sometimes truth is stranger than fiction.

Rating: 6/10 (5 October 2006)

Steeped in controversy over whether it is too soon, amongst other things, comes Oliver Stone's take on the events of September 11th 2001. Focusing on two port authority police officers who having no game plan for an event of this magnitude enter into tower one only to be trapped when it literally comes down on their heads. For all Stones usual bluster this is told in a very subtle and poignant way. Opening with various members of the forces getting up ready to travel to work for what they believe a normal day we see one man walking out onto the deck of the Staten Island Ferry into glorious sunshine and as the camera pans round there is the New York skyline complete with the twin towers in full domination. It is like seeing a ghost and this scene wouldn't be the only time that the hairs on the back of my neck would stand up during the movie. Thankfully Stone never really shows the impacts of the planes mostly because from the point of view of the officers on the ground they didn't see or know what had hit the towers and so instead Stone shows big looming shadows blocking out the sun on the faces of street traders looking up or on surrounding buildings and using the same technique used in United 93 the rest is just shown on televisions in the background. It is one thing knowing what happens in a true story but still when Stone brings down the first tower it is still incredibly powerful, the sound is so intense, the atmosphere is so confusing it is like you are there with the officers. Trapped under tons of rubble the survivors shout to each other and you begin to feel the silence and the claustrophobia creep in but not for long as Stone shocks you back into the situation when the second tower falls. Once the initial chaos subsides the film becomes more a character study, how people cope and deal with situations. The officers under the mess their wives at home following the unfolding events on the news and having no idea if their husbands were even there, never mind alive or dead, if they were. So a mention has to go out to both Maria Bello and Maggie Gyllenhaal who play the roles of the confused wives. One of the things I was worried about was that the film would be all American gung-ho and over sentimental and in a few places it is but not enough to really matter. In the end Stone has played down his usual directorial theatrics and delivered a film that not only captures the horror of that day but also shows us what the human spirit is capable of, yes evil but also hope. Not an easy watch and not amazing but a good effort handled well and a film that should be seen and remembered by everyone.