has helped tell the stories of both December 7th and September 11th. Scott Fox, the fireman that saved the real life John McLoughlin, portrays himself and I admire him for that. I like how in the scenes where John and Will are being passed along on top of the rubble that they used most of the actual men involved in the rescue. Looking into their faces also adds to the realism.

The film is another example of a time capsule for future generations as it was made only a few years after the actual event. Another reason for the accuracy of the film is to pay respect for those who died amidst the portrayed events. If the terrorists tried to emotionally destroy the American people, they failed. September 11 brought people closer together as well as re-awoke the “sleeping giant” of “great resolve”. The attention to detail and the respect for the victims make this film a success. When you watch it, you are sad for those who didn’t make it but yet happy for those who did. You always come to understand that we can recover from any tragedy in our lives.

4 Stars