Shattering and worth seeing

Rating: 10/10 (24 August 2009)

"United 93" tells the story of the one flight on 9/11 that did not hit its designated target because of the heroism of the passengers. Writer/director Paul Greengrass tells the story documentary-style, with many of the actual airline and military personnel taking part in the filming.
There were many New York actors whom I recognized, but most people won't be cognizant at all that they're watching actors.
Several things emerge as especially striking. The first is how completely blindsided we were and because the situation was so horrible, how long it took to realize what was going on. The second was the realization among the passengers, quietly growing, that this was it. The third is the no-nonsense activism of the passengers, who just weren't going to sit still and take it. What brave people they were.
The most incredible part of "United 93" is the special feature where each actor meets the family of the person they're playing. To see how the families have coped over the years and what the film meant to them made for extremely emotional viewing.
I noticed a few of the comments said that it was understandable if someone couldn't watch this movie, and of course, it is. I had to ask myself why I was willing to watch it. I guess because I believed that all the victims of 9/11 weren't victims at all, but very special people. You won't doubt that after you watch the film or the special feature.