- Joined
- Jul 3, 1997
- Messages
- 66,787
- Real Name
- Ronald Epstein
It's a very difficult decision to devote an entire
day to reviewing these new DVD titles that reflect
upon the events of September 11, 2001. I consider
this a prelude to the many images that Americans
will be revisiting as we approach the one year
anniversary of the attacks.
Some of you may not be interested in revisiting
the perpetual images that these DVDs provide.
For those of you that feel this way, I urge you
not to read any more of this review as the images
and stories are all here.
For others, these DVDs are very well done, presenting
an enormous amount of educational value to those
who are interested in watching them.
New York Firefighters
The Brotherhood of 9/11
Studio: Artisan/Discovery Channel
Year: 2002
Rated: NR
Film Length: 50 minutes
Aspect Ratio: Full Frame (1.33:1)
This is perhaps the most personal story of them
all, for its the story Bronx Rescue Squad #3, one
of five rescue squads spread out over the boroughs
of NYC. They are specialists whose trucks carry
no ladders nor water. Their job is to be at every
fire and assist in search and rescue.
Rescue Squad #3 is a house forever changed, for
it was the morning of 9/11 that 8 men left for
Manhattan to take the call and never returned.
A plexiglass tribute memorial stands on the
inside wall of that firehouse.
Narrated by Stockard Channing, This is a personal
look at the men who remain at the Bronx firehouse,
recounting stories of their brothers who fell that
day. There are many powerful and emotional moments
here including the group of firemen who 6 months
after 9/11, finally sit around a television and
watch home videos of that day. This is an
emotional moment as we watch the horror in the
faces of those that could not have been there
that day, but yet suddenly see it all happening
through these home movies. Later, as these men
sit around a firehouse table, they recount some fond
memories of each of their fallen brothers.
Through this documentary you learn about how
firemen become a family unit. These are men that
eat and sleep together. The firehouse is their
second home. Losing a member of that firehouse is
as serious as losing a member of their own family.
Intertwined with the stories of these firemen are
interviews with those who were inside the towers
shortly before their collapse, and have their own
stories about the firemen who came to rescue them.
One very emotional story comes from a survivor who
on the way down his stairwell escape came upon
a firefighter who was on his way up to rescue those
still inside. This survivor recalls the exhaustion
and sweat of the fireman's face. The fireman asked
for help. This survivor gladly took part of his
gear and helped this firefighter up to the 30th
floor. It was there that he heard calls from the
radio about two firefighters that had collapsed from
massive chest pains. This survivor recalls his
final moments before escaping the building, saying
goodbye to the firefighters he would never see again.
The documentary briefly turns to footage of the
recovery effort as brother looked for his own
brother amongst the smoldering twisted steel remains
of the towers. We even see interviews of the
men of ladder 6 -- the only firefighters to emerge
from the rubble alive. These men recall those
moments when they were trapped in the only stairwell
remaining as huge chunks of concrete and steel fell
around them.
Perhaps the most emotional moments of this entire
documentary come as the families of the fallen
heroes of Rescue 3 come back to the firehouse to
clean out the lockers of their husband/father/brother.
If there are any happy moments here, perhaps it
is those that come from the members of the community
who reached out and came to the firehouse to provide
its members with food and support. It was for that
only brief moment I had a smile on my face.
How is the transfer?
While presented in a 1.33:1 version, my Panasonic
DVD player somehow presented this DVD as a
widescreen presentation with no unusual ratio
deformities. Upon capturing screenshots with
POWER DVD software, the images were presented in
their full frame ratio. Very odd.
In any event, this DVD is filled with raw video
footage that is very clear. The digitally mastered
transfer is excellent all around. The stereo
presentation has that very crisp, high-end video
sound to it. There is excellent stereo separation
in the front channels and sound is so very detailed
that you can hear individual gasps from the background
crowd as these events unfolded.
Let me also sternly warn that because this is
an Artisan release, you can expect absolutely no
subtitles here. Again, I get on my soapbox and
berate the studio for ignoring the hearing impaired
community with DVD releases such as this.
Final Thoughts
An extremely personal and highly emotional look at
the bond between firefighters and the way a rescue
company was forever changed by the events of 9/11.
These are the brave individuals that continue to
define what heroism and humanity is all about.
Highly recommended!
Release Date: Now
World Trade Center
Anatomy of the Collapse
Studio: Artisan/TLC
Year: 2002
Rated: NR
Film Length: 52 minutes
Aspect Ratio: Full Frame (1.33:1)
"Don't trust the truss"
Opened in 1970, the World Trade Center was bigger
than anything anyone had seen before it. Standing
at 1719 feet high in the air, it was a piece of
architecture that was built to withstand just
about anything conceivable. So why then were so
many people unable to escape the attack of 9/11
and why was the collapse of the Twin Towers
inevitable? This documentary takes a look at
those questions and provides answers in the process.
We are taken to a NJ scrap yard three miles away
where within the heaps of twisted metal that are
about to be broken down and recycled, clues can
be found.
We meet the men who conceived and built the Twin
Towers. Meet Leslie E. Robertson whose ultimate
responsibility was securing the strength and safety
of the towers. As Leslie sits in his office and
recalls the events of that fateful day, he is
saddened that the circumstances of 9/11 were
outside of what was considered in the building
design.
