World Trade Center (Stormy Pinkness)

“Wow, this is eerie.”
This was my first sentiment while watching World Trade Center. The movie begins with scenes of people getting ready for work as if it is going to be a completely ordinary day. I could not get over the eerie normalness of the movie, knowing full well what was in store for these people.
Given the fact that most people remember September 11, 2001, I don’t feel it’s necessary to give a full plot synopsis. What I will say is that the story tells the tale of that day through the eyes of two Port Authority officers, Will Jimeno and John McLoughlin, who became trapped in the rubble when the World Trade Center towers collapsed.
Many people were uncomfortable with the fact that Oliver Stone was tackling this very tragic day in United States history. As someone who tends to explore conspiracy theories within his films, he was thought by many to be a bad choice to direct this film. But Stone proved his critics wrong. The movie is simply an account of that day and the lives of the officers and their families. I was thoroughly impressed with the lack of political statements, as this event is a perfect venue for anyone with strong political views to express them. I’m not saying that there aren’t ANY political statements in this film, but, surprisingly, the political statements tend to lean to the right if anything. The film utilizes the Prig school of history, which means that it shows the events as they were then without using knowledge from now. Because of that, there is no one blamed for the attacks. It is more of an "us versus them" without defining who the "them" are.
The acting in this movie was excellent. Whether it was Nicholas Cage and Michael Pena portraying the officers or Maggie Gyllenhaal and Maria Bello playing the wives of these officers, none of the acting was disappointing. Not once did I get the feeling that someone was overacting or not acting human. In fact, I was impressed with the degree of humanity that showed through the actors’ portrayal. In so many movies you see people dealing with catastrophes in several different ways, and more often than not they just aren’t believable. But I didn’t find any unbelievable acting in this movie. I was expecting it, but I was happy to be wrong.
I have to say that this review was rather hard to write. I think that simply had to do with the subject of the film. This was not a film I enjoyed. But it was an extremely well done film. There are some people who would rather not see this movie, and I can see their point. Why should they have to relive that day? They already lived it through once. Everyone should make their own choice whether or not to see this film, as it is a very sensitive subject area. Only if people view this movie on their own terms will they have their own experiences with the least amount of pre-viewing bias possible. I wanted to see this film, and so I did not have any prior negative feelings.
It is also hard to rate this movie, because I usually base my ratings on enjoyment. As I said before, I did not enjoy this movie, but I thought it was well done. But after much deliberation, I have come up with a rating: This movie receives a 16. Good job, Oliver Stone! Way to show people that you can handle such a sensitive subject.