Review of United 93 (2006) by Steve G — 13 Sep 2009

This was a tough one to watch.

I went into it hesitantly. Not to minimize the importance or the drama of the event. Nor to say that it shouldn't be remembered. But it takes so much out of you as a human to have to face something like that, that it takes a little out of you just to resolve to watch it. But I finally did.

So here are some thoughts:

There's a reality about the terrorists in the hotel rooms at the beginning that completely struck me.

One quibble with the movie is that, much like The Passion of the Christ, it assumes a foreknowledge on our part. Generally, that is a cinematic faux pas. Films should assume we're coming to see them with a blank slate. And, in fact, pretty much all do. I might've liked seeing something more than simply praying before going to the airport. There is nothing to indicate they are a threat except the assumed foreknowledge of those events. If I had never heard of United 93, I would not know they were a threat, nor would I have any idea as to their intentions. Granted, films don't have to have FULL exposition in order to be well made, but I would've at least preferred something. So, in order to get the full cinematic effect, the movie needs us to know who the bad guys are and that they are evil...but they never convey to us that actual fact.

I love the way the movie tried to portray the minutiae and everyday details of everyone involved. Concern about dates, and emails, and work, etc. It was very good in portraying the realism of the lives of those who were about to partake in such an important moment in American history.

You got a real sense of the disdain for the infidels as the terrorists watched them partake in their perceived useless trivialities.

Though I might want to contend that it does portray them as slightly more reticent at times than I would care to see. As though their resolve was somewhat in question.

Love the verite feel of the air traffic control center and other government agencies. This did not necessitate fancy direction or melodrama. No music either, until the final climax of the film. I thought that was a brilliant move. Let the drama of the event speak for itself. And when the music finally came, it was all the more powerful.

The final closing of the airplane hatch as they took off was spine-chilling.

It was wise to keep the twin tower bombing as secondary, as the reactions to it while moving the United 93 story along was very helpful in building suspense. And it was a tremendously suspenseful movie. One of the most I've ever seen. The tension of them initiating the hijacking was almost unbearable. I have never wanted movie villains to get it more!

One other minor dramatic problem is that all the "tell them I love them" phone calls at the end were so many, that you kind of had a hard time caring after the tenth one in a row. Also, not every single New York resident has a Brooklyn accent. Just sayin'.

Apart from the obvious emotional tug of the story that we all know, it REALLY was a good movie. You can have a dramatic event made into a bad movie. Did not happen here.

And the best part was that it was completely non-partisan & apolitical, just as it should have been.