I saw the 2:35 showing this afternoon in a Minneapolis suburb. There were probably 30 or so people, but the whole multiplex seemed pretty light today. Lots of rain, so it was an appropriate backdrop.
If you have not seen the film, yet, I am going to cite specific scenes, so this is a spoiler warning.
I had such a sense of dread before the film started, as I am well-aware of the ending. I thought the film did a remarkable job of bringing you into the film and making you part of it.
The confusion in the towers was so real and the emotion so raw as they are trying to get a handle on just what exactly is happening. "Where is plane such-and-such?" The intensity builds as they try to find the first flight that goes off course, and trying to deal with the other 4200 planes in the air at the same time. The disbelief that it could be a hijacking with all of the ATCs. The way they are huddled around looking at CNN footage of the towers, before the second plane hit, and CNN is saying "A small plane has hit..." Ben Sliney is looking at it saying "That is NO small plane. Look at the size of that hole!" (Take THAT DU conspirators!)Then the ATCs that are actually watching the second plane fly into the tower. It was like opening a fresh wound, again.
Switch to NORAD, and they are trying to figure out what is going on. Each tower has a piece of the information, but none of it has been put together. NORAD is only getting sketchy reports. Someone at one point says "How are we supposed to protect the entire eastern seaboard with only four planes?" And you feel the sense of helplessness.
Once the second plane hits, and the sounds of fighting in the cockpit of Flight 93 are heard by the ATC, the camera stays inside Flight 93. It doesn't go back to the towers or NORAD, it makes you take that final flight with the passengers, without catching your breath. You do not get to leave the plane, as they did not get to leave. This is brilliant filmmaking, IMO.
Unlike the other two cable movies, the phone calls are just brief clips, no long drawn-out calls. The passengers are piecing together information and it is very hurried and jerky. The terrorist is suspiciously watching them, and a few are hunkered down in their seats using the Airfones. The terrorist with the bomb- his face and eyes just seethe hatred. That was pure hatred I saw. I could see that he truly believed that America was Satan. Unlike the cable movies that have Tom Burnett with the cellphone earpiece and constantly talking to his wife, sometimes standing, the passengers on this flight are trying not to be seen.
They have no idea that the pilots are dead. They think that they are only dealing with the three terrorists they can see in the cabin; one has a bomb. They are not all calm and collected, either, they are frantic and crying, which IMO is much more believable. These were human beings, not superheroes, so they were, realistically speaking, scared to death. When they begin plotting to take back the plane, it is very believable. When the passengers, knowing that that their flight is on a suicide mission, make their final phone calls, it is heartbreaking, as the camera jumps from person to person, not letting you hear more than a few seconds of the most intimate moments.
As a former flight attendant, I sobbed out loud listening to the one flight attendant talking to her family member,"I promise I will quit tomorrow!" she sobs. I was right there with her.
I found myself rooting for the good guys and thinking, inexplicably I know, that just MAYBE they could get to the cockpit and take the plane back. "Yesssss!" I'm at the edge of my seat, my tissue tight in my fist "They're in! They've got 'em now!"
The ending was abrupt and final. The three paragraphs against black was all that was left. It was appropriate and draining. There was nothing more. The theatre was very quiet and people slowly began to file out as the credits rolled. Somber is really the only way to describe it.
I think that every single American should see this film. I am still a bit dazed. I have to say that coming here and posting my thoughts has been quite cathartic and strangely comforting, if a little bit long. Sorry about that. God bless those brave souls and God bless America.
Thanks!
Good post.
...we must not forget...
Great comments, glad you posted them and that they made you feel a little better.
Never Forget.
Switch to NORAD, and they are trying to figure out what is going on. Each tower has a piece of the information, but none of it has been put together. NORAD is only getting sketchy reports. Someone at one point says "How are we supposed to protect the entire eastern seaboard with only four planes?" And you feel the sense of helplessness.
A new batch of movie trailers here, including scenes with Sliney and NORAD.
I recommend, as reading, a related book "The Day the World Came to Town" (by Jim Defede, ReganBooks, softcover, 244p.). It is the story of 9/11 in Gander, Newfoundland where as a result of Sliney's order 38 planes with 6,600 passengers and crew landed in a town with only 10,000 people. How the people of Gander and surrounding communities came together to welcome, feed and house those passengers and how the passengers reacted when they found out what had happended is the focus of the book. A very good and very fast read.
Thanks.
Thank you for such a beautiful synopsis and analysis of the film. We went to the late showing this evening. My perceptions match yours almost 100%. You did a wonderful job of putting it into words. I also agree with you: "God bless those brave souls and God bless America."
Well written!