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Tuesday, May 30, 2006

Another Movie You Must See…

Posted by on May 30 at 10:08 AM

is United 93

I finally saw it this weekend. (It’s still playing at Meridian 16).

The movie is hardly a dramatization. It’s a stripped back, almost real-time attempt to give viewers a fly-on-the-wall perspective of the flight 93 tragedy.

The script adds in a little drama (as if it needs any) by speculating on the lead hi-jacker’s state of mind.

Otherwise, this is an unsentimental movie that makes you bawl.

The last scene ranks with the famous closing scene of 1967’s Bonnie & Clyde as one of the most gripping finales ever filmed.



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Leni Riefenstahl would be proud...

On the other hand: No, she would not. There are no political leaders in the film (except for Cheney, in the form of a silent telephone handset), which makes it hard to, you know, look up to them, Riefen-style. There are no grand spectacles, only scrabbling in close quarters. Supposedly bombastic utterances ("let's roll") are uttered in a hurried whisper. Leni Riefenstahl would despise this movie. But Cassavetes might like it. Newsflash: United 93 makes our government look incompetent. See the damn thing before you dismiss it as propaganda.

I felt the film did an admirable job showing what people went through: the air traffic controllers, the military staff, pilots, flight crew, and of course, passengers. The terrorists' various states of mind were believable and compelling. I too was not thrilled to hear the movie was being made, but changed my mind after it was released. If the purpose of art is to illuminate and elevate, then United 93 was artful. We process our identity, both individual and cultural, through visual media so much now. I saw the events of 9/11 unfold on CNN just like everyone else & though I cannot understand what others went through, I'm glad to have this reminder of and chance to honor them.

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