United 93

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Review from Jim Pinkerton:

Nearly two centuries ago, the poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge described his goal in writing poetry: "to procure for these shadows of imagination that willing suspension of disbelief for the moment." The willing suspension of disbelief. Coleridge achieved that goal in such works as "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner," and "93" achieves it, too, in part because the audience, at least not yet, can't click around, pause, rewind, etc. What you see is what director Paul Greengrass, best known for his documentary-like film "Bloody Sunday," has aimed for you to see -- and believe.

But don't take my word for it. Here's Variety reporting on Tuesday night's New York City premiere: "After the film's devastating final scene, the screen abruptly went dark and a cacophony of loud, uncontrollable sobs could be heard coming from the back of the theater, where many of the nearly 100 family members of 9/11 victims were seated. Some were seeing the film for the first time. As more than 1,100 viewers filed out, a funereal silence filled the theater." That's cinematic power.

Yet at the same time, "93" is not tricky or manipulative. It's about as straight a retelling of the events of 9-11 -- as seen inside one of the doomed jetliners and inside various air-traffic control towers -- as one can imagine. Each viewer is left to connect the dots as to what's on the screen, to make his or her own meaning...

Just as crucially, the Arab hijackers -- a Lebanese ringleader and three Saudis -- are "normal," too. We might all agree that these mass-killers did an evil act, but they didn't see themselves that way, and since the film strives for realism, as opposed to didacticism, they are played straight; there's no mustache-twirling, no gold-teeth gleaming, no sadistic blood-lusting. These are serious men on a serious mission, and, yes, they are more than a little scared themselves. Notably, the hijackers come across as deeply religious; most of their dialogue seems to involve Allah and Islam. They are selfless, literally, and courageous in their pursuit of murderous martyrdom.

In other words, as we sit in the darkness of the theater, we have to make sense of the light and dark we see on the screen. It's our job to provide the moral editing, because "93" eschews the usual emotion-cueing devices, such as slow motion, swelling music, and freeze frames. Even "Let's roll!" is just another phrase as the passengers rush the cockpit -- we have to know, or not, that those words later came to evoke the fate of UA 93.

So does Greengrass miss his chance to make a true epic? And more seriously, does he sink into moral relativism? Not at all. He has deliberately made a small film that concentrates all its energy into a narrow vortex of actual events. He is confident that just about everyone will get the message. Indeed, there's a distinct artistry in keeping a tight focus.

From Roger Ebert, who gave it four stars:

It is not too soon for "United 93," because it is not a film that knows any time has passed since 9/11. The entire story, every detail, is told in the present tense. We know what they know when they know it, and nothing else. Nothing about Al Qaeda, nothing about Osama bin Laden, nothing about Afghanistan or Iraq, only events as they unfold. This is a masterful and heartbreaking film, and it does honor to the memory of the victims...

There has been much discussion of the movie's trailer, and no wonder. It pieces together moments from "United 93" to make it seem more conventional, more like a thriller. Dialogue that seems absolutely realistic in context sounds, in the trailer, like sound bites and punch lines. To watch the trailer is to sense the movie that Greengrass did not make. To watch "United 93" is to be confronted with the grim chaotic reality of that autumn day in 2001. The movie is deeply disturbing, and some people may have to leave the theater. But it would have been much more disturbing if Greengrass had made it in a conventional way. He does not exploit, he draws no conclusions, he points no fingers, he avoids "human interest" and "personal dramas" and just simply watches. The movie's point of view reminds me of the angels in "Wings of Desire." They see what people do and they are saddened, but they cannot intervene.

Read the whole thing.

And more praise for the film from the father of one of the victims.

REad this Ebert article too on director Paul Greengrass and United 93.