Stephen Orr
Screenwriter
- Joined
- Mar 14, 1999
- Messages
- 1,099
Saw Oliver Stone's latest tonight at a free sneak at our local military theater. Whatever Stone's political leanings, he puts politics completely aside to tell the true story of the 18th and 19th survivors, two Port Authority policemen, to be pulled from the rubble of the World Trade Center in the first 24 hours after the buildings were hit by planes and collapsed. Focus moves between the trapped policemen, the families who anxiously awaited word of their loved ones' fates, and the Marine who eventually finds the two policemen.
This is a powerful film, told as a straightforward story, unlike United 93 (another masterpiece, told docudrama style). Nic Cage spends most of the picture buried under tons of debris, along with Michael Pena as the rookie cop trapped with him. Without being able to move, they must rely on each other to survive. The wives, played by Maria Bello and Maggie Gyllenhaal, are also good as they try to keep their families and their sanity together in the hours after the collapses.
Michael Shannon plays the reserve Marine staff sergeant who dons his uniform and heads to Ground Zero to help because he feels God is leading him there. In fact, this film has a very positive family view, and faith plays a vital part in the survival of the two policemen.
Stone spends a little time reminding us of all of our reactions that day, glued to the TV, watching the footage over and over, and how the world stopped in stunned disbelief of what had happened. I personally was at home that morning, off for two days from my Navy job, and remember turning on the TV just after the first plane hit. Like United 93, World Trade Center reminded me of how I felt that day, and how 911 is something we should never forget.
The film is dedicated to the policemen and firefighters of New York.
This is a powerful film, told as a straightforward story, unlike United 93 (another masterpiece, told docudrama style). Nic Cage spends most of the picture buried under tons of debris, along with Michael Pena as the rookie cop trapped with him. Without being able to move, they must rely on each other to survive. The wives, played by Maria Bello and Maggie Gyllenhaal, are also good as they try to keep their families and their sanity together in the hours after the collapses.
Michael Shannon plays the reserve Marine staff sergeant who dons his uniform and heads to Ground Zero to help because he feels God is leading him there. In fact, this film has a very positive family view, and faith plays a vital part in the survival of the two policemen.
Stone spends a little time reminding us of all of our reactions that day, glued to the TV, watching the footage over and over, and how the world stopped in stunned disbelief of what had happened. I personally was at home that morning, off for two days from my Navy job, and remember turning on the TV just after the first plane hit. Like United 93, World Trade Center reminded me of how I felt that day, and how 911 is something we should never forget.
The film is dedicated to the policemen and firefighters of New York.