We learn about the reasons and struggles over
the building of the World Trade Center. We are
shown original photos of plans and models that
depict a huge open plaza that would carry more
office space than the city of Cincinnati. We
also learn of the problems concerning the design
of the elevator shafts and how that problem was
eventually resolved. There were also concerns
about wind and the problems concerning the
dynamics of the motion of the building. The
World Trade Center was built with a unique tube
structure with meshed steel that surrounded its
exterior. This caused the building to withstand
the harshest wind gusts.
There is some terrific video footage of the
building being built as well as archived interviews
and photos of the building's design.
We then move on to the terrorist attacks on
the building itself. Computer graphic footage
takes us through the first terrorist attack in
February 1993, where in a parking garage beneath
the complex a bomb exploded. Six people were
killed and 1,042 were injured in what was at that
time the biggest terrorist attack on American soil.
Now eight years later, there are some startling
shots of the airplanes hitting the twin towers.
These are shots I have never seen before. The
157 foot wingspan of these 767 jets were enough
to devastate the inner core of the building,
blocking all elevator and stairwell passage on
the floors above. We talk to an elevator operator
who was on duty that day who tells a horrific
story of how the elevator cables snapped and
the cars came racing down with people inside.
This documentary further explores through computer
graphics how the steel framing was warped by the
fire's intense heat, burning away the mineral fibers
of fire proofing that surrounded each beam. We see
how the strong, but light steel trusses were
affected by the extreme, being the first part of the
structure to collapse.
How is the transfer?
While presented in a 1.33:1 version, my Panasonic
DVD player somehow presented this DVD as a
widescreen presentation with no unusual ratio
deformities. Upon capturing screenshots with
POWER DVD software, the images were presented in
their full frame ratio. Very odd.
The overall video quality is excellent. Though
most of the Trade Center attacks are blurred with
added animation, we see some amazing pictures of
the two planes flying into the structure. While
the transfer is as good as expected, the raw video
footage is only as good as the conditions it was
filmed under.
The stereo track is very clear, providing crisp
and detailed audio.
I again bring up the fact there are no subtitles
available on this DVD, something which Artisan is
greatly guilty of ignoring.
Final Thoughts
An excellent compliment to the many 9/11
documentaries available as it concentrates less
on the emotional impact and more on the structural
impact of the two towers. There are certainly
some definitive answers provided here as to why
the towers quickly collapsed shortly after the
attacks.
Highly recommended!
Release Date: Now
Operation Enduring Freedom:
America Fights Back
Studio: Artisan
Year: 2002
Rated: NR
Film Length: 65 minutes
Aspect Ratio: Full Frame (1.33:1)
On September 11, 2001, the United States declared
war on terrorism and the search for Osam bin Laden
began.
Operation Enduring Freedom is a gung-ho
look at the continuing war effort in Afghanistan.
It's a look at the battles from Mazar-e Sharif to
Kandahar to Tora Bora to Operation Anaconda.
Beginning with a speech by Secretary Donald
Rumsfeld, the video doesn't cease to remind us
about the heroics of this war effort and how
proud we are to be Americans. The documentary
begins with a brief recap of the events of 9/11,
and President George Bush's address to the nation.
So why is America hated by these Islamic groups?
That question is explored through footage of the
Arab-Israeli conflict of the 60s, followed by the
Afghan war in 1979 where the United States fell
victim to the religious fanaticism these wars
released. The 1990 Gulf War ended with anti-American
sentiments from which came the al-Qaida's
determination to strike back at America.
The documentary explores the terrorist attacks
against Americans including the 1983 attack on
U.S. Marine barracks, followed by the 1988 bombing
of Pan Am flight 103. Then there's the World Trade
Center attack in 1993. All these attacks were aimed
at the removal of the U.S. political and military
presence in Saudi Arabia - Islam's holy land.
Throughout all the terrorism, America failed to
heed the warnings.
And who are these architects of global war against
America? They were none other than the al-Qaida,
led by Osam Bin Laden, one of 25 sons of a Saudi
billionaire. Osama was welcomed by the Taliban
regime who imposed a brutal tyranny over Afghanistan.
Bin Laden established al-Queda, an organization
that recruited terrorists who were dispatched to
other countries to unleash terrorism -- all with
the promise that their death would bring them a
greater after life.
Through previously classified battle footage
we watch for the first time as the United States
launches air and ground attacks. We watch the
surrender of the Taliban and the search for those
that remain unaccounted for.
Finally, this DVD looks at the war effort at home --
including Homeland Security, the anthrax scares
in the Postal Service, the shoe bombing incident
and the realization of John Walker Lindh, a Taliban
fighter from northern California.
How is the transfer?
This full-frame 1.33:1 transfer did not change
its full-frame ratio, as did similar documentaries.
While the transfer is as good as expected, the raw
video footage is only as good as the conditions it
was filmed under.
The stereo sound is very clear across the front
channels, providing distinct audio clarity to
everything happening on screen.
As a bonus, an interesting photo gallery is included.
Artisan again has released a DVD with no subtitles.
Final Thoughts
Anyone interested in the history of our conflicts
with terrorists and our present situation in
Afghanistan should take great interest in this
DVD. Though it plays a little too highly upon
the American spirit rather than sticking to the
facts, it is nice to see that the soldiers who
have sacrificed their lives to fight terrorism
have been honored through this documentary.
Recommended!
Release Date: Now
Coming Friday 8/30: The Grandaddy of all 9/11 documentaries... the CBS 9/11 Edition from
Paramount. Look for that review elsewhere on this forum.
