World Trade Center (PG-13)
Mike:
Scott:
Scott: Tonight we are reviewing World Trade Center
, Oliver Stone's movie about the events in New York City on September 11, 2001. This movie was based, at least in part, on a story that Richmond Times-Dispatch writer Jim Nolan wrote for another newspaper that ran December 31, 2001.
What did you think Mike?
Mike: I thought it was well done. It definitely will not be everyone’s cup of tea. It’s a serious subject presented in serious way. I think it is well written and well acted. I was glad to see Oliver Stone make a good movie again after his last few duds.
How about you?
Scott: September 11, 2001 is one of the most traumatic events in the history of our country, this movie tried to address that. It attempted to do that by focusing on two individuals, and their families, as they try to survive the attacks. I think that because it narrowed the scope of the event so much, that it lost some of its emotion.
Mike: I think the movie is very emotional at the beginning and at the end. I think it loses some in the middle, because of the focus on two guys being trapped.
I think the narrow focus you mention is necessary to deal with something that is as huge as the events of that day.
Scott: The towers are struck and fall early in the movie and after that you are brought into the lives of the two Port Authority Policemen played by Nicolas Cage (as John McLoughlin) and Michael Peña (as Will Jimeno).
Mike: There is a definite sense of dread underlying the beginning of the movie, because you know what's coming. Later, it’s tense because, unless you already read the story, you don't know who is going to live or die.
Scott: Watching the early scenes of the movie, brought back a lot of memories for me. I watched it on TV in Richmond when it happened.
Mike: Same here and it will be the case for anybody old enough to watch this movie.
Scott: Speaking of which, it is rated PG-13. I think 13 is too young for this movie.
Mike: This happened while we were at work and our reactions were very much like the people’s reactions in the movie. ‘How could someone accidentally fly into one of the World Trade Towers?’ Then there were reports of a second plane and it just didn't make any sense.
Scott: Actually, I thought the confusion on the part of the authorities and of the citizens really worked for the movie. You know that was what was happening in the initial moments after the attack.
Mike: Absolutely.
I'm sure there are people who think it’s too soon to have a film about this event, but I think the point of this film is not to relive it, but to point to the heroism of the responders on that day.
Scott: What did you think of Cage?
Mike: I thought he did a good job. Sometimes he can be over the top. In this movie he spends so much time in the rubble in the dark, that you often forget that it is Nicolas Cage, movie star.
How about you?
Scott: I don't know that anyone could have done the role better, but I don't think he was that great with it. I thought his accent was a bit thick, and he lost it once and a while.
Mike: I think there are a number of nice performances, especially Maria Bello and Maggie Gyllenhaal as the wives of the two policemen.
Scott: I have seen Bello in a couple movies and liked her in them. She was my standout performance in this movie.
Mike: I think she added a very important emotional element to the movie. I have liked her since she was on ER, back when it was must see TV.
I also loved her in The Cooler with William H Macy.
Scott: Never knew she was on ER. She was good in The Cooler, but I remember her most from Payback.
Mike: I think Gyllenhaal did a good job. I don't think I've actually seen her in anything before, although I have heard a lot about her, especially her role in Secretary.
Scott: Michael Peña was also on ER, just not a regular. He is the rookie cop that's trapped with the veteran (Cage).
I've seen Gyllenhaal before, but I don't remember her standing out in any role.
Mike: Peña seems very familiar, but it must be from one of his many TV appearances, because I don't recognize any of his movies.
Scott: I just saw Walkout a few weeks ago, it was a good movie.
Mike: Throughout the movie you see a number of actors you will recognize, but won't place until someone tells you their names. Stephen Dorff, Frank Whaley and William Mapother. Lost fans will recognize Mapother as Ethan Rom.
The music was a great addition to the movie and really helped underscore the emotion of several scenes.
Scott: The effects were incredible. The shots of the tower coming down were scary. The sound of it coming down was terrifying too.
Mike: Yes, I think the sounds added a dimension that you didn't get by simply watching these scenes in TV news coverage.
Scott: Sound was as effective, if not more so, than the visuals you got from the movie
Mike: The sounds and the view from the street as the buildings are already burning take you to that moment and make you realize how much more horrific it really was. During some of the scenes you almost think they must have filmed this while it was really happening.
Scott: The fall was terrifyingly real, that's for sure.
They cut some live footage into the film, but mostly it was just talking heads on TV discussing what happened.
Mike: There were several shots of the towers before and after that look like they were filmed during the actual tragedy, but you know that’s not possible.
Scott: I guess the best done part of the movie, if you can even call it that, was the tower attack and fall. It was the most real. Everything after that was on a sliding slope downhill.
Mike: I think you have to look at a movie like this two ways. One is for an accurate portrayal of the events of that day, focusing on the two main characters. The second is as a Hollywood film and the art and technique that go into that.
In some parts you are so engrossed you forget that you are watching something other than a documentary style portrait of some policemen on September 11, 2001.
Other times you are completely pulled out and realize that not all details that make a two hour entertainment film are interesting or even gripping.
Scott: I agree about looking at the movie in a couple ways too. I know how emotional a time it was because I was around then, and I remember how I felt. I was expecting a very emotional movie, and that just didn't show up. I was ready to be upset, to relive the events that took place. But the events of the movie weren't the experiences I had, so I couldn't fully connect to what was happening on screen.
Mike: I can't relate either, because thankfully I didn't live that day in New York City, but I can definitely have respect, pride and sorrow for the people involved and what they went through. I found the movie very emotionally moving in certain parts. I think by listening to the sniffs and sobs in the audience, some other people did too.
Scott: It was the quietest and most somber theatre I have ever been in.
Mike: Granted some of the emotion is from their feelings of the day and not necessarily from what was actually up on the screen.
So what do you rate this?
Scott: I think I will be seen as harsh, but I give it a 2.5 overall. It just didn't connect well enough with me. As a drama I give it a 2.
And you?
Mike: Well we definitely don't agree here. I give it a 4 overall and a 3.5 for drama. This movie hit me emotionally and had me thinking about it all day.
Scott: I think the movie had you thinking about 9-11 all day, not the movie, there is a difference.
Mike: I don't know how well it’s going to do, because I don't know how many people are ready to see a movie like this. If nothing else it made me wonder how I would have reacted that day in New York City.
It also made me remember how proud everyone was of policemen, firemen and paramedics right after 9-11. This movie helped me remember who the real heroes in the world are.